Authoring Question

[Smack2k]

Hey,

Question about Authoring DVD's......

I want to be able to take 1 DVD, rip the DVD and then reauthor it over 2 DVD's with the menus. I have no issues ripping or authoring a DVD (I use TMPeg DVD Author) and just breaking it up (the main part) over 2 DVD's.

What I want to know is how can I get the menus from the DVD onto each of my burned DVD's and have the menu links to the matches work for the first half on disc 1 and the second half on disc 2? I want to be able to have the menus on each disc I use to break up the master with, but only the links to the stuff contained on each new burned disc would work and the rest would do nothing when clicked on it.

The full menus would be on each DVD, just not every link would work on each burned disc...

I hope this makes sense, thanks for the help!

Do I need different software to do this?

[superpotts]

I did something similar to this once. Try this:

Use DVDFabDecrypter (free) to rip the dvd to your hard drive. Then create a directory for your second dvd. Decide which VOB files will be on your second disc and move them to the second disc directory. Then go to Windows Notepad and create empty files to match the files remaining on disc one, making sure they have the same file names (video1_1.vob, video1_1.ifo, etc.). Repeat this procedure for the files now missing from the disc one directory.

Be sure also to copy (not move) the menu files from the disc one directory to the disc two directory - this will preserve the menu you want.

You are essentially creating two copies of the same dvd, only at half the size because half of the videos aren't really there. It will work, though, because the dvd structure is still in place. This way you also don't have to screw with any conversions which downgrade the picture quality and give you out-of-sync audio. after you've created/fixed your directories, burn them using whatever you use.

Now, I've never done this process exactly -creating two discs- but I have "duped" the dvd player using this technique before, so it may or may not work. Alternatively, you could just use DVD Shrink to put it on one disc without losing much, if any, noticeable quality.

[Smack2k]

Question....

I have about 30 .vob files and when I open them they are usually in the middle of something, not many of them are the start and stop of anything. Do I need to edit these as well before I move them into the two seperate folders or do they need ripped differently?

Thanks

[guns1inger]

superpotts - that method is so hit and miss I'm surprised it ever worked.

Smack2K - you need to understand the way a DVD is structured. A vob is a container file that may contain video, stills, audio, subtitles etc. A single movie might occupy 5 or more vobs, depending on how long it is. Conversly, a VOB may also contain many short films

Simply randomly replacing vobs with empty renamed text files would only work when removing a whole titleset, and would crash your player if you selected anything from within it.

I would look at tools such as DVD Remake Pro, PGCEdit or TitlesetBlanker to do this type of splitting. If the menu wasn't importand, DVD Shrink would be enough, but if you must keep the menu and split the main movie title you need something a little smarter.

[sunnycrest]

I use vobblanker for this function. Small learning curve but works.

[superpotts]

Ya, I'm not advocating that my way is stellar or anything near it, but like I said, I've had it work with a couple simple dvds - nothing where different menu options were included in the same .vob file or anything complicated. It's quicker than any encoding/reencoding, but only if you don't have to make any adjustments - if you do, then you're MUCH better off using a program designed to take on a project like this.

[Smack2k]

Thanks for the assistance so far, I will give these a try!

[mikiem]

It's possible to edit the DVD structure enough to do what you want, but IMO a lot more work then just re-authoring, and a tremendous learning curve in many cases.

TO re-author, PgcDemux to demux the audio/video/subs (opt). Optionally use Shrink 1st if you want to isolate parts. DGIndex -> VFAPI or Avisynth -> V/dub for menu stills, or else just do screen capture in DVD Player software. DGIndex will also demux & isolate menu videos. Put everything together in authoring app. & render layout.