How to create a stop

You will need to have a Mac /Apple computer with high speed internet connection and a digital video camera to try this project. Once you are connected go to -- http://www.download.com/SingleFramer/3000-2186_4-10784553.html --- and download the Free 'SingleFramer' Software for Mac. I have provided links to the software download and my Stop-Motion film in Resources below.
Once you have downloaded the Freeware (SingleFramer) , install and open the application. Make sure you have your digital video camera plugged in, If you have the Apple isight camera already on your Macbook you don't need to worry about plugging in a digital video camera.
Click on the SingleFramer icon in Applications and click Watching - 'Start Watching'. You should now see a Live video of what your camera sees.
Now it's time to go get your characters. If your kids have any toys with movable parts like the Wall-e robot ... these will make easy characters to start experimenting with. We used a Tin can robot with arms made from straws. So just about anything will work. Think of a short 10-20 second story line. Something as simple as a robot rolling across the screen and waving could be a good 1st movie.
Once you have your character set up in front of your camera you can start. On Single Framer click 'Movie setup', 'Start New DV Movie' Give it a title like 'Movie-clip1' and make sure you see where it is being saved.
Make sure your character is set up how you want and click on the green circle that says 'Grab Frame'. You will hear a click (like a camera shutter). Then you can move your character slightly and click 'Grab Frame' again.
Keep doing this until you have about 10 seconds of footage. There is a running total to the bottom right of the screen that will tell you how many Frames have been captured and how many seconds recorded.
When you are finished your little movie click the red circle that says 'FINISH' You can now go to iMovie and import 'Movie-clip1' from where it was saved. In iMovie drag and drop this 'Movie-clip1' to the story board. You can now add music and a Title in iMovie. When you are happy with the finished product you can share on Youtube and send an email to your friends to show them your work. That's it - Your 1st Stop-Motion Animation has been created, produced and uploaded for the world to see. Now you just sit back and wait for the accolades, Oscars and awards to roll in.
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How to Determine MacBook Build Date

Open the 'Apple' menu and select “About This Mac.” Click on the “More Info…” button.
Locate the serial number for your Macbook in the 'Hardware Overview' window that opens. The serial will be 11 characters long and contain a mix of letters and numerals.
Use the serial number to determine the build date. The first two characters are a code that indicates the factory where the computer was made. The third character is the build date year. It is only a single digit. The number five, for example, would indicate a build date year of 2005 unless the computer is obviously very old, in which case it would indicate 1995. The fourth and fifth characters in the serial number indicate the build date week of the computer. The number 49 would indicate that the computer was manufactured in the second week of December.
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