3. Not Included: DVR-MS Video Editing And File Conversion

Although Microsoft has now released a video editing tool named Movie Maker 2, we're sorry to report that it doesn't support the DVR-MS streaming video format that MCE uses. To do any clean-up or other editing work on any TV programming you might record, you'll have to install additional third-party software.

For that purpose, a freeware MCE plug-in named

To play a recording captured using MCE on a standalone player, additional software is needed to convert the Microsoft proprietary format before burning it onto a DVD. Available options here include Sonic PrimeTime and My DVD, Nero 6 Reloaded or Cyberlink Power Director 3 or 4. On the other hand, a free but more difficult way to get from DVR-MS to MPEG formats is described on the pages of the Green Button Web site; an original posting for the freeware tool involved are also worth perusing.