We have an editor who works from home on a G4 with an older edition of FCP in it that does not include the "HDV 720p24" codec we see in 5.1.4. Hers says "DVC Pro 720p24." Will that work just as well? I'd like to avoid doing the upgrade on that machine 'cuz it's rock solid the way it is: Don't want to mess with it if I don't have to...

There's a plug-in you can buy called HDVxDV which can capture the .m2t files straight from the camera or deck. Then you can transcode (with HDVxDV) each .m2t file into a Quicktime movie using the codec of your choice. If DVCPro HD 720p24 is already loaded onto her computer, then I imagine that it should appear on the list of codec options in HDVxDV. But be alert for the audio drifting out of synch on longer clips transcoded with HDVxDV.

Alternately you can capture with DVHSCap (free software) and transcode with MPEG Streamclip (also free).

I second using DVHSCap and MPEG Streamclip. The workflow is rock solid. If you want a detailed description, less us know.

Thanks David and Steve! Very interesting....but I'm starting to think that maybe I should after all go ahead and upgrade the system to 5.1.4 to gain access to the "HDV 720p24" codec that's waiting there for us now. Your workaround is very clever, but a few too many hoops to jump through somewhat too regularly. Also, I'll be capturing the images in Quicktime -- not M2T -- thanks to our use of a Firestore DR-HD100, where that option is a Firestore menu item (select M2T or Quicktime). Life it getting easier all the time, n'est pas? Thanks for this guidance - !

Yes, recording directly onto the Firestore as a Quicktime would make post-production an absolute dream!

And another benefit of upgrading to 5.1.4 is that I think (even though there was no apparent upgrade for 5.1.4) it now does a great job of capturing 24p footage (but not 25p, which still has capturing glitches) from tape.

I captured from two 720p24 tapes on Friday and everything captured perfectly. These contained many, many individual clips, all completely captured, with no mid-clip breaks. (But it's important to set "FireWire NDF" on your capturing preferences per Tim's advices.) So, if you have old 720p24 tapes (from before you switched to the Firestore) it might be worth a try. Their footage might not be "lost" after all.

Yes, I also use the DR-HD100 and the workfflow is amazing. Make sure you upgraded to 2.2.1 because the Quicktime Errors that sometimes happen in previous versions do not anymore.