4
numbers progressing from ..28, 29, 00, 01, 02, etc., drop frame time code advances from frame 29 to frame 02, skipping frame
numbers 00 and 01, progressing from …28, 29, 02, 03, etc. at the start of each minute.
Although drop frame time code is widely used in the broadcast industry, if real time is not an issue it is often avoided elsewhere
due to the nature of it’s unconventional numbering system.
If it is a requirement that the time code numbers you read from your time-coded tapes represent real time within 3.6 seconds an
hour (or 0.6 seconds every 10 minutes) then you may want to consider using drop frame time code. Otherwise, non-drop frame
time code will work just fine, and may avoid problems later on. Whichever time code format you decide to use, you should adopt
it as your standard and use it for everything.