TMPGenc: How to "Set Output"?

[Welles Fan]

I am trying to make changes to a DVD video with TMPGenc 3.0 Xpress. I have a DVD-R that I recorded off TV with a Panasonic DVD recorder. the main thing I want to do is put a border around the picture so that I lose none of the picture to TV overscan.

In the "Filters" section of TMPGenc 3.0 Xpress , there is a "resize" option. This looks as if I can center the video, and decrease the pixels around the frame to make the thin black border so I will know I am losing nothing to overscan.

However, I am confused as to how to "set output". With the TMPGenc DVD Author software, this is easy. Once you've finished dinking around with your clips and menus, you simply hit the output button, and it converts everything to DVD-ready files while incorporating all your changes. When I hit the "set output" button on TMPGenc 3.0 Xpress, it brings up a window called "Output Format Selection", with a "browse" button, and a "select" and "cancel" button. What am I supposed to be browsing for? I thought the program would simply output what I had resized to vts, vob files, etc.

I've looked at the how-to guide, but it does not explain this part for me either. It shows that you click on the "Set Output" button, but says nothing about the new "Output Format Selection" window. Bottom line: after dinking around with the clip, how do I export the changes to DVD-ready files?

I imported the DVD files into TMPGenc 3.0 Xpress and can convert them to Mpeg2, but I cannot figure out this "Set Output" thingmie.

[Baldrick]

tmpenc xpress is an encoder. no authoring. so i'm moving you.

[bunyip]

The 'SET OUTPUT' option just wants to know what type of file you want to create.
- In the 'Output Format Selection' screen you should see a list of formats to chose from.
- If you can't see the option - you may have the 'Display Custom Templates Only' ticked - make sure this is un-ticked.
- If you want to do a DVD compliant file select the PAL or NTSC option under DVD.
- Click on the Select button and make any changes you want - then click OK.
- Now click on the 'Encode' button - set your output filename and press 'Start Output'.

[Chief Engineer]

I imported the DVD files into TMPGenc 3.0 Xpress and can convert them to Mpeg2, but I cannot figure out this "Set Output" thingmie.

TMPGEnc Xpress 3.0 is an "editor/encoder" which means it is designed to take audio/video files, modify them, and generate the modified version in whichever "output format" you want, mpeg2, avi, wmv, etc. That's all it does.

TMPGEnc DVD Author is "authoring software" which means it is designed to take the mpeg2 files created by Xpress 3.0, add menus, chapters and navigation instructions, then create the vts, vob, bup files and burn to DVD.

[Welles Fan]

Thanks, Bunyip! You've solved my problem. The Display Custom Templates box was ticked. Once I unticked it, the options that I had seen in the How-to guides became available. Many thanks.