Baobab productions has developed a software product that will enable DV digital producers around the world to work more productively. Called DV Converter, the program makes DV video files captured with different systems readable and editable on all other DV systems that use the Microsoft AVI file format.

"We needed the software for our own work – to let us edit our digital video on two apparently incompatible digital video systems," says Baobab president, David Mowbray. "Then we realized that it would also let DV video producers all over the world share broadcast quality video data via the Internet, no matter what DV system they had in their own studio."

DV, a generic term that encompasses miniDV, DVCam and DVCPro is a relatively low-cost video recording technology that digitizes the video right in the camera. This is ideal for computer editing and results in "first generation" high-quality, final videos. DV technology is being embraced by producers and broadcasters all over the world.

Unfortunately, the manufacturers of data transfer and editing systems for DV often add identification codes that made a video file from one computer unreadable on another – unless the same hardware capture system is installed. Baobab's DV Converter software eliminates the differences. Now a producer with a Canopus DV-Rex can open files from a Fast DVMaster and the new Sony VAIO computers can read data from both. This was not possible before DV Converter.

A twenty-day trial version of DV Converter is now available for download. The full version costs $50CD or $35US. To download DV Converter click here: DV Converter Trial

Baobab Productions Inc. is one of the world's leading producers of communications material about research in the developing world. For more information, contact Marlene Bedford: