Apple Powerbooks prepare for video war coverage


Many journalists will use Apple's Macintosh laptop computers while they cover the war in Iraq.

Apple's Macintosh laptop computers are being loaded with video editing software and advanced compression for sending home wartime video of the U.S. attack on Iraq.

A popular journalist toolkit for war includes a satellite phone, Apple Powerbook or iBook, a Sony DV camcorder, editing software, and compression tools, such as Sorenson's Squeeze 3 Compression Suite, for reducing video file sizes.

The Chicago Tribune's 24 television stations, and the Los Angeles Times newspaper are equipping its field producers with a satellite videophone, a Sony PD-150 DV camcorder, and a PowerBook G4 equipped with Apple's Final Cut Pro editing software, and Sorenson's Compression Suite. Field DV footage will be edited and compressed, then transmitted over the videophone's 64 Kb/s data connection.

The location video is expected to be used for broadcast newscasts, Web sites and print publications. Newsweek and MSNBC.com are issuing digital video cameras and iBooks to many of its war reporters, who will send edited video stories back to New York for distribution to various media outlets.

For more information visit www.apple.com, www.sorenson.com and www.sony.com.

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