I'll try to keep this short and sweet, but it will be difficult.....

I have a set of DVD's from 8mm film that was professionally transferred to the DVD's. I have the VOB files and IFO files off the DVD on my hard drive.

Some of the VOB files are 1GB big (approximately 26 minutes of video). When I drag one into the timeline, it takes forever for it to completely show up, is only like 3 minutes in length, and is impossible to work with since my computer seems really bogged down.

When I use another program to convert the same VOB file to a MPEG2 (also around 1 GB), I can then use that file in Vegas and it is easy to work with but quality is lost.

Questions:

Why can Vegas work fine with a 1 GB MPEG2 file but not with a 1GB VOB file? Do I need more RAM?

Why is the length of the 1 GB file reduced to 3 minutes even though it is really 26 minutes?

I have Digital8 tapes that I can transfer via firewire onto my hard drive. Should I do this? What file type(s) will the captured video be that I use in Vegas if I do this?

Thanks for any help, and let me know if you ahve any questions. This project is awesome since it deals with over 35 years of family history that was captured on 8 mm film!

Ryan