1: Save Your Cash
Usually I go with the books when it comes to learning editing software but this time I was on a short deadline so I thought I'd try video training. I've just finished viewing all the content on this disc and can only say that I'm baffled by how little content I got for my money. I write this review because I wish someone had warned me against the purchase before I dropped a decent number of dollars on an extremely disappointing product.
First off, neither of the words WEB or INTERNET are mentioned in the course of this training. I'm completely serious. Compression for web is simply not a topic they chose to cover. I bought this disc to learn how to compress for the web and am still in a state of shock that it didn't even make the table of contents. So if you want to learn more about H.264 or crushing your video down into smoothly downloadable units - there is nothing here for you. Go buy a Brian Gary book instead.
The instructor on this disc, Larry Jordan, truly is a smart and charismatic teacher and I want to offer that up because it's true, but his crisp explanations are overridden by the paltry amount of topics covered in this training. I don't think the knowledge contained in this video is equivalent to one chapter in a decent Pro Training Series book. It really is staggering. Does the disc do a good job of teaching you about selected topics? Yes it does. The explanations are short but sufficient. The on-screen graphics are what you'd expect - the instructor talks fluidly and competently while you see his mouse moving around an open Compressor window as he works on a single project. Yes, all of that is fine and good. But there is just such a small amount of information being taught here that I think the price is literally $40 too high. This disc is for the ultra-beginner only, as all it really covers is the interface and how to use the Compressor presets. Then it's over. I expected the menu to keep scrolling and scrolling but no. That was the end.
Save your cash.
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