FireWire cables vary and can be the source of capture failures.
The Panasonic GS50S is a digital camcorder that records footage onto a miniDV tape. Typically, you should be able to capture footage from the camcorder into a Windows or Mac computer. Sometimes, however, you may encounter issues with properly capturing the footage. These issues may have to do with hardware or the setup between your computer and camera.
FireWire Cable
In order to capture video from the GS50S, you'll need to make sure you're using the right equipment. If you've recorded onto a miniDV tape, you'll need to connect your computer to your camera via a FireWire cable. In some cases, the cable itself can be the source of capturing issues, since the quality of the cables can vary widely. According to Apple, you should use the shortest, thickest FireWire cable possible. As a troubleshooting step, try swapping out your FireWire cable to see if that solves your capture issues.
Test FireWire Port
If you've swapped out your FireWire cable and you're still having trouble, try a few other troubleshooting steps to rule out the possibility of a bad connection. If possible, try importing your footage using a different camcorder and the same FireWire cables you've already tried. If that works, then you can rule out an issue with your FireWire port and your FireWire cable. If that doesn't work, perform a test of your FireWire port by opening your Windows Start menu and then open Control Panel. Click "System and Maintenance," then "Device Manager." Press the "+" button next to "Other Devices," then right-click on the IEEE 1394 Bus host controllers, and then click "Properties." You should see a message saying "This device is working properly" under the Device Status if the port is working properly.
Drivers
In order for your computer to recognize the camera and allow the two devices to "talk," you'll need to be sure that your computer has the proper drivers installed. The first way to do this is to use the software install disk that came with your camera, as this will install the proper drivers. If you no longer have the disk, you can download the drivers from a third-party site such as Toggle or Helpdriver.
SD Card
The GS50S allows you to use either a miniDV tape or an SD card to record materials. However, it's important to keep in mind that the SD card option only saves digital stills and not video. As such, if you're trying to import materials from the SD card, your video will not be accessible from there.
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