Snare and share alike: here's a quick and easy way to capture video.

If your company has cans of old movies to archive or new video to put on the Web, you need to find a way (somehow) to transfer the footage to the PC. Newer video cameras have ports that download video directly to ports on your PC-of to ports on cards you can buy for your PC. But those may limit you to movies from ... video cameras. Lame! Most of us want to convert a wide range of movie sources to videotape, and then use a single device to bring it all into the computer. And it's easier than you think.

We'll assume you've projected other sources, such as canned film, onto a wall, and videotaped the projected images, or had a professional do it. (The aforementioned method is how professionals do it, by the way.) In either case, there's a high risk of your film burning as it's projected (so make sure the film's owner OKs this method). Once you have video, you've preserved history: now, you can share it.

You'll need a capture device. We prefer external ones that don't require you to open the PC or cause you to worry about device conflicts the way PC "cards" or "boards" of Len do. External devices such as those from Dazzle (www.dazzle.com) come with software and se]] at discount stores such as Sam's Club for about $79.95. There are higher-end models in the line and other brands available. Whichever package you choose, here's how to get started.