Explanation on DVD to DVD-R for a novice...

[ivanolo]

I don't (currently) own a DVD-R/RW drive but I'll be getting one soon and I'm interested on backing up my DVD collection. I've read the guides but I sill have got some doubts. Alright, here's what I want to know: How can I fit a complete movie in a DVD-R, keeping only the main 5.1/2.0/DTS audio track and the English subtitles, losing the menus and extras, and lowering the resolution to a "legal" resolution that can be viewed on a DVD player? Please give a detailed explanation or point me to some guide that covers these inquiries. Thanks in advance!

[Bob W]

All you need to do what you want is DVD2one and three clicks with the old mouse.
http://www.dvd2one.com/

[ivanolo]

But will it lower the resolution to MPEG2 352x240 (NTSC)? Can I specify it or will DVD2ONE will do it automatically? That's the resolution I'd like... I need some more input on this.

[LanceSteel]

But will it lower the resolution to MPEG2 352x240 (NTSC)? Can I specify it or will DVD2ONE will do it automatically? That's the resolution I'd like... I need some more input on this.

No. It doesn't lower the resolution but it does lower the bitrate of the video stream (you lose picture quality.) Most of the time the reduction of picture quality is minimal but with larger movies (aka longer in time length) it can make the movie look really poor.

[LanceSteel]

But will it lower the resolution to MPEG2 352x240 (NTSC)? That's the resolution I'd like... I need some more input on this.

Wait a minute... why do you want the resolution to be 352x240 (w/ MPEG2 compression?) Thats not a valid DVD compression/resolution combo. You would be making a nonstandard stream. Most authoring programs probably won't accept an MPEG2 stream at that resolution anyway. If you want to lower the resolution then you can have an MPEG2 stream at 352x480 or an MPEG1 stream at 352x240.

Check out this link: https://www.videohelp.com/dvd

[ivanolo]

Dang! This is more complicated than what I thought. OK, what's the maximum capacity for a DVD-R? I mean the actual capacity. Is it 4.7GB or 4.3GB? If I lose all the extras and unneeded (spell check) audio tracks along with menus and only leave the main audio track and video stream, could I maintain the original video resolution and bitrate for a film that is longer than 2 hours (about 2:20 approx)? Would this work on standard DVD players? Please tell me, I'm very dumb when it comes to reading and understanding stuff... I'm a dummy!

[hotwings]

A dvd-r is 4.38 GB, 4.7 is a gimmick used to pad stats using the Japanese system of 1000 bytes = 1 kilobyte and so on and so on, a bogus base ten system. 1024 bytes = 1 kilobyte is what is more conventional, so when you divide the number of total bytes by 1024 enough times you end up with 4.38 GB, but I digress. (just in case you need more clarification 1024 bytes=1 kilobyte, 1024 kilobytes = 1 megabyte, 1024 megabytes = 1 gigabyte)

Most movies over two hours will not fit on one disc, unless the original encoder used a lower bitrate (some of the older movies might be like this). Chances are that you are going to have to downsample and lower the bitrate of the movie, but DON't touch the resolution if you want max compatibility with DVD players. After you create your new M2v file and have your ac3 file, a good authoring program like dvd maestro will help you compile compliant files. Furthermore you can test your product before you burn it with a computer dvd player like powerdvd. There are good burning solutions out there, Nero works for me, but you'll develop your own tastes. Do a forum search for some of the programs I mentioned if you need more info. Of course there are guides...

[ghoster]

simplest way is what Bob W stated. you get very good results and its really fast. takes about hour to do everything.

[red lion]

I have started to use dvd2one and its very easy and very good programme