I get the error
"Cannot open file, attempted to read or write protected memory. this is often an indication that other memory is corrupt"

when I try import any video, what does this mean?

Can you please provide a screencast or at least screenshot of what you are doing and what you are getting?
For screencasts, there is good online service Screen-o-Matic. For screenshots, the great tool is Greenshot.

The issue was solved by installing video codecs:
http://forum.ipisoft.com/viewtopic.php?p=11396#p11396