What you have mentioned above are folders and not actual video files. On DVDs, all video tracks are labeled with the extension “.vob”, that are essentially MPEG files, something Premiere Pro is not too fond of. If you prefer to edit MPEG, please take a look at MainConcept’s MPEG Pro plugin.
Something does not sound right. A file does not go missing, especially if you are attempting to install from a disc. I would highly suggest contacting Adobe, as they offer free installation support.
LOL. 30 minutes, is pretty fast! But, you are right in the sense that Premiere Pro is completely different and IMO much, much better than the previous versions of Premiere.
Premiere Elements is actually a very nice editing platform. One of the major things it is missing is the option of nested sequences. But, other than that you should be fine.
1. From what I have seen, you can get the in point, out point, the duration, the date it was shot and the timecode with most DV clips.
2. No. Since, Premiere Pro primarily supports 1394 captures, it is not possible. To do this, you need to capture via a USB port.