Newbie questions on converting avi to mpeg2 and dvd authoring

[mlcampbe]

I've just started getting into DVD creation and have some questions.

I've read over the various HOWTO's and some are helpful but most of them use different programs so it gets confusing trying to piece it all together.

What I want to do is take the video from my digital camera and burn it to DVD using freeware.

Ideally I want to capture a tape into scenes and then build a DVD with a menu that allows me to select which scene I want to play back. I don't need any fancy menu creation or video right now but just basic stuff.

So far I have tried Sonic/Roxio MyDVD DE that came with my machine but it does not work very well so I have been searching for other tools.

The steps I see are as follows:
1 - capture video to computer (I have successfully done this using windv.exe)

2 - Convert AVI to mpeg2 format.
What is the best way to do this for free? I've seen the tools such as avi2dvd, mediacoder, and super. Should I use one of these or a different one??? Is there a free tool to capture directly to mpeg2 format instead of having to convert afterwards?

3 - Create a DVD menu.
Some tools I've run across are DVDauthorGUI, DVDflick, DVDstyler, & GuiDVDauthor. Which is the best of these for my needs?

4 - Burn resulting content to DVD. I have used several tools to successfully burn cd's. CdburnerXP, burn4free, etc... so I don't think this will be a problem. Additionally I can burn from some of the authoring tools above.

Am I missing anything? I see some info about demux and remuxing. Is that needed? Please help me get started for items (2) and (3) by suggesting some tools to get the job done without having me to try each and every one of them myself.

[Baldrick]

PLEASE change the topic subject, use something that better describes your topic. Just click on the edit-button to change it.

edit: Thanks!

[redwudz]

1. OK, good choice.

1A. Editing? You could use VirtualDub and the Cedocida DV Codec. And VD can frameserve the edited video directly to a MPEG encoder.

2. You could try FAVC. It can encode and author your DVD. Or try the HC MPEG encoder.

3. GUI for dvdauthor is a good freeware authoring program. You may want a graphics editor for some added menu design and creation. Gimp is one freeware one. http://www.gimp.org/

4. ImgBurn is highly recommended for burning DVDs.

VD or my tool of choice, VirtualDub Mod, can mux and demux AVI type formats if needed. It can also filter, crop, edit and encode both audio and video to AVI type formats or DV. Well worth having.

And welcome to our forums.

[mlcampbe]

Thanks for the info. I'll give a look to FAVC or HC and see what it offers. I am familiar with GIMP and have used it extensively in the past.

How will I know if I need to mux/demux my avi files?