Archiving Home Video on a computer

[chuckaug]

I have always transferred my home videos to DVD's. I do this by using a stand alone Panasonic DVD recorder. I plug my Sony Mini DV camera into the recorder and transfer to the DVD using the highest resolution setting. I now have a large collection of DVDs which I would like to archive on a computer harddrive with two purposes in mind. The first is to provide a single source for saving all these DVD which can be copied to another drive if needed. The second is to allow me to watch any of the files on a computer or possibly to stream them to a tv using something like an Apple TV.

My computer system is PC based running Windows XP Home edition.

When I open the DVDs I find that they contain Video TS files which have BUP files within, and Files labelled VTS_01 which have Nero show time files within.

Now my question- what is the best way to save these DVDs so that they can be viewed on the computer but also can serve as an archive from which I can reburn new DVD's or recopy the entire drive to share with another family member.

I have found that if I double click on the DVD in the drive it will open an play on Windows Media Player and I can open it with almost any DVD playing software. I have not found a way to copy the DVD to the harddrive in a way that allows it to be played from the harddrive and serve as a source for a new copy.

In addition - is there any way to import these type of files into Itunes?

Thanks for any help

Chuck

[FulciLives]

You can use DVD Decrypter to copy the DVD discs to your computer in ISO READ mode. This will create 2 files ... a MDS file and an ISO file.

You can then use VLC to play back the ISO file and the ISO file can be burned back to a DVD using ImgBurn (actually you select the MDS file).

However I think that VLC is one of the very few (if not the only) media player that will play back from an ISO file. If you want to use other software, such as PowerDVD etc. then you have to mount the ISO file using a program like Daemon Tools.

Personally I would rather leave them as ISO files BUT you can rip or copy them as you are now (i.e., use DVD Decrypter in FILE mode and SELECT ALL FILES) and then play them back that way using most software, such as PowerDVD etc. YET when it comes time to burn them you will have to make an ISO image file with ImgBurn then burn the ISO file.

However ImgBurn does allow you to burn directly to a DVD without having to create a ISO file first. I don't trust this method myself but others have said it works well.

So really you can do it either way but I would prefer ripping them as ISO files and just leaving them that way. You can then use something like the MediaGate MG-350HD which is a unique design that allows playback without a PC (basically a USB HDD case that acts as a media player to a TV if you have video and audio files on the HDD). I've seen other similar designs from other companies as well so this is just an example. Never used any of these myself.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

P.S.
Here is a newegg.com link to the MediaGate MG-350HD ... although I never used it myself I read a review of it once on a website and then I seem to recall someone here mentioned having it and really liking it.

http://e3wwwtest.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833701001

Also please note that nowhere does it say the MediaGate supports ISO files but I swear one of the reviews said that it did but if not then just RIP in FILE MODE (as you seem to be doing) and then use ImgBurn to burn straight from the DVD Files without creating an ISO image file first (which truth be told should work A-OK).

[nlec]

... However ImgBurn does allow you to burn directly to a DVD without having to create a ISO file first. I don't trust this method myself but others have said it works well.

It works very well. I normally create ISO files first and then burn them as a separate step in the process. Last week I had 6 DVDs worth of data I needed to burn so I decided to try ImgBurn's direct-to-DVD feature. It worked flawlessly and these discs are jam packed right up near the 4.7 GB limit. Under the covers it may be creating a temporary .iso somewhere and simply burning that, but I don't know for sure. The feature, no matter how it's done, works perfectly as far as I can tell.