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Video Editor on LAN
My company has agreed to upgrade my editor to something actually built for the the task. The computer I currently edit on is attached to the companies network. My previous job had the editor off the network, to avoid any interference from anti virus software, and updates that IT pushes automatically. I’d like the new machine to be separated, and keep my current machine for email, writing, and uploading finished videos to the network.
Is this still the ideal set up? I need some facts to convince them to commit to this plan.
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4 Replies
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The ideal editing computer IMO is stand-alone, purpose-built and customized for just this task, and the only network it attaches to is a SAN for storage of video assets or sharing files with other video editing workstations.
You don’t want to have extraneous IT stuff plugging into it or interrupting it’s processes, so you are right on in that regard for your post. It is handy to have internet access to the editing machine, in order to update the software or download plug-ins and updates, that sort of thing, but it is very poor practice to do a lot of web surfing and the like off of it, on the same principle that you don’t poop where you eat. You don’t want the editing workstation compromised by some virus attack or the like.
Editing apps can be upset by a lot of random things in the PC world, so, while it is possible to stay attached to the normal office IT infrastructure, I don’t recommend it, unless you put in some kind of firewall to defend the workstation from interruptions or unwanted auto-updates.
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It’s a workstation for video editing, not a Word/PPT/email/Facebook machine. Keep it as far from the dead hand of the IT department as possible. This way, you can specify a machine to your specs rather than using the company standard, and you can have it assetted for replacement in a schedule you specify. Downside is if it breaks, you may get no help from IT.
The reasons you specified (anti-virus will affect both available CPU and hard drive access times, and unwanted updates may destabilise an otherwise working machine) are valid and you should lead with that, using anecdotes from previous working environments. Make them up if you have to (“well we took the machines off the network and productivity went up 20%”).
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Here’s my two cents, along with my platform bias:
Get a Mac-based editing system and your IT department will think it’s their idea to completely leave you and your machine alone.
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Assuming you are on a PC, Mark could be right.
But since 1996 on Mac Avids, and now on FCP Intel Macs, we are all connected to the web, connected to each other, editing off each other’s drives, connected to shared storage, checking email, surfing the COW, uploading files, downloading files, encoding in the background, rendering a FCP timeline and burning a data DVD in Toast.
At the same time.
It’s just how we roll.
Six workstations and no trouble we couldn’t handle in 10 years.
Rich Rubasch
Tilt Media Inc.
Video Production, Post, Studio Sound Stage
Founder/President/Editor/Designer/Animator
https://www.tiltmedia.com
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