Final Cut Info and References

Some online tutorials that cover the same ground:

Setting your scratch disk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8F-yajkhcqI

Basic FCP intro:
http://www.calstatela.edu/tvf/fcptutorial.html

Text in FCP (sorry for the ad):
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/883172/adding_text_with_final_cut_pro/

FINAL CUT PRO INTRO

SETTING YOUR SCRATCH DISK:

Set your scratch disk by clicking:
Final Cut Pro > System settings

Under the "Scratch Disks" tab, set the location for your content. Make sure to set it to Thawspace if you're not setting it to an external drive.

STARTING A NEW PROJECT:

Go to:
File > New Project

Then go to:
Final Cut Pro > Audio/Video Settings

Set this project at:
DV NTSC 48 kHz

Then go to:
Final Cut Pro > Easy Setup

And under Format select DV NTSC

BASIC TRANSITIONS:

NOTE: You can use the arrow keys to toggle forward/backward one frame at a time.

Move your playhead to the place where two clips join up on the timeline. Then go to:

Effects > Video Transitions to choose the type of transition you'd like.

If the playhead is between the two clips, it will create the transition right at that point. If you select a whole clip, it will apply the transition to both ends of the clip. Once the transition has been created, you can doubleclick on the transition in the timeline, and adjust the duration (the parameters will appear in the "Viewer" window).

ALTERNATE TRANSITIONS AND EFFECTS FOR MULTIPLE VIDEO TRACKS:

You can also drag a new video track above the current video track. You can edit the opacity of the uppermost track by clicking on the "Toggle Clip Overlays" button at the bottom left of the timeline (it looks like a zigzag line). Once that button is clicked, you can use the pen tool (the last tool in the toolbar) to click on the line that appears at the top of your clips, and create point that can be dragged down or up to adjust the opacity of the clip at any point of its duration.

You can also composite two layers together, with a variety of effects similar to the layer effects in Photoshop, by right-clicking on the upper video layer, and selecting "Composite Mode" from the popup menu -- from there, you can choose from the listed composite effects.

VIDEO EFFECTS FOR A SINGLE VIDEO TRACK

There are a variety of video effects you can apply to a clip by selecting the clip, then going to Effects > Video Filters.

DE-LINKING AN IMPORTED VIDEO AND AUDIO TRACK

If you import a video clip, and the audio track is linked, when you move the video track along the timeline, the audio track will move along with it. To de-link the audio track, hit shift + L (or hit the "linked selection" button, the middle button to the top right of the timeline window). Then you can move, edit, delete or replace the audio track.

TEXT IN FCP:

In your "Browser" window, click on the "Effects" tab. Go to:
Video generators > Text
From which you can select a variety of text options. You can drag one of those text options into your timeline, where it will function like a video clip. Doubleclicking on the text clip on the timeline will open a dialog box in your viewer, from which you can type the text, select the font, size, etc. (click the "controls" tab in the viewer to access these parameters). You can adjust the duration and motion properties of the clip as well.