Video Upload Site advice

[PaulG]

I have just finished editing my 6,000 km round trip from Toronto, CAN to Austin, TX, USA. for the MotoGP in April.  I have eleven "episodes" ranging from 10 - 30 min., and used Windows Live Movie Maker.  I made low-def for viewing on monitors (854 x 480), and hi-def (1280 x 720) for the flat screen TV.

The low-defs are 360 MB - 1.4GB, while the high hi-defs are 500 MB - 2.4 GB.  I have two vids that are about 30 min. long (the 1.4 & 2.4 GB ones), which I could split in half if needs be.  I just didn't want to at the moment because they have a nice continuity (Deals Gap and the Cherohala Skyway in NC)

I have overdubbed them with music, some written narrative comments, and some google map stuff.

I know nothing about video hosting sites, and don't want to go through the BS of joining and find out I can't upload them for format, copyright, or size, etc.  This forum is about as hi-techy as I get.

Any advice about which sites out there are best suited for these (if any)?  Especially if they are "Free".   


Or I could start a "Video of the Month" club, and for a "small" membership fee (T.B.D) I could ship the worldwide...   

... the start of a vast media empire ... the next Rupert Murdoch that's me!   

[Charlie-brm]

I'd look forward to seeing the results.
For hosting (we're talking FREE, right?) the most obvious one is YouTube but I am giving Vimeo a serious look. They have a limited free package I just looked up. Your run time can be anything but the maximum upload is 500 MB per month. They accept HD, preferably H.264. It's all in their FAQ pages. If you need a utility to convert to H.264, let me know.

The only thing I'd watch for is if you're using commercial music you could still get bitten for copyright infringement of the music. I was editing for years and have a set of royalty free instrumental tunes for that very reason. Not that I follow it religiously, depends on the distribution. The other option is knowing the musicians directly and getting permission and give them a credit at the end of the video. But I digress.

So far Vimeo is a less 'wild west' place; a bit more serious about hosting original content for videographers. e.g. I had Sheridan College students send me a link to their final cut and they use Vimeo. That's how I found out about it.