DIY: Create a blockbuster home video

Step 1: Getting started Step 2: What you'll need Step 3: Install the software Step 4: Explore the program Step 5: Capture your video

Step 6: Watch your video Step 7: Edit your video Step 8: Add titles and audio Step 9: Add effects Step 10: Save your video

Estimated time required: 4 hours
Estimated cost: US$150 and up

Step 1: Getting started

Groans shouldn't be the first thing you hear when you pop in a home movie. The sound of someone snoring shouldn't follow shortly after you hit Play, either. And if the room empties before you even cue up your video, you have big problems.

One of the easiest ways to spice up an armload of video is with a little editing. The question is, how do you get all those years of recorded history onto your PC? The answer is video-editing software. It lets you polish all that poorly shot video, delete the not-so-interesting footage, and set everything to music, until what you're left with is something your audience will enjoy. What's more, saving the files to your hard drive gives you quick and easy access to your treasured memories. And you can save your masterpieces to optical disc, a more durable storage solution than tape.

Software packages range from Sonic Solutions' US$60 VideoWave 7.0 Professional to Adobe's high-end Premiere Pro, which costs about US$700. We selected Ulead Systems' VideoStudio 8.0 for this Weekend Project. This application is perfect for first-timers, and it sells for less than US$100. Though its core feature is editing, VideoStudio also captures video, has a robust library of effects, and can create a finished product in a variety of formats.

Bill O'Brien is a frequent contributor to CNET. This story originally appeared in Computer Shopper magazine.