As strange as it may sound in a creative world dominated by Apple, many argue that the best video format for uploading to YouTube is Microsoft's own Windows Media Encoder. Rather than argue the pros and cons, let's just dive in and make it happen.

1. Click on File / Export / Adobe Media Encoder (fig.F)
2. In the "Format" dropdown menu, select "Windows Media." (fig.G)
3. From the "Preset" dropdown, select "Windows Media 9 NTSC 512K download."
4. Click on "Video" and select "One" for "EncodePass."
5. Select "Constant" for "Bitrate Mode"
6. Click on "Audiences."
7. Change the resolution to 640x480 if your video is 4:3 (i.e., normal square television picture) or 448x252 for 16:9 (widescreen).
8. Click "OK."
9. Type a file name and click "Save."

The video will now compress.

Even if you've followed these instructions to the letter, you'll inevitably run into one of the most common problems with uploading to YouTube - the file size limit. Let's face it; 100MB isn't a whole lot of package for a good video file.

Fortunately, busting the 100MB limit isn't the end of the world. If, after compression, you have a good quality video, just reduce the size of the frame and re-render. That way you'll still have good video, but with a much smaller file size.

WARNING: If this ever happens to you, do not be tempted to lower the frame rate instead. A choppy video will always looks bad.

Though following the steps above will certainly improve the quality of your YouTube videos, the quest for the perfect "sweet spot" between file size and quality is far from over. Experiment with the settings yourself and discover what works best for you.

Tony Bruno is a professional technical writer, makes independent films and, is an occasional actor.