Windows Movie Maker Review

Microsoft's Windows Movie Maker is a free video editor. You can download the program at
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/moviemaker2.mspx

However, being free means there must also be a catch.

But first, let's talk about the positives. Windows Movie Maker has a very easy user interface. Their windows are well place: collections in the middle, help bar to the left, storyboard at the bottom and video preview to the right. It has a simple look that is easy to adapt to for beginners.

Editing the movie is easy too. You can split the video via the video preview. To change the look of the movie, simply go to the tools section and select video effects or transitions.

However, the video effects are very basic; you can't change the options and parameters to make your movie look "just right." You are stuck with the preset settings for them. In addition, the program can only output .WMV videos. You have to convert with another program if you want another codec output.

Unfortunately, that's the least of the problems for Windows Movie Maker. When starting the program, it takes twenty seconds to load; that is a very long time for such a simple program.

The long startup can be especially annoying because Windows Movie Maker crashes frequently. In fact, it crashes ten folds more than any other programs combined in my personal experience. You would thought that Windows Movie Maker may still be in the alpha or beta stages of development but, unfortunately, it is fully developed; heck, even alpha and beta programs run better than this.

Basically, the program crashes every time you try importing an mpeg-encoded video. Even though Windows Movie Maker listed the codec as compatible, it just locks the program up every single time. Basically, you have to go through the hassle of converting your video files to either .AVI (non-mpeg encoded) or .WMV for it to work.

Even upon conversion, another bug kills the program. Every time you put more than six clips on the storyboard, Windows Movie Maker instantly closes for some unknown reason. Making a slide show movie is basically impossible unless you like doing it one batch at a time.

Asides from those bugs, the program likes to crash randomly and during important times. So make sure you save frequently (and hope it doesn't crash when saving).

Windows Movie Maker may be free, but it takes up a lot of your time and effort with constant bugs and crashes. Not to mention the program is limiting in many aspects. Stay as far away from Windows Movie Maker as possible.