Camera Setup

[49pixels]

I'm currently working on relaunching a show (we finished our pilot season in late August), and have been spending some time on taking care of admin items for the relaunch, including investing in equipment, etc.

The last thing I need to do is secure a camera. Until today, I've never purchased a video camera before, so I'm not sure what I need. I bought a Canon HF M40 earlier today but couldn't get it to stream to save my life, and ended up returning it.

Here's what I have with respect to a computer (Macbook):

Model Name: MacBook
Model Identifier: MacBook5,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2 GHz
Number of Processors: 1
Total Number of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 3 MB
Memory: 4GB
Bus Speed: 1.07 GHz
Boot ROM Version: MB51.007D.B03
SMC Version (system): 1.32f8

This particular notebook doesn't have Firewire, only USB.

I've also got an older Mac Mini (last generation) that has a Firewire connection, but is a bit on the slow side.

My question is: Can either of these computers be used to livestream a show? If so, what kind of camera would you recommend, given the limitations of each computer? If it helps, I've been thinking of upgrading the Mac Mini to the most recent model (http://www.apple.com/ca/macmini/design.html).

Any advice, suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

- Justin