Do those cameras that capture video on to those small DVD's still allow me to capture the video onto my laptop via firewire?

It would really depend on the camera.
If the camera has a firewire output, then you just attach that right to the firewire jack on your laptop. Then you open your video editing software (don’t know what you have) and capture the video from the camera.

If the camera you get does not have firewire output, then you have to get another little device that you connect your camera too (using RCA component outputs or whatever the camera uses), and then connect the new device to your laptop (probably via firewire or usb).

Hope that helps!

Often it is easier to rip the DVD using Handbrake to get the file on your computer.