Do you dream of being the next great Hollywood director? Fancy trying your hand at editing your own home videos? Chances are if you use Windows XP, you already have all of the software tools you need to create your own movie masterpiece.|
1. Download the latest version 2. Collect all of your source material 3. Drag and drop into the Timeline |
4. Add transitions to your movie 5. Jazz it up with title and credits 6. Finishing it all off |
Most users don't know that Windows XP includes it's own video editing software, right out of the box. Windows Movie Maker is included with Windows XP and can be used to edit your home videos, including adding titles, effects and transitions, as well as adding audio and narration.
And if you don't own a video camera, there are still plenty of things you can do with Movie Maker, including making slide shows from your digital photos using all of features mentioned above.
Once you have finished your masterpiece, you can then package it to distribute to other users to send via e-mail, burn to CD or upload to the web or your digital video camera. You can also buy a software add-on from Sonic that will allow you to burn your edited video to a DVD.
Here is a quick run-down of what you will need to do to get started with Windows Movie Maker:
1. Download the latest version
Windows Movie Maker is installed with Windows XP but it is definitely worth updating your copy to the latest version. You can get the update to Windows Movie Maker through the Windows Update service, which is available from the Windows XP Start menu.
When putting your masterpiece together, you will want to make sure that you have all of the source material easily at hand. It's a good idea to import all of this material first so you have everything you need. There are a number of ways you can obtain this source material -- if you have a video capture card or cable on your computer, you can plug your video camera in and Movie Maker can capture the video directly.
Alternately, you can import video from a wide range of formats, including .AVI, .MPG, .WMV, etc. (unfortunately, Movie Maker does not support QuickTime movies).
3. Drag and drop material into the TimelineOnce you have all of your source material together, you can then start dragging and dropping the movie clips, pictures, etc. into the Timeline at the bottom of the Movie Maker window, as shown in Figure 1 (right).
Figure 1: Drag and drop material into the Timeline.
Tip: You can also add narration to your movie by selecting Tools > Narrate Timeline. You will need a microphone attached to your computer and you can record a running commentary throughout the movie.
4. Add transitions to your movie
To see a list of all of the available transitions, use the drop-down list at the top of the page to view the Video Transitions collection., which is shown below in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Add transitions to your movie using the
Video Transitions collection.
There are over 20 transitions included, with effects you may recognise from television or movies, including fades, wipes, diamonds and circle effects.
And what would your masterpiece be without an introduction? To add titles and/or credits to your movie, select Tools > Titles and Credits to open the title options page. Click one of the links shown to add titles to the start of your movie, in between clips, credits at the end, etc. Once you select where you want to insert them, another page will open with a text box where you can type your title text. You can also change the font and formatting to suit your own style. 6. Finishing it all off
Once you have put it all together, it's time to finish your creation by saving it to your desired format. Select File > Save Movie File to open the Save Movie Wizard, shown below in Figure 3, which will help you determine the best format for saving your movie.
Figure 3: Options for saving your movie.
And that is all there is to it! While Windows Movie Maker may not have all of the features found in high-end video software, it does provide the occasional "director" with everything they need to create their own masterpieces.
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unknown
12/11/2006 01:09 PM
does this version offer more filter effects?
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ellena
16/11/2006 09:03 AM
cant figure out how to post it on the internet without subscribing to stuff...
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Stefi
16/12/2006 10:29 AM
Hi, I am glad that I found your page.I have just used Windows media maker to make a photo slide show with photos from my wedding that was 2 months ago and it came great...I believe I used arround 90 photos if not more and I like it a lot. The only problem I have right now at the end is saving the photo slide show to a format to be able to watch it on my dvd player (where usaly I can view photos - is a home theatre with Vcr/dvd player) . I have saved on a cd on a format that was mention for cd (that it took about 1 hour - my slide show is about 13 min.). I have save it normal and in both ways I sayved it the way I was able to watch it it was on my laptop with real player...and one more thing (I used photos at a high resolution...2200 x 3080 pixels)...and the quality of the images when I play on a hall screen is not good. Please can you give me some advices how to do it in a easy way and to be burn it on a cd (I can burn only on cd)...to surprise my familly for Christams. I would really apriciate. Thank you. Happy Holidays
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Haywood
13/01/2007 12:53 AM
If you have XP media you can use the Medi centre to convert your Movie Maker files into a DVD format to play on your DVD player..It takes around 1 minute per 1 minute of movie to do..but its easy....
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bankergram
05/02/2007 08:25 AM
I am trying to get help, I have windows xp with the security pack and undated but I don't have movie maker, I can't down load it because all they say is to do an update....can anyone help me
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bluspirit008
01/03/2007 08:45 AM
I love windows movie maker its great but my problem is I spent about £5 on music from itunes then I couldn't import the music I had bought onto windows movie maker can anyone tell me why or how I can get round this?
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Anonoymous
05/03/2007 09:20 AM
hi i need help, some one supposedly told me that through windows movie maker you can make music videos faster, like making them sound like hamsters and stuff, if that is possible please let me know how! thanks!
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amateur
24/03/2007 07:28 AM
HELP PLEASE!! I have windows vista movie maker and can't import video clips from a DVD I burned (not a mass produced film, just some shots transferred to a DVD-R disc.) These are BUP files that need to go to AVI or MPEG , etc. How can I rip & transfer or import? This sucks!! Thanks for your help out there..
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muja28
09/04/2007 08:14 PM
HOW CAN I PUT MY MUSIC ONTO MOVIE MAKER
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curious269
12/04/2007 12:24 AM
... so does anyone know how to save videos or movies from the internet to my computer using windows movie maker? i know that it can be done, or at least have spoken to people who have said they have done it. any help at all would be very much appreciated ...
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CopyMug9
14/04/2007 02:08 AM
I like the program but it runs like crap on my computer. When I try to save my movie to my computer it says it will take 1340 minutes and raising. I left to go for 50 minutes to see if it got better, but when I came back and looked at the computer it said it now has 23,550 minutes remaining with 0% complete. That's just crazy. So now I'm dividing my video in half now and see if it can save those to videos.
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Pooky
17/05/2007 04:23 AM
I am having a heck of a time with the Movie Maker- I have windows xp and I am making a slide of about 100 pictures with a few song clips- It continuously freezes on me and I cannot save any of it to a cd - If I can even get to that point- How do I use the Medi Center to covert to a DVD- So to sum it up- How do I get this program to quit freezing on me - and then if I can- how do I make it a DVD? THANK YOU!
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Stephanie
17/05/2007 12:58 PM
What type of DVDs do i need to use?
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anonymous
25/05/2007 11:05 AM
I'm trying to put music to my video but am unable to import it from Real Player. Any idea on how I may be able to do that? Thanks.
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trivo
26/05/2007 02:25 PM
it is closed automaticly when Im working.
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Sara
27/05/2007 03:31 AM
Why cant i put videos from my phone into movie maker slide ?
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mad
27/05/2007 02:39 PM
i made a video on this movie maker, and i did the steps in how to save it to my computer..because thats where i want it to be saved. well its not letting me. & i tried saving it to a cd too. it also wont let me. i dont know what is wrong. i have a screen shot of what pops up.. but im getting really upset with this. i need answers please, thanks.
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Matthew
04/06/2007 02:31 AM
i try to narrarate the timeline but every time it hgets stuck im getting REALLY pissed on this movie maker freezing every time i do a certain thing LEASE someone give me advice on how to stop this thnks
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MsUnderestimated
06/06/2007 12:49 PM
Regarding this previous question: how do u dowload this windows movie maker?? I have teh same question. There is obviously no answer here.... This page is useless.
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DS
23/06/2007 03:06 AM
Movie Maker comes with XP sp2. It seems to be buried so you need to: click on MyComputer and do a search of your hard drive for "Movie Maker" The result will show a couple of files. Right click on the exe file and make a shortcut to your desktop so you can access it easily. Have FUN!!!
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mitty
29/06/2007 07:52 PM
yes...but u dont tell us how to import dvds exactly u just said the format so i dont understand....i tried dragging the media but no luck.. and i dont have a cable thing for quick capture.
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anna909707
01/07/2007 05:19 PM
OMG I really really really need help, wel... i went on youtube.com the other day and i saw alot of people making fan videos for celebrities and that had music playing in the backgroung and photos of the person and video clips, i really need to know how you get video clips of celbrities into windows movie maker! Help please!!
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Tattor-tot
06/07/2007 10:52 AM
everytime i try to put a clip in there, i put it in then it freezes and closes. i need help plz
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Helena
12/07/2007 10:06 AM
I HAVE A SOLUTION to your music problems. I had the same exact problem. Well, you go to limewire, then to library and click explore. Then, go to "Copy file" and click a place to copy it. Then,it will show up and Windows Movie Maker will let it in.
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sarahjjj
19/07/2007 08:04 PM
how do i make it possible 2 add quick time short movies on to windows movie maker??? there must be a possible way? cant i convert the film or save it under a diff format please help.
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MAX PARFITT
20/07/2007 11:05 PM
how the hell do you import music. every song i try is mostly not supported or either corrupted. any ideas?
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Shigure
30/07/2007 05:07 AM
HOW DO YOU MAKE WINDOWS MOVIE MAKER NOT FREEZE UP?!! Cause mine is and it's getting annoying. I'm supposed to have a certain video done by a certain point in time, and I can't get it done if it's always freezing on me!!!!! GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Movie Maker (not that good)
11/08/2007 05:09 AM
I have my own video camera and i love making movies and video clips on it... but i'm not that good... could u please help me to be a better video/movie maker???
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phannan
20/08/2007 06:54 PM
If you want to import Sony Handycam files to MM2. Get a version of MM1, it will let you import the clips into a new project yes put them in a timeline. Next File - Save as Movie and burn to recordable CD. They will be saved as WMV files (separate clips) which will then upload into MM2!
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webpluto7
27/08/2007 04:35 AM
after I record a movie.my dvd freezes half waywhen i watch on my dvd player why?from wndows dvd moviker 6
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webpluto756
30/08/2007 08:52 AM
Hey i really need help please! How do you get videos from your phone onto movie maker is there any way you can change them so movie maker will accept them?
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Lyndy
30/08/2007 09:36 AM
My Windows Movie maker keeps freezing & its driving me insane! I noticed its also happening to alot of other people. Is there any remedy to this problem??
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danilas
02/09/2007 06:15 AM
no comments
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sabina
02/09/2007 02:30 PM
good
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zyrix
02/09/2007 05:21 PM
I have pictures and music that I want to throw together but everytime I try to drag and drop the picture from my collection on there, it won't show on the storyboard or timeline. So, I tried to drag and drop my sound wave onto it, nothing. Please tell me what's going on.
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steady
09/09/2007 12:37 AM
i have made my vid and everything but all i need now is to make it faster.. how do i do this.. help please!!
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reyz
11/09/2007 01:27 PM
I woulk like to know why it doesnt let you open a previous saved project if its not in the same format. Does any1 know if this can be changed and how would you get it to burn on to a dvd disc.
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Yaourt
05/10/2007 12:23 AM
felixxus => just download RAD video tool, freeware, no restrictions. It allows you to convert close to ANY video files into .avi. side from that, i too just want to stop those freaky freezes! driving me crazy...
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osmito
19/10/2007 08:24 AM
evertbody ask but nobody answer... the subject about the freezing, how it can be fixed ?
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coops
19/10/2007 03:51 PM
I cant get movie maker to import my videos. How do you get the old version back
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StuartM
23/10/2007 05:49 PM
Why can I play/edit my videos in WMM?
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Director
03/11/2007 10:28 PM
Hi i got a question, How do i put videos that i recorded with my mobile on windows movie maker, my mobile model is an N91 please respond!Is there anyway to change the videofile to somthing movie maker can use??
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URCHOSENONE
06/11/2007 08:34 AM
I started using WMM a few months ago and did a quick photo show for my wife. Now I am trying to do one for my church small group and I can't get it to stop freezing. I have about 80 pictures and have about 6 different mp3 for back ground music but I can't past the 2nd song without it freezing. I have the latest version & I have a powerful PC. Can anyone help me????
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salan12345
13/11/2007 01:24 AM
Dear URCHOSENONE MP3 and other PIC formats are not very friendly with Windows Movie Maker. Solution to your problem is to break your movie into many small portions. You can do it like this 1) Make your movies of 15 (or 20 if it works) picture each with all the transitions that you want to use. Do not add sound file at this point. (Convert all you projects into movies, like File - Save movie File - Out put quality - Video for Local Playback (2.1 mbps) 2) Import back all your movies into movie maker now. Add music that you wish. Convert it to movie. Hope this works with you. (If still you face problem write me at salan.khalkho@astrafx.com)
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Fade
13/11/2007 10:14 PM
Windows Movie Maker is the worst video editing software I have ever used. It's limitations are frustrating and it is prone to freezing up, resulting in lost work and time. The solution to the freeze-ups? Invest in a better program.
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LNM
16/11/2007 12:34 AM
I'm using Windows Movie Maker on Windows Vista on a PC for a project and want to know the correct way of saving/burning the documentary on the CD to present on the teacher's Mac in class. She doesn't have Windows Media Player, so I have to save it as Quicktime, how do I do that?
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emilyskates
16/11/2007 10:07 AM
i hate that it doesnt work with quicktime!!!!!!! thats all i have! is there anyway i can convert it to another file so it will work? email me if you know! skatergirl132@comcast.net
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mike
17/11/2007 12:39 PM
it does not tell how to donwload it
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davidcoleman
24/11/2007 05:31 PM
I cannot import music, from iTunes, into Movie Maker as it says the file is unsupported. I followed a trouble shooting guide to remove the audio device in the registry as it said this was a common problem but still can't import and get the same message. Any answers?
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JanineT
25/11/2007 09:45 PM
davidcoleman, I have had a similar problem. What I did was burn the songs to a CD, then "rip" (copy) them back onto my computer from the CD. (The file type changes this way). Hope this helps you.
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pachiappan pradeep
02/12/2007 05:26 PM
i actually have a doubt how do i play a movie continously ie when the movie comes to an end it should again start from first
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Natalie
22/12/2007 03:16 AM
yeah... I cant get rid of this freezing thing on WMM... I've tried a lot of things.. even downloading something to try and make it stop, but it wont, and its driving me insane. Any ideas?
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Bill
07/01/2008 01:56 PM
worst software I have ever used.....won't copy and freezes up when trying to copy to disk.....& or cd...wasted my whole vacation days trying to do a simple slide show with pics and music
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slodragin
14/01/2008 10:17 AM
HELP PLEASE!! I have windows vista movie maker and can't import video clips from a DVD I burned (not a mass produced film, just some shots transferred to a DVD-R disc.) These are BUP files that need to go to AVI or MPEG , etc. How can I rip & transfer or import? This sucks!! Thanks for your help out there..
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CoolBananas
23/01/2008 02:22 PM
I've accidentally discovered that you can import mov file into Windows Movie Maker. What I did was get an application (Nevo) that can convert quick time move file into avi, then leave this application open. Drag and drop your mov file into Windows Movie Maker. I believed this is possible because Windows Movie Maker still smart enough to see the conversion objects in memory to allows you to import in quick time vieo. Hope this help everyone out there. Now how do I convert AVCHD into Movie maker?
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tinaazx3
03/02/2008 02:18 PM
how do i get episodes from my realplayer onto windows movie maker? i tried importing to collections.. and i went to my folder for my episodes.. but nothing's in the folder... help me.
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RachelW
09/02/2008 04:58 AM
How can I get my Episodes (From Real player) onto Windows Movie Maker? Because when I try to it wont import into it! Please Help!
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sanny
08/03/2008 10:06 AM
how do you put videos ive recorded on my mobile phone onto movie maker it wont let me
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Sara
08/03/2008 11:36 AM
when ever play a burned DVD on my computer it asks me for a codec. Ive tried to download it but how do i use it?? And what is a medi center on Windows XP? Someone told me that when u download a DVD it can make it faster. How can I get it??
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google
09/03/2008 02:02 PM
when i drag and drop the movie clip onto timeline smoothly,during that very time movie maker (not responding) appear
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leanne
18/03/2008 04:42 AM
what do i ned to download to get my videos imported to windows movie maker
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teflondon
22/04/2008 10:07 PM
HELP PLEASE!! I have windows vista movie maker and can't import video clips from a DVD I burned (not a mass produced film, just some shots transferred to a DVD-R disc.) These are BUP files that need to go to AVI or MPEG , etc. How can I rip & transfer or import? This sucks!! Thanks for your help out there..
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u a looZa
27/04/2008 01:55 AM
ahaha i have a better version that that cause i go a vista andd that one sucks so you should really update your websites
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Amarie
23/05/2008 01:21 AM
I have an MPEG file that won't allow me to import into WMM. It says I need to have a codec? What does that mean? How do I convert Mpeg to make it work on WMM?
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dudeman770
30/05/2008 05:10 AM
Oh My God!!!!! this program has worked PERFECT for me for the past few months, now randomly out of NOWHERE it starts Freezing!!! I deleted all the collections I upload a video, its fine I upload a music file its fine then the second I try to Click on ANYTHING else it freaking Freezes!!!!! EVERYTIME!!! I cant take it, its making me insane!!! I just want to make music video's for my band but how can I do that when this program sucks and starts freezing out of nowhere If ANYONE has found a solution or a better program PLEASE email me at: dudeman770@yahoo.com Thank You!!!
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Amanda901
06/06/2008 08:15 AM
How do I add music from my I-pod onto windows movie maker?
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Candy
06/06/2008 10:04 PM
I have the same problem as Shigure. I can create a movie with no freezes and it runs perfectly in "project" mode, but after I to save it to anything the video freezes halfway through while the music continues to play. I think the next time someone discovers an unknown insect they should name it Microsoft.
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Meimidget690
13/06/2008 06:19 PM
I recorded with WeGame And when i try to put it into WMM It closes. I Have Windows XP Help
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jj
24/06/2008 08:48 PM
hi i carnt import vidios of my nokia phone on to windows movie maker tell me how i can plz ?
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sirwin
24/06/2008 11:37 PM
Help - I'm trying to make a movie, but my timeline won't play and I can't seem to add titles. What is the problem and how can I fix this. It worked before, I've made a few picture DVDs before.
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kdgirl96
27/06/2008 04:31 AM
hey people i use WMM for my webshow and it turns out pretty good. So i'm pretty much the producer/editor and know how to work WMM good just IM me if you have a problem and i'll see if i can fix it. I don't work with burning to cd s. Love, Bubbaslover@gmail.com kdgirl96@hotmail.com
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sbroyles
03/07/2008 02:54 AM
Hello - I'm trying to make a photo slideshow of several hundred pictures. The photos are all beautiful, high-resolution shots - but when I bring them into windows movie maker, it downgrades them and they come out all pixelated. Can this be fixed?
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XoxobrownweezyxoxO
04/07/2008 04:42 AM
Hi WMM Person, I have a windows movie maker and i know how to use it and everything it's also working great but the problem is that i have realplayer too and when i download something off of realplayer i want to put it in windows movie maker so i can make cool anime stuff but it doesn't work it always says i don't have this file thing that make it go onto my windows movie maker so i really need you help thanks =]
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a pissed off youtuber.
26/08/2008 05:06 AM
I CANT STAND THE FREEZING ANYMORE! its not fair.. .i spend hours on WMM trying to be patient with it, and i try to save often.. but i end up losing work and time! i see a lot of other people are having issues with that too.. obviously its just a crappy program. thats a bummer cuz its easy to use, etc. can someone PLEAAASE tell me an easier program to use? OR can someone tell me how to make it freeze LESS? i dont mind too much if it freezes once in a while... but when it starts freezing 5 times in 2 minutes, then i get pissed off. please help me, anyone!
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KyoKrazy
30/09/2008 09:42 AM
if there is anyone out there that can help me, can you tell me how to get my dvd's into WMM? my email is KyoKrazy@gmail.com thanks for all who can help! ^_^
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honey_suckle
04/10/2008 12:49 PM
hi... i've figured out how to use WMM and think it's really great, but can only save the music I have edited as a WMM file which means it's unusable in other programes. how do i change this to an mp3 file?
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gabe
09/10/2008 06:50 AM
if someone can tell me if this program will let you cut parts from movies to make your own movies please email me and let me know or if you know of one email my gabrielhull1978@aol.com
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