A challenge for the experts...

[DerekLee1]

I would like to make a backup of LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition. Here's the challenge: The extended edition is on 2 DVD9s, with a different menu on each disc. I'd like to combine both DVDs and compress the crap out of it so that they'll fit on one DVD5. (Yeah, I know I'll lose significant quality, but this is about the challenge, not the vid quality!) The second challenge is the menus. I'd like to keep the exact same menus, but have a link on the first menu that will take me to the second menu. (FYI - the second menu is simply scene selections).

Alright, all you gurus - what's the easiest way to accomplish this?

[K2]

Good challenge.
What tools do you have to work with?

I will pass because I don't like menus.
Sorry.

[drewson99]

I am thinking you will need to use ifoedit, but I don't know if you can manipulate the hierarchy of menus with it.

[DerekLee1]

I have nearly all necessary tools. The trick is the process. I have ifoedit, MenuEdit, InstantCopy 7, DVD95, vobedit, and loads of others. Getting the movie combined and compressed is the easy part. The trick is the menus. How can I edit these menus to link to one another, and still function properly?

[VidGuy]

I don't recall exactly what the menu looks like, but when I've done this with other movies in the past (Star Trek III, for instance), I've pulled the menus apart with VobEdit, modified the visuals to add the extra button, then put it back together.

It's a pain, but it's doable.

I've often thought it would be interesting to try to do it just by modifying the menu vob without reauthoring (I HATE reauthoring chapter menus - they're such a tedious thing), but I've never gotten around to trying to do it.

Presumably, you could "edit" in a new button with VobEdit, but you'd have to write some kind of tool to patch in new video and subtitles - I don't know of any tool today that can do that for you.

[Arky]

First Impression: Complete VOB demux and complete reauthor

Second (and overriding!) impression: LIFE IS TOO SHORT!!

I wish you luck, but I really don't think the labour will be worth the result...


Arky ;o)

[disturbed1]

Load your menu vobs into VOBrator, demux. This gives you your menu videos, and menu audio.

Load the specific .m2v files into dvd2avi, set color range to RGB, save snap shot, open Paint Shop Pro edit the menu, save, reauthor.

Load same menu vob(s) into sub rip. Rip the subs to scenarist format (this is the overlay subpicture for the menu). If you add menu options to the main menu, edit these subs to corrispond. It'll be a two color bmp. Red (transparent) and black. Chapter selections usually use one subpicture for all pages but the last page, with the last page sometimes having fewer thumbnails.




Similar projects I've done include Swim Fan, and the Transporter. Which were double sided with different extras on each side. I backed up the movie and all extras (from both sides) to one dvd-r. They're different, but the same concept.

Not really that difficult

[KSP_RobRoy]

Sorry can't help you much here..

..but a question i have

How much is it (in Mb) on those two disks??

[DerekLee1]

'bout 14-16G

[icemanatvcd]

Get a life!