README

Analog composite video simulation (for retro video-like video production).

The reason for this project is to provide the internet a better simulation
of composite video-based emulation, especially for the rash of people on
YouTube who all have their own ideas on what VHS artifacts looks like.

This code uses FFMPEG 3.x to read and write video. It's written for Linux,
but you could compile it (and FFMPEG) for Mac OS X as well if you tried.

A word of warning: This code is *SLOW*. It's designed to be as accurate as
I can make it, not fast. You may want to take any Simpsons episodes you will
be editing and cut them up first in Adobe Premiere (or your favorite video
editor) then run the exported "clip show" through this program instead of
wasting CPU cycles on whole episodes.

It is my hope that all the new "ＳＩＭＰＳＯＮＷＡＶＥ" videos might at least
try harder to actually look like old VHS instead of throwing a blur, noise,
sharpen filter with a looping recording of VHS static overlaid on top.
Also, contrary to the Simpsonwave fad, VHS isn't *that* staticky and snowy
(unless your VCR ate your tape which believe it or not was quite rare), nor
did VCRs leave the "PLAY" and timecode on the screen. Come on people, your
nostalgia or pretend nostalgia needs fine tuning. I have *really old* VHS
tapes from the mid 1980s that have at most the static bar at the bottom of
the screen (tracking error) and muffled audio.