iChat using random transitions when using external camera as Web cam

Occasionally, people who use iChat's video chatting capabilities with an external camcorder may experience an issue where a continuous array of transitions and effects are applied to the chat window.

Apple Support Discussions user "aksnocat" writes:

"One of the Mac users in my office is getting some strangeness when she uses iChat. It seems that the iMovie transitions have infiltrated her iChat. When she's video chatting with someone, her picture squeeezes and fades to black, pushes off the frame and then spins out of the frame. The sequence of the transitions appears to be random. This wouldn't be as much of a problem except that, while the video gymnastics happen, her audio drops away. It comes back at the end of the "transition", but it makes it hard to carry on a conversation when the audio drops in and out constantly."

This issue is caused by a setting on the external camcorder. To alleviate this issue, find your camera's manual and set the camera to turn off demo mode. Demo mode on many cameras will automatically turn on if the camera does not have a tape or battery installed and connected to a computer or external display (similar to cameras displayed in electronics stores).

Resources

Read this Apple Support Discussions thread about iChat showing random transitions and effects while video chatting.

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