J. Brown                                                                                              November 27, 2004

Appraisal of a Web-Based Tutorial

ImageMixer 1.0 for Sony Online Support

http://www.imagemixer.com/e/sony/imx10/index.htm

Online: November 27, 2004

Reviewed by Jay Brown

Reviewed November 27, 2004

The ImageMixer 1.0 for Sony Online Support from Pixela Corporation appears to be an attempt to produce a Web-based users manual. It should be noted that a users manual was not included with the Sony DCR-DVD 101 camcorder, nor on the ImageMixer 1.0 software CD-ROM when purchased in June, 2004.

Browser used to access site:     Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0

Operating system used:             Windows XP Professional

This Web-based tutorial is only appropriate for individuals who have purchased Sony camcorders that require the use of ImageMixer software. Online support is accessed from this site by clicking the Frequently Asked Questions link (FAQ), where users will find general information, as well as specific questions and answers about the Import, Album, Movie Editing, Layout, and Image Editing features of the software.

As a user with some prior movie editing experience, I found the ImageMixer 1.0 software program not nearly as intuitive as Apple’s iMovie. With no user manual to consult, I was left with no option but to consult the ImageMixer 1.0 for Sony Online Support Web site. I found a total of 108 FAQs and answers on the site. Table 1 (below) includes statistics for the number of questions and answers for each topic covered in online support section.

Table 1

A clear indication that the ImageMixer 1.0 software is merely an intermediate import and rendering step in the production process is highlighted by the small number (4) of FAQs for editing, as compared to the much higher number (40) of questions for importing video to the computer. However, the most important FAQ for my purposes was found under the movie editing topic, as it soon became obvious that I needed to trim clips to reduce the size of each MPEG file.

I would recommend browsing the ImageMixer 1.0 for Sony Online Support Web site to people who have purchased a Sony camcorder bundled with ImageMixer 1.0 software. The site gives users enough information to perform limited production editing, which can be continued by importing saved MPEG files into a program such as Movie Maker 2.1.

About the reviewer: Jay Brown is a student in the Graduate Studies Program at Rosemont College seeking a M.Ed. in Technology in Education. Jay is currently a Technology Coordinator for The Haverford Lower School, in Haverford, Pennsylvania, where he has worked for the past 15 years teaching Computer Studies courses, and coaching teachers to use technology in the classroom.