After capture from a camcorder tape, it is feasible to identify "scenes" which the program gives names such as "scene_000063" which have mostly "downshooting" or even lens cap on. I can navigate, in Media Import, such that the scenes are displayed in an array of thumbnails of initial frames. If I right click on the thumbnail, I get a menu that starts with "preview", ends with "properties", and includes "remove." Selecting "remove" does indeed remove the thumbnail from the displayed matrix, but does nothing, that I have yet discovered, to edit the capture. For example, I captured footage from two camcorder tapes, and this resulted in two AVI files. Which contain 100% of all the scenes on the tapes, without regard to which scenes I want to remove.

The Capture process lets us choose capture the whole tape or capture now. If the process of creating a large number of "scenes" does not let us select -- remove scenes, why are all those scenes displayed, along with program-created names?

For those who know how, there is functionality to edit using what amounts to VideoWave. That is beyond the scope of my inquiry, and would be the subject of another posting.

Is there a way to actually delete scenes, and have the remaining ones become an AVI file?

After removing unwanted scenes, you should drag the scenes from the media selector to the timeline or storyline. That is where you do the editing. Editing is done in Videowave.

One of the advantages of most video editors is that the original file is never touched.

These Scenes you remove, like your Project file are only ‘notes’ as to how you want the file to appear. There is not one frame of video in them, yet they will do everything you need.

You are still thinking in very limited, linear, terms like individual files. That is not what non-linear editing is about.

Each hour (one tape) turns out to contain about 80 scenes. Presume only two tapes for this trip to Europe. (There were three.) Presume that i want to delete 10 scenes, for whatever reasons, from each tape's worth of scenes.

Please know that the user guide that came in the box with my Creator 2009 does not describe accurately the functionality of the product I bought, despite having the name of it on its cover. I have been making a few marginal notations where I discover the true navigation and functionality. I am pretty sure that those who use this product with ease did not do so when they began using it, but ascended a learning curve that at times was steep. So I want to learn from experienced users what probably took some considerable trial and error.

I gave each tape's AVI a different name. I can get to the display of scenes. I can "remove" say 10 scenes, leaving 70. Now, how do I drag them to a timeline or story line. When I get to an editing screen, there is in the case of storyline a single thumbnail which is colored, and 39 blanks. How would I drag the 70 scenes to this storyline? Or to a timeline?

The program automatically adds more.

One Major thing to remember: To drag detected scenes, you have to use the 'Show Media Selector'. NOT Add Photo/Video. They look a lot alike, but function differently.

After having taught high school mathematics for three years, while studying for and before earning a PhD with a dissertation in artificial intelligence (computer-programmed decision making) I became a programmer writing in absolute octal machine language. Because this is ancient history, I will explain to contemporary computer users that we actually programmed in binary, chunking bits into 3-bit chunks, which is octal. 1960. I had no assembler, no compiler. You bet it was linear, in a sense. We had to consider the results of each tiny computer instruction, such as masking a bit pattern, in excruciating specificity, and deal with every single partial result, one at a time. Later, I programmed in more than half a dozen compiler languages, culminating in my case with C++, using OOP.

That paragraph is simply to assert that though a total newbie in Creator video processing, I have decades of experience in successful computer programming, and can learn very difficult material if it is accurately described. When I was a professional programmer, I generally had access to those more expert than I. In turn, after I earned my PhD (USC, 1970), I shared my computing expertise, as a member of the staff of the Department of Biomathematics, with those post-doctoral researchers in the School of Medicine at UCLA whose disciplines were in other fields.

Lacking a user guide or manual which describes things accurately step-by-step, I ask you to share what you have learned, most likely "the hard way", about how to edit out footage of downshooting, forgetting to turn off the camcorder before putting on the lens cap, making remarks on the audio you don't want anyone else to hear, etc.

Perhaps there is a "third-party" book that does the job that the Roxio manual, that I have, fails to do: describe accurately and completely what to do to use the product. In the case of some major applications, for example, Adobe Photoshop, you can hardly shake a stick at the titles which tell how to use Photoshop. Web tutorials must number in the hundreds if not thousands.

For now, I will be glad to learn how to edit out undesired footage on camcorder tapes, in baby step-by-step specific and accurate detail. And thank you sincerely for it.

Lynn: We are all trying to help. I do not know of a book that teaches one to be creative with software???

There were some independent books for V6, 7 & 8 but the software was evolving so fast in those years that the books couldn’t keep up and you can’t make a profit when it is obsolete in a year! ~ well maybe, I bought one book for a specific software which changed each year and the book cost $300 for each version… It was not complete and didn’t touch strategy.

I have pushed a few Bits to STACK and while an execution of code is linear, the program it is a part of, is not! Or at least it does not have to be if the programmer is creative…

Scenes are not required and neither are a bunch of little clips.

Scenes allow you draw parts from multiple clips into one Production. When I do use Scenes, I never allow any program to designate them for me! I always do it manually.

There is a piece here on general strategy, Here, and we are always up to a discussion but your best bet is to get some RW discs and start playing.

I suggest thinking from the end. Think first of how you want your production to look (I make notes). Then how do you get things to do that? Now you are ready to start.

Use simple tests for concepts… If you are thinking of an elaborate Menu structure, put it together with single still pictures or 1 minute clips (Scenes?)! Take it through and burn on RW and test it out.

That way you avoid hours of Editing and Authoring only to find out it can’t be done that way… (been there – done that – got the tee shirt )

Images are sometimes as good as books.

Watch this video (link) and this one. Although they are from an earlier version of the software they may act as a reference guide.

karri also has some good videos they are more targeted to slide show editing.
I have a few others here.

Also look at the pinned posts at the top of each version's how to page. There are many good help topics there. Examples here and here

Actually, I am such a newbie that I have no aspirations right now to be what I would call creative. In nature still photography, I might claim such aspiration, and my work has been published, but that is completely irrelevant here.

It has been my experience that the travel and birthday party videos that the average person takes need to be pruned, to reduce boredom as well as remove goofs such as downshooting and forgetting to turn off the camcorder.

I just want right now to get rid of the goofed footage in my travel video. I am not trying to be creative now. I shall take advantage of the helpful links I have been given by both Gurus. I expect to use the help to make a personal travel video to share just with family.

I do find serious fault with user guides that have glaring errors, and lack of stepwise instructions, such as the Creator 2009 manual that came in the box.

When I worked for a computer manufacturer, I did some technical writing to enable users to use the utilities and applications that we distributed. Perhaps because of my experience as a high school teacher, I took the approach that these users knew nothing about the programs, and needed to be guided by my writing from total ignorance all the way to full competence. I do not find that kind of writing in the manuals I get in the applications that I buy. Third party manuals, where available, are generally much better, because they have to be better or people would not buy them.

Thanks again for the helpful links.