I have a mini DV video camera. The salesman told me that I could transfer the video using the USB cable. It cannot be done that way. Capture devices read and convert analog signals only (as best as I can figure). Is there a way for me to transfer the DV recording to my computer without a DV connection?

The salesman was correct. If your computer does not have a DV port, then use the USB cable that came with the camcorder. I've done it many times and it works. It might not be as fast as using a DV port, but it does the job.