Which Software should I buy?

[johnny_boy]

I have around $500. I need authoring, good menuing, etc.

I saw in the poll that:

TMPGEnc DVD Author
DVD-Lab

are the top two.

I believe DVD-Menuing probably is the best, but on the authoring, I am not sure. I used the free MPEG2 TMPGenc for a while and really liked it. Is the TMPGEnc DVD Author the same program, just DVD authoring included? Or do I need to get the regular TMPGEnc in addition. I used the trial of DVD-Lab and liked the interface, but found that my ability to edit the streams was more limited than TMPGEnc. I have also used Virtual Dub, but don't want to use it, sorry. I had too many problems with MPEG2 with it.

Thank you for any comments.

[tsantsa]

Before you go spending your hard earned ca$h, try downloading demo versions of the very software you are thinking about purchasing. For that matter, try other software that you haven't mentioned!
I know Tmpgenc has a demo, but I'm not sure about Dvd-Lab.

Try before you buy. Try more than once if you must to make sure that the product is up to your specs and expertise.

[johnny_boy]

Anything else in this price range besides these two ($500)?

[Poppa_Meth]

TMPGEnc Plus and TDA package deal will run you $100-$130 approximately depending on whether you want the AC3 Plugin or not.

you can also try Ulead DVD Workshop. Some like it some have issues with it.