Making movies on your computer is a lot of fun. And if you have Microsoft Windows Vista, you already have everything you need to do it. In this hands-on course, you'll learn how to use Vista's Movie Maker to create your own digital movies.

We'll start with the absolute basics for beginners. You'll find out how to open the Movie Maker program, recognize and use its features, and bring video files into the program for editing. Then you'll learn to create your own video clips so you can pick and choose which video you want to use in a movie and what you want to edit out.

You'll see how to add special effects, titles, credits, still photos, sound effects, custom background music, and voice narration to your movie. And you'll get hands-on practice at every step of the process as you turn so-so video from a video camera into a fun, professional-quality movie you'll be proud to share with family and friends.

Speaking of sharing, you'll also learn how to share your movie through e-mail, YouTube, and CDs. And if you have (or acquire) the Home Premium or Ultimate version of Windows Vista, you can even create your own DVDs to watch on TV!

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Syllabus:

A new section of each course starts monthly. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when lessons are released. You will have access to all lessons until the course ends. However, the interactive discussion area that accompanies each lesson will automatically close two weeks after the lesson is released. As such, we strongly recommend that you complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

The final exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the final exam has been released, you will have two weeks to complete all of your course work, including the final exam.

Week One

Wednesday - Lesson 01

Windows Movie Maker is a computer program for making movies. It comes free with every copy of Microsoft Windows Vista. So if you have Windows Vista, you have Movie Maker. In this first lesson, you'll learn how to start Windows Movie Maker and how to identify and use the various tools it provides for making your own movies. You'll download some sample video that you'll use throughout the course to learn movie-making skills in a practical, hands-on manner. When you finish this lesson, you'll know your way around the Movie Maker program, and you'll be ready to start creating a movie.

Friday - Lesson 02

The first step to creating a movie is to get the video into the Movie Maker program. We'll start working on the second step today, which is to break the video into smaller clips, so you can keep the clips you want and get rid of the ones you don't want. By mastering these skills, your finished movie will contain exactly the video you want; nothing more and nothing less.

Week Two

Wednesday - Lesson 03

In this lesson, you'll learn how to arrange your video clips in Movie Maker's Storyboard. You'll discover how to play the Storyboard, so you can see how your movie will look to others. And you'll explore how to make changes, fix mistakes, and take total control of what will show in your movie, and when. By the end of this lesson, you'll have already created your first finished movie. But the fun is just beginning!

Friday - Lesson 04

Today you'll spice up your movie with special effects and transitions. These are a lot of fun, and they can really add pizzazz to any movie you create. Movie Maker offers numerous effects and transitions, like 3D Ripple, Flip, Spin, Fade In, and Fade Out. You can try them all out, and apply those you like best to your movie. This lesson is a student favorite.

Week Three

Wednesday - Lesson 05

There's no rule that says a movie can only contain video. In this lesson, you'll learn how to add still photographs to any movie you create. You'll discover that you can combine multiple photos into a slide show, complete with cool transitions and special effects to maximize visual impact and wow your audience!

Friday - Lesson 06

Today you'll master the skills needed to add your own custom titles and credits to the movies you create. These will add a professional touch to your movies. And as you'll discover, you can use your own words, your own colors, and your own print styles. You can make text appear on any video clip and any still photo within your movie.

Week Four

Wednesday - Lesson 07

By the time you get to this lesson, you'll have already mastered all the basic skills needed to create just about any movie you wish. But there may also be times when you want to tweak something just a little. Maybe you'll want to make one photo appear for a little more time, or make a title appear for a little less time. The Movie Maker Timeline, which you'll discover in this lesson, lets you make those small refinements that help you perfect your movie. And as you'll discover in subsequent lessons, the Timeline offers additional options to make your movie even better.

Friday - Lesson 08

Nothing jazzes up a movie like sound effects and background music. Today you'll find out how to add both to any movie you create. You'll be astounded by the impact that custom sounds can make on your movie. And you'll be amazed how easy it is to add them!

Week Five

Wednesday - Lesson 09

As if custom sound effects and background music aren't enough, you can even narrate your movies. That's right; you can record your own voice and have it play as your movie is playing, just like the documentaries you see on TV. All you need is a microphone and the skills you'll learn in this lesson.

Friday - Lesson 10

By the time you've reached this lesson, you'll have all the skills needed to create fun, professional-looking movies. Now it's time to discover how to share your finished movies. We'll focus on sharing your movies by e-mail and by publishing them on the ever-popular YouTube Web site.

Week Six

Wednesday - Lesson 11

Today you'll discover another way to share your movies with others: CDs and DVDs. Yes, with the right equipment, you can create your own CDs and DVDs of your movies. You can even make the same kinds of DVDs that you buy or rent at a video store. People won't even need a computer to watch your finished movie—they'll just pop a DVD into their DVD player and watch it on TV!

Friday - Lesson 12

Now that you know how to create fun, professional-quality movies with your Windows Vista PC, you'll want to start applying these skills to your own videos and photos. In this lesson we'll walk through the steps to getting video from tape, DVD, memory cards, and hard drive cameras into your computer. Then you'll be able to import that video into Movie Maker and start applying your newfound skills to producing fantastic movies from any video and photos you have!

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Alan Simpson.

With over 100 published books to his name, award-winning author Alan Simpson is widely regarded as a PC and Internet guru. His books have been published throughout the world in over a dozen languages. As a seasoned veteran of the computer industry, Alan's books and online courses cover virtually all aspects of the computer industry, including Web development, operating systems, word processing, spreadsheets, databases, programming, networking, and security.

Requirements:

For creating movies, any edition of Microsoft Windows Vista. If you wish to create DVD-Video discs from your movies, you'll need Windows DVD Maker (which comes only with the Home Premium and Ultimate versions of Windows Vista), as well as a DVD burner. If you want to add your own voice narration to movies, you'll need a microphone.

For basic course access you need Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Acrobar Reader and Adobe Flash Player (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Reader and Get Adobe Flash Player).

Student Reviews:

Reviews coming soon! Please check back next month.