Difference between encoding and converting video

[nb23]

I'm a noob.. First let me tell you why you a little about my problem

I have a in dash dvd player in my car and I need video files that are either Mpeg1 or Mpeg2 in order to play them.. The problem is the music videos I download are in different formats (avi, mkv).. They are great quality UNTIL I convert them. After converting them the video isn't as sharp, and the audio quality is horrible.
The program I use to covert videos is called "total video converter". I've played with the settings (bit rate, video qual) etc and its just not working..

So I was wondering if I encode videos to Mpeg2 instead will the quality be better?

[rumplestiltskin]

Your in-dash DVD player requires MPEG2 files but "authored" (formatted for DVD). It is possible your DVD player might play "un-authored" MPEG2 and MPEG1 files but forget about MPEG1; the quality of that format is pitiful. If the quality of the DVD video is bad, perhaps you should try another conversion/authoring app.

Be patient; I'm sure you'll get many suggestions for doing this efficiently and with the best quality you can expect from the source formats.

[creamyhorror]

Converting is a layman term, encoding is a more technical term.

You probably need to give it more bitrate. MPEG-2 is a lot less efficient at storing video than XviD (usually in AVIs) and H.264 ( usually in MKVs).

[nb23]

Is there a difference between "encoding" and "converting"?

Converting is kind of confusing.. Theres so many options & numbers...

[nb23]

^ Above post was posted before I read your answer.

What exactly is bit rate? And what number should I put into this field?

I'm a huge n00b but I am willing to learn, if somebodys willing to help.

[bendixG15]

^ Above post was posted before I read your answer.

What exactly is bit rate? And what number should I put into this field?

I'm a huge n00b but I am willing to learn, if somebodys willing to help.

Your asking very basic questions.

Suggest your take a look at all the info on the upper left corner under "What Is" and work your way down. Somebody put in a lot of effort to put all that info in a nice organized fashion. Why even "bitrate" is listed in the Glossary.

This place likes to help people who have made an effort to help themselves first.
Good reading .............

[nb23]

Alright I'll look into that.. Thanks for the help, be back later for some more. lol.