Re: Screen shots from JAG

[Steve Mullen] "Until I saw video from the Sony I was a strong defender of the Sony against those who were heavily criticising it. Have you forgotten?"


Hi Steve,

I am not trying to be argumentative when I say that I have little recollection of times where you actually *defended* the Sony. As for the Sony and your comments in regards to it, you have been very pointedly anti-Sony for nearly all of this situation -- even before the camera was actually released. This is one of the reasons why many in these threads are remarking as to what they perceive as a strong anti-Sony posture, one that has been quite on-going.

As DRW pointed out in his remarks to one of your posts, he felt that your claim to being "neutral" in regards to Sony's HDV cameras were preposterous and disingenuous.

It matters little who is right or wrong in this. I have long argued online that facts are of little consequnce, as "perception is everything in a marketing war." The perception is that you are quite pointedly anti-Sony and pro-JVC.

I often argue my own point-of-view, Steve. Usually, I try to use operative terms like "in my opinion" and "based on my experience." I try to leave people with their own opinions and life experiences (usually, though there have been a few times where I have put my foot down but that's usually no more than two or three times in the course of an average year).

Having worked in the satellite television industry for years and having been to dinner on numerous occasions with Charlie Eregen (founder of EchoStar and Dish Network), I know how compressed digital television is and how far removed it is from what was probably seen in the first generation that Jody saw when he shot and submitted the shots which were approved. I *highly* doubt that what came across on television was what was submitted.

Having been involved in the *original* General Instruments® DigiCipher™ project (not what later was shipped using the name) -- which was the first real HD system of any developmental consequence in the USA -- and having been an editor for years, I have little faith that what you recorded is what Jody saw in the original footage.

None of this is life-or-death, it is merely art -- subject to interpretation, classification, recompression and dissection -- but in the end, I've never met a paint brush which is a "one size fits all" in all situations, nor totally useless either. In the hands of a great painter, any brush can take on a life of its own based on the degree of talent of the painter.

If a painter hates a brush, then it makes little sense to use it. But in that regard, whereas I have little doubt that NAB will usher in new and exciting things in the days ahead, I think it's a safe bet to gamble that users buying a Sony have made a reasonable purchase that should fairly easily make back the investment proffered. (And no, we do not and never have gotten advertising support from Sony. But I do like to try to be fair.)

Best regards,

Ron Lindeboom
creativecow.net