As someone who has done a lot of this trying to move a large collection of PAL & NTSC VHS to DVD I would suggest avoiding the computer route. It causes more grief than its worth (and often I find the sound/video sync goes out of the window).

Whatever happens your tapes will not be wide screen - they will be 4:3 ratio (old tv shape) rather than 16:9. Leave them like that and live with the black bands down the side.

I recommend going from VHS to that Sony and (assuming it writes dvds as well) putting up with the relatively basic titling. It is BY FAR the easiest way. Note that if it's like my Panasonic HD/DVD you won't be able to mix PAL & NTSC on the same DVD. And you may well have to switch one of the Sony menu settings to record the different types to HD. Read the manual until you are comfortable with the idea.

Having wasted weeks (if not more) and good money on gadgets (and even using the firewire from my camcorder) trying to get good results using a pc I wouldn't recommend tht route if you have a HD/DVD option.

Nick