Mpeg1 or 2?

[olivia]

Hello, my first post here!!!

I need a little bit of help on deciding which format is better to encode my avi file to?

In order to burn something to a dvd i understand it must first be in mpeg1 or 2 format.

But which one is better?

[thecoalman]

mpeg 2...... Look to the right under "what is" DVD. Although VCD standard Mpeg 1 is dvd compliant your stuck with a single setting and a very low quality one at that.

[Epicurus8a]

Welcome!

To be brief, MPEG2 is much better.

Now the longer story: If you haven't had experience in capturing and authoring, then you'd better prepare yourself. This is a complicated and time
consuming hobby, and there are few members who know it all. There are an incredible number of variables to consider, and an incredible number of programs designed for specific purposes. Some hardware/software makers claim to have all-in-one kits, but they are mostly garbage.

My suggestion is to buy a DVD recorder (Pioneer or JVC) and use that to transfer your videos. If you feel the need for custom menus and chapters, you will need to re-author your discs. Again, there are a variety of programs to choose from. I suggest using DVD Decrypter to transfer your discs to your hard drive, then use TMPGEnc DVD Author to re-author them. Then you would burn them to DVD with a DVD writer.

When you become comfortable doing this, you can search the site for more information. This place is a wealth of information, and most members are quite helpful. There are also a number of GUIDES to help get you started. Good Luck!

[olivia]

thanks ever so much guys you are so helpful

question answered cheers

[Epicurus8a]

Just returned from work and had a few more thoughts to share.

If you want to do occasional audio/video editing/effects, Womble MPEG VIDEO WIZARD is one of the few MPEG editors that work well. (MPEG isn't really intended for editing.) It's expensive, but you can try it for 30 days free.

If you intend to get into this BIG-TIME, you'll want a Canopus device. Then you'll capture your video as DV files (instead of MPEG). This will permit you to edit like a pro, but you will need a computer with lots of resources and hard drive space. After your editing is complete, the file is re-encoded to MPEG, then authored to DVD.

If you aren't on the brink of insanity already, you will be in a year or so....

[olivia]

lol actually i already am! its a realli complex process which came as just a bit of a surprise!#


thanks that program seems just what i needed!

[Epicurus8a]

Yeah, it is complex. A lot of people think it only takes a couple of mouse clicks...

A few years ago my co-workers were asking me if I could make DVDs. At that time I couldn't, but decided to learn. Now this stuff eats at my brain, because the possibilites are endless.

If you need a more advanced authoring program, you might want to try Ulead DVD Workshop 2. DVDlab is also popular around here, but I haven't tried it. I think there are free trials for both.

Good Luck & Happy New Year!

[jimmalenko]

http://members.dodo.net.au/~jimmalenko/AVI2DVD.htm might be of assistance for your AVI file