How to Backup a VHS Tape to a DVD
- 1). Purchase VHS to DVD conversion software for your home computer and refer to the included instructions for installing it on your computer. Roxio Easy VHS to DVD, Golden Videos VHS to DVD Converter, and VHS to DVD 4.0 all come with an adapter for your VCR and cost in the $59.99 to $79.99 range in 2010.
- 2). Plug the USB adapter that came with the software into the port on your computer. Connect the color-coded audio and video cables that run from the back of your VCR to the adapter at the free end of the USB cable.
- 3). Open the software program from your computer's desktop and insert a recordable blank DVD into your computer's disk drive. Any blank DVD labeled DVD-R will work for this.
- 4). Select the "Burn" or "Copy" option from the main menu screen of the program and follow the prompts on the screen as it walks you through the process of setting up the transfer. A design window will appear prompting you to create a menu screen for the DVD.
- 5). Select design templates from the list of options in the window, then type a title in the text box in the mock DVD menu screen. Click the "OK" or "Next" tab at the bottom of the screen when you're finished.
- 6). Place the video cassette you want to backup in the VCR and turn it on. Press "Play" on the VCR and then select the "Capture" tab in the program window on your computer. The footage will appear in a box in the window.
- 7). Click on the "Stop Capture" tab in the window when the tape is finished or you have obtained the desired amount of footage.
- 8). Click the "Finish" or "Burn" tab on the screen and the footage will begin burning to your blank DVD. The status indicator will inform you when your tape has been successfully backed up to DVD.
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