Advanced DVD authoring... How can i make images change as i select buttons

[Dan_24]

Got a bit of a tricky question. I have googled a heap and done a quick search on here but found nothing....
First of all, im using Adobe Encore 1.5 (and photoshop to design).

This is the menu i have created so far, clean and basic is all i want..... with a touch of advanced creation.



In the box which has nothing in it, i plan on having a small description of what the clip is about (this dvd is for submition to TAFE, like collage for you americans ).
Is there any way to make the description (weather it be an image, or a static video clip on loop) change as you go down through the 2 different options (not including 'play all').

I know how to have a single clip playing in a box on your DVD menu, but i want this to change as you select different buttons.

I know how to do that sort of thing in programs such as Flash, and ive heard rumours about integrating flash with your DVD menus, although im not completely sure that this is possible. Ive searched high and low for a tutorial explaining usage of flash in DVD menus and couldnt find anything.

So if anyone could help, it would be greatly apreciated! If not, well i might just have to settle for a very basic plain menu.

[daamon]

Hi Dan_24,

Welcome to the forums.

You might find something here, especially if you search and / or post in the forums.

www.wrigleyvideo.com/videotutorial

Good luck!

[Dan_24]

cheers mate...

Ill have a search in that site and see what i come up with. Not sure of too many forums in the way of editing and authoring yet.

On a side note, where are most of the users based on this site? Was assuming it was american or somewhere overseas, but i see your from melbourne.

[guns1inger]

No, you can't integrate flash with your DVD menus. This is pretty simple to do. The technique is called a switched menu. Effectively you have three versions of the menu, all identical except for the content of the frame. Call them menu 1, menu 2 and menu 3, for example.

On menu 1, link the first item to the title you want to play, and have the other two items set up with an auto action to menu 2 and menu 3 respectively. Menu 2 is similar, except that item 1 and item 2 auto action to menu 1 and menu 3, and item links to a title. Menu 3 follows the same pattern. As you move up and down the menu items, the menus switch so that the frame represents the item that has focus. If you press OK, that title will play. If you move to another item, the menu changes.

This guide is for DVD Lab Pro, but the concept and the example is applicable in most good authoring apps. Have a read and see how you go : http://mediachance.com/dvdlab/tutorial/switchmenu.html

DVD Lab Pro now supports menu cells, so the switching can be set up across cell sin the same menu, making it much faster during playback.

[Dan_24]

ah ok... im pretty sure i get the concept.
ill have to try it another time, about to sink a few brews at this moment in time...long day at work

thanks heaps though!!!

I might grab myself a copy of DVD Lab Pro. How does it compare with Encore?

[daamon]

On a side note, where are most of the users based on this site? Was assuming it was american or somewhere overseas, but i see your from melbourne.

Users home country isn't mandatorily captured, so an exact answer (as far as I know) isn't available. However, the viewing stats might give a good indication.

www.videohelp.com/stats
(but be aware of this: https://forum.videohelp.com/viewtopic.php?p=1609750#1609750)

There's a fair few regular Aussies in the forums - a good bunch too.

[Dan_24]

got it sussed.... w00t!

thanks!

[uniks]

So DVD Lab Pro is better than Ulead DVD Workshop 2?

Can you give some pros and cons for both?

[guns1inger]

I can give you my personal perspective, but a pro for me may well be a con for you.

Pros for DLP :

1. DLP is in active development. DVDWS has had two updates in the past 3 years (or there abouts)

2. DLP puts all the tools on the desktop in easy reach. DVDWS uses a Wizard-like, step-by-step interface that makes some of the tools more difficult to get to. I like to have everything in easy reach. Others find the interface intimidating.

3. DLP doesn't screw with your assets (although they are adding transcoding functions etc which I feel are un-necessary). DVDWS will re-encode if your assets don't fit your project. While this is good for beginners, I would rather have an error and fix it myself.

4. DLP handles all compliant footage. DVDWS handles all compliant resolutions, but cannot encode or author a 16:9. You must encode 16:9 material externally, and put 16:9 flags into your project afterwards using PGCEdit/IfoEdit etc.

5. DLP allows for multi-cell and delayed cell menus, VM programming etc, so can author much more complex discs that DVDWS is capable of.

6. DLP can author with DTS audio.

7. DLP also allows for relaxed compliance for authoring non-compliant DVD discs, including mixed PAL/NTSC source, and SVCD source. These may not play in all players however.

DLP Cons

1. Still has bugs. In part because of it's smaller development team, in part because of it's broad scope. These are actively being fixed and updates released

2. The templates are crap. Honestly, not good. DVDWS's templates are much slicker.

3. The built-in graphics effects and motion rendering are rubbish. Effects are tacky, the motion menu rendering cumbersome. This isn't really a problem - the lazy, who use them, won't care that they are crap. Those who would care, wouldn't use them anyway as they would prepare their assets in external apps anyway (I know I do).

Remember, these are personal opinions. Others will have the opposite view on many of these points. It really depends a lot on how you work and think as to which suits your workflow best.

[uniks]

I see, so in most cases it's easier to use DVDWS but when you want to make something special you use DLP.

[Bjs]

You could use those tools ... but the following combination of freeware gives you all the options without lame restriction .

Dvdauthorgui
Pgcedit
Vobedit
Ifoedit
Vdub
Bbmpeg
Avisynth
Gimp
Muxman
Vobblanker
Imgtools
Besweet
Vcdgear (just incase)
xnview
audiocity
Super
DVD Decrypter
Subtitleworkshop
Folder2Iso
srt2sup
Aegisub or my favorite , visualsubsync

This pretty well covers all dvd formats , including mini , mixed disc's (pal and nstc combined) ... after you get these and use them for a while , there is nothing you cannot create for dvd output .

As I have found over the years ... many commercial products are not worthy of their price tag's ... esspecially when they still have bug's ... and restrictions .

My favorite is ulead video studio ... for the mpeg clipping , and pal to nstc and back fuctions ... every thing above this is a bonus .