[MacDV] Re: NTSC miniDV camcorder in France...

[James Asherman]

On Wednesday, September 3, 2003, at 12:16 AM, Ben Ing wrote:

> Actually, the original reason that the different standards exist is 
> tied to the different voltages in the countries. B&W TV was based on 
> the 60Hz AC current in the US (giving us 30 fps), while in Europe, 
> since the current was 50Hz, they went with 25 fps. The main 
> complication came when they decided to add the color carrier. The 
> frequency chosen was a multiple of 60, causing the color carrier to 
> beat against the main signal, forcing the NTSC system to have to come 
> up with dropframe as a fix. In Europe, because the base signal was 50, 
> they didn't have the problem and didn't have to patch their system.

Wasn't there also the issue of B/W TV compatability?
It is my impression that in Europe B/W TV's got thrown out but because 
of the already large user base in the US a system with built-in 
compatibility was devised, compromising the color.
Jim


>
> With NTSC, problems have always existed in moving between the video 
> and film formats, and those problems have continued as we have moved 
> to digital formats. Some animation projects have gone to working in 
> the PAL formats where film, video and digital formats all work at 25 
> fps, allowing for much easier portability between systems.
>
> On Friday, August 22, 2003, at 04:53 PM, Karl Hayden wrote:
>
>> WHY WE ALL CAN'T HAVE THE SAME SYSTEM I DON'T KNOW !!!! (well 
>> actually I do... the NTSC system was developed in the US, the PAL 
>> system was an Anglo-German-Japanese development and the SECAM system 
>> was developed in France. Then nationalism took over and here we are)
>
>