The Flip Mino Pocket Guide: FlipShare
- Installing FlipShare
- Touring FlipShare
- Making Stuff
- Working with DVDs
In Chapter 1, I mention that one of the advantages of the Flip camcorders is that each holds a Windows- and Mac-compatible copy of the FlipShare editing software. This means that you can shoot video, jack your Flip camera into just about any Windows PC or Macintosh with a USB 2.0 port (the exception is a really old Windows PC or Macintosh whose processor is too poky to handle the HD output of a Flip MinoHD or Flip UltraHD), edit your video, and distribute the stuff you've shot. This computer can be your friend's, your mom's, or a school computer on which you're allowed to install software. You don't have to rush home to use your computer, drag a laptop around with you, or purchase or download additional software. Everything you need is right there on the camera.
In this chapter, I look at installing and configuring FlipShare as well as using it to edit videos.
Installing FlipShare
You can't run the FlipShare software directly from a Flip camera. Instead, you install it from the camera. Here's how.
Windows XP
To install FlipShare in Windows XP, follow these steps:
Plug the camera into a free USB 2.0 port.
The camera makes its little "ba-lip" power-on sound and starts charging. Then Windows takes a couple of seconds to recognize the camera and automatically install the proper drivers.
Instruct Windows to use FlipShare.
A FLIPVIDEO window appears, offering you a variety of choices, from viewing video with a built-in program to viewing a slideshow of images. You're interested in that first choice.
Choose View Your Flip Camcorder Videos Using the Program Provided on the Device, and click the OK button.
The FlipShare installer application launches. It takes a little over a minute to install the software and place a FlipShare shortcut on the desktop.
Windows Vista
To install FlipShare in Windows Vista, follow these steps:
Plug the camera into a free USB 2.0 port.
The camera makes its little "ba-lip" power-on sound and starts charging. Then Windows takes a couple of seconds to recognize the camera and automatically install the proper drivers.
Instruct Windows to use FlipShare.
An AutoPlay window appears, with View Your Flip Camcorder Videos listed as the sole entry below Install or Run Program.
Click View Your Flip Camcorder Videos to install the FlipShare application.
As is typical, Windows asks for permission.
Click Continue to install.
The FlipShare installer application launches. It takes a little over a minute to install the software and place a FlipShare shortcut on the Desktop.
Macintosh
To install FlipShare on a Macintosh, follow these steps:
Plug the camera into a free USB 2.0 port.
The camera makes its little "ba-lip" power-on sound and starts charging.
- Double-click the FLIPVIDEO icon that appears on the Desktop to reveal the contents of the camera.
- Double-click Start FlipShare to launch the application's installer.
In the resulting windows, agree to the license agreement, and enter your Administrator password when prompted.
The FlipShare software is installed in the Applications folder at the root level of your Mac's startup drive.
If another application on your PC or Mac believes that it can import video files from the Flip camera—Adobe Photoshop Elements or iPhoto, for example—it may launch automatically and ask to grab the videos. For the time being, dismiss any such offers.