Microsoft makes renewed push into video editing

SEATTLE: Microsoft Corp. will add a video-editing feature to its Windows XP operating system with a new program that automates and simplifies home movie making, the world's largest software maker said on Friday.

Movie Maker 2, whose beta, or test version will be available for download on Microsoft's Web site from Friday, is meant to dispel the notion that home video editing take hours and requires a lot of learning, said Michael Aldridge, lead product manager at Microsoft's digital media division.

The new program, which will be available for free as part of the Windows XP license, automatically pulls video from a camcorder, analyzes clips and assembles a short movie set to music with titles and credits. As growth in personal computers slows, software and hardware makers have been turning their attention to the needs of the red-hot market for digital devices such as digital cameras, digital camcorders and digital music players.

Aldridge said that Movie Maker 2 will support high-speed FireWire connections, a technology that Apple Computer Corp. has embraced for its computers, iPod MP3 player and iMovie series of video editing software. "We knew we needed to go to another level. We've really been working on it for a number of years," said Aldridge.

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