parachutist

Fantastic job on the video description! Kudos to the camera operator too. I met you at PIA and was impressed with how eager you were to answer my rigging questions... and continuing here :)

And here's one with the three LCD foldout screens... system prices starting at $9999? http://www.bsicomputer.com/new/portable/lcdv30/lcdv30_intro.htm

That style is usually called the Lunchbox system. They're handy because you can use desktop hardware in a portable chassis... but the downside is the price of the chassis. Usually $500 range for a bare chassis with PSU, and then you need to deal with ventilation issues.

The music track may be muted in Vegas: check out your affected .VEG files and see if the music track looks greyed-out. Also try playing through sections of the .VEG file where music should be, and see if you hear the music in Vegas. I agree with soulbabel.. this appears to be something happening before YouTube gets the video. Chris

There was a thread about this video several months ago: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=4014565

Oh yes, just be careful not to overtighten the screw holding camera in place, or you'll find the CX100's nut can pull out of the camera body. I haven't have that issue (500-ish jumps on this setup) ... probably because I was careful after reading the woes of others in this forum.

That's what I use... it works great. I did add an anti-twist post to make sure the cam stays pointed in the right direction. A small screw or pop rivet can be used for that.

We use USB hubs like these to recharge. No need to plug in a computer if the hub comes with an AC adapter, like this model: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817801039

There are some other factors too. We seem to sell more videos as the day goes on each day... I think it's because those who bought video are viewing their DVDs on our screens and enjoying them, laughing hysterically, with huge smiles. Those who haven't jumped yet are realizing the value of video and going back to manifest to order them. First load is often 25% bought videos. Third or fourth load seems more like 75%+ and it seems to stay that way the rest of the day usually... 75-85% Chris

I've been dealing with off & on pain there for years now, so I'm listening, Craig... Or watching maybe if you can pull out the vid cam & up it to YouTube or something Chris

Thanks... I'm glad to know you're enjoying those gloves! Chris

edited to remove comments cause I saw this video was from a long time ago & I'm sure the TI already got enough grief over it =p~

There are *lots* of options when it comes to hardware/software for editing videos. Generally I like to find the most cost effective way to have a reliable moderately fast system. In my experience, right now that middle ground for pretty high speed on at a fair price starts with an AMD Phenom II hex-core CPU on an affordable motherboard with 8 gigs of memory. You could do editing on a laptop, but you're always sacrificing speed and money when using a notebook system. Notebooks cost more for lower speed. Plus they tend to overheat easier and are not as simple to service. You were asking about used towers & power supplies. A new decent tower can be had for $40 with free shipping, so used isn't really saving you much there: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811133179 Good power supplies are important, so I generally spend $100 on a good new one for these 6-core systems. They need solid stable power. In the long run you'll be better served to buy a new 650+ PSU instead of salvaging an old one for this. When it comes to deciding whether you want Vegas Movie Studio or Pro, the real factor that swings the vote is: how many videos will be edited on the busiest days? If it's five to ten then go with Studio I'd say. If it's a dozen or more then I'd say invest in Vegas Pro with Production Assistant 2 for automation to save time. There's a general guideline in my opinion... any more specific questions can be asked here or sent to me as a PM. blues, Chris

I think Pilots are a great choice. They open great, fly great, land great, and they're not overpriced. Besides that, they're easy to sell when you decide you want something else. I can't see a bad side to that equation. Chris

I'm trying to add a new rig for sale in Complete Systems section of the Classifieds, however there's no option for PISA in the drop-down list of reserve manufacturers and no Tempo Option in the reserve Type models drop-down list. Any idea what's going on? I noticed this ad, posted back in February was able to add a PISA reserve: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/detail_page.cgi?ID=105259;d=1 However recent ads like this one apparently ran into the same issue I'm seeing, and were unable to add PISA reserves anywhere other than the description box: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/classifieds/detail_page.cgi?ID=109799;d=1 Chris

I was thinking the same several years ago, mainly because I remembered how long it takes to get a custom suit and I wanted these wings for the weekend. In the end I ditched the idea of removable ones and made a pair of permanent wings for my freefly suit instead. Yes the tooth zippers are generally stronger than coil, however the coils can bend much better than tooth, meaning the coil would be better to go around the curves under your arms... so neither zipper is ideal here. Maybe consider mounting permanent wings (open up the side seam of your suit, add a piece of binding tape for support, and sandwich in the wing) and then have a small pocket in the wing so you can push the bottom attachment up out of the way while doing tandems, then pull it down and click in place for outside video. It's quicker than putting on and taking off wings between jumps. Chris

You must input the student's name, adjust voice track for appropriate areas, create slow-mo sections as desired, and click the green Process button to render. Once it's rendered we use Sony's DVD Architect to burn the DVD. That's another click or two, but it's worth the extra mouse strokes because it provides a custom DVD menu with DZ info, etc as well as the student's video. From your description it seems as though rxt simply provides another GUI to produce the same results. ie: I click and drag to highlight an area that I don't want to hear (like freefall noise), but you click the clip and click to mark it as voice. It's basically the same thing, except that rxt is apparently limiting you to adjusting the volume of the entire clip, whereas I can specify i/o points more precisely using the timeline. Upload renders are another variable that makes that answer range quite a bit. I could do quick low quality YouTube renders or high quality renders that can take three times as long... so I'll stick to DVD rendering alone for the answer there. For DVD creation it averages 12 minutes for one, 18 minutes for two, 22 minutes for three. Less than 8 minutes total input is possible, but in either your or my case it would produce a rather bland video without much polish.

There are many variables. We customize templates and worflows to suit the drop zone's needs. Some DZs want ultimate speed and very little fluff in the videos. Others desire sepcial FX, overlays of their logo at key points, slow-mo sections, personalized messages to the student such as "Happy 50th Birthday Sam!", or other details in every edit. The degree of video complexity desired by the DZO determines amount of input required by the editor. System speed also plays a big part when figuring out complete production time. Taking these variables into account, HD GoPro footage from SD card to completed DVD takes anywhere from 10 - 16 minutes in my experience. Yes you can work on multiple projects simultaneously. That's where the real time saving happens. I've found the new 6-core AMD processors make multitasked editing especially smooth. Chris

I know there are some gaping holes in this story. If the IT person had problems and he was at all worth his salt, he'd go directly to the designer of the software. It sounds like somebody threw up their hands and decided they liked macs better :P So far I've set up several Vegas/PA systems at various DZs, or I've simply mailed systems out and trained users via telephone. It usually takes a few hours for training, and they're off and running, I'll get a question here or there afterwards, but otherwise the tech support line is pretty quiet. Chris

Keep playing with it and you'll notice it getting even smoother. I use R3 video mode for GoPro HD. That makes it 720P @ 60fps, allowing for some nice slow-mo edits. How did the pics turn out? Chris

It looks like these UPT suggestions were deleted from the current Sigma manual. Apparently they were in Section 5, Chapter 3 in the 2005 manual, however the 2007 manual has no chapter 3. I can find no suggestions in the current manual or on USPA's page. Is it a free-for-all with tandems now if the TI gives a thumbs-up? Chris Read Sec 5, Chap 2. Matt Awesome... thanks, Matt!

It looks like these UPT suggestions were deleted from the current Sigma manual. Apparently they were in Section 5, Chapter 3 in the 2005 manual, however the 2007 manual has no chapter 3. I can find no suggestions in the current manual or on USPA's page. Is it a free-for-all with tandems now if the TI gives a thumbs-up? Chris

Average of about one out of 40 will reach for me during opening, and its pretty consistent: they most always reach up around my elbows and hook their arms over mine. All I do is move my arms down and away from their grip, and keep my arms up, out of reach for the rest of the deployment. Occasionally someone will do more than hook my arms... they will have a tight grip. I'll say loudly in their ear "Let go of my arm, please". Usually by the second repeat they respond.

Those are some vibrant colors is your avatar pic! Feels like I'm right there. Welcome to the world of CF

Thanks, Spot. Does he just make the double GoPro or does he make others for the CX110? I make them for double GoPro only. I had a cx100 and compared the hc vids to GoPro vids... GoPro came out much clearer across the entire screen. Cx100s are limited by the coke bottle lenses, cx100s are bigger, more expensive, and heavier. I couldn't find good reason to use a cx100 instead of GoPro for handcam, so I decided not to make gloves for 'em. More info about my single & dual gloves are available at http://www.funjump.com Chris