Drop Frame Time Code

The method of time code computation that accounts for the reality of there being only 29.97 frames per second in color NTSC video. The .03 frame is visually insignificant, but mathematically very significant. A one-hour video program will have 107,892 frames of video (29.97 frames per second x 60 seconds x 60 minutes). Using a standard non-drop type of time code would cause cumulative errors in synchronization over time. The drop frame time code method of accommodating this reality was developed, where 2 frames are dropped from the numerical count for every minute in an hour, except for every 10th minute when no frames are dropped. This allows any device syncing to color video to be able to stay in nearly exact sync over long periods of time.