Adding 'foreign' files to DVD-video

[MatiasR]

Hello all,

The thing I download and burn to DVD most is music concerts. Many times, the downloaded pack comes with a set of extra files that have nothing to do with the DVD functionality itself. These are txt files with the concert info, jpg files with artwork, md5 checksums, etc.

While I don't desperately need to keep these files in my burnt copy, I wouldn't mind leaving them there for archival purposes. Say, if I find a different source for the same concert I've burnt, I'll want to know which gear was used in each source, what generation each one is, etc., to see if what I found is an upgrade of mine and therefore worth downloading for replacement.

So, basically, I'd like to keep those files in the disc. Now, someone told me adding extra stuff to a DVD-video wasn't recommended at all. As in, it could mess up the DVD functionality somehow. I can't see how that could happen, and the only DVD I've tried burning this way worked just fine. But he says in some standalone players this could be troublesome.

The two alternatives I've seen so far to burn these kinds of files are:

- throwing them on the DVD root, so that when you explore it you'll see the VIDEO_TS, AUDIO_TS folders and all these files at the same level,

- creating an EXTRAS_TS folder and throwing all these 'foreign' files there.

Any of you know about any real drawbacks to this procedure? Does this guy that warned me have a point? If so, will any of the 2 ways mentioned above make any difference?

Thanks again for reading!

[yoda313]

you can add any folder you want with any material in it. You just lose disc space.

The only restriction is don't put it in the VIDEO_TS folder. That is where all the video data is kept. You probably could store it in that folder and the player would ignore it but why bother risking a reject? Just name any folder you want to in the root directory.

If you look at a lot of the commercial discs that include bonuses like screensavers and stuff they have all the extra folders beyond the video_ts folder. You'll be ok.

[MatiasR]

Thanks for the reply!

That's exactly what I thought (unless you put files where the player will go read, why should it be a problem?) but as this guy insisted arguing against it, I wanted to have a third opinion. I guess he's just being a bit uptight about it, dunno.

Anyway, thanks!

[torrentcrazy]

If you add divx/xvid files to burn on a dvd-video in a folder seperate from the Video_TS and Audio_TS folders, can you navigate to and play the divx/xvid files in a dvd player?

[mats.hogberg]

Probably not. The DVD player will see a Video DVD, and not make the other files accessible. But since this is nothing governed by any standard, it's up to the individual player model how to treat "mixed" discs.

/Mats

[guns1inger]

My Pioneer will identify a DVD-Video as DVD video and not see anything under. If it is a mixed media disc - MP3 and jpgs, for example - it will take the first file, and only see others of the same type.

My LG will see DVD-Video and nothing else, but for general mixed media discs it will read anything it knows about (divx/Xvid/mp3/jpg/mpg etc)

For most it seems to be DVD Video takes precedence over everything else.

[torrentcrazy]

Thanks for the quick reply. For mixed content data discs, my Magnavox will only recognizes files of the same type as the first file on the disc.

[ark]

To make a mixed DVD disk, which would be a Video_DVD + have other files readable on PC alone, put the additional files in the root and burn in Nero in UDFISO (UDF 1.2) selection with Video_DVD Compatibility enabled. The disk made this way would play on virtually 99% Standalones as a DVD_Video disk without problem + show up all the non_video related files on a PC

[torrentcrazy]

Thanks for the info ark

[AlanHK]

I stash files on my DVDs in a folder imaginatively called "FILES".

However, I had some problems in burning these. Nero wouldn't accept anything except the standard VIDEO_TS files when I authored a DVD video. If I burnt it as data it was unreadable.

I then tried ImgBurn which was more flexible.

It gave me a choice of filesystems (under "options"), which I think is key. For DVD video it should be UDF. Data DVDs are generally ISO9660. But you can choose "ISO9660 + UDF" and get a working DVD video with other data files readable on your PC DVD drive.

If I have some MB free on a DVD, sometimes I throw in a "vital" backup set -- my address list, various passwords, etc, in an encrypted RAR file. So if all else fails I can get my phone numbers from my copy of Casablanca.