cannot find good DVD authoring software

[coeng73]

for the love of god....i cannot find a DVD authoring software that will work for me.

all i'm asking for is the basics...no bells and whistles.

i just want to be able to create menus and chapters at will.

i have tried ulead, dvdit SE and PE, and dazzle dvd complete.

dazzle is the only one so far that has not given me an error in the burn process, but it does not give me the freedom to create menus and chapters like dvd it PE does.

someone please help. i have yet to burn a DVD project that i like. my burner is not the problem.

i just have to find the right combination of mpeg encoder and dvd authoring software to burn my premiere 6.5 projects.

if you feel my anger and frustration, please help out.

[solsystem]

I think we have all been there at some point.

What exactly is it that your having a problem with?

Im currently using DVDit PE, and have not really had any problems with it. I have used ULead, and found it not too my liking, but thats just my opinion.

I have used the Adobe Mpeg Encoder which has worked fine for me, but opted to purchase the Canopus MVR-1000 mainly to save some time.

Im sure there is someone here that may either be able to help you or provide alternatives.

[teljeur]

I use SpruceUp, it is not sold anymore but it is not hard to find on the net.

I've tried others as well but SpruceUp is easy to use and for me it works just fine.

[Coop]

Coeng,

I've been using DVDIT as well, which will accomodate both chapter points and menus. Can you advise what problems you're having? I'm not a pro, but I'll help if I can.

[edo]

I agree with teljeur.

I've tried quite a few authoring prog's with 'some' success, but keep on coming back to Spruceup for simple no frills DVD authoring that just plain works every time.

Cheers ....

[videoalaska]

I've had similiar issues. I finally found a couple of programs that I CANNOT live without. First Authoring DVD Maestro (By Spruce) Chapters Menus everything. And finally GearPro Burning software, the best $149 I spent. I have a Pioneer DVD writer and with the $.60 dvd-r's I can even play them in my old JCV XV-D2000 set top. (it won't play anything that's rewritable) and checked with friends PS-2 works like a champ. The best combo by far!

-Jim

[zenith]

So far, I have used NERO and ULEAD DVD moviefactory and ULEAD VIDEOSTUDIO 5. I have to say that NEROVISION seems to work great for SVCD but that is about it

ULEAD DVD moviefactory seems to work much better the VIDEOSTUDIO 5 but I hear that VIDEOSTUDIO 6 really uses the ULEAD DVD moviefactory software.

It drives me nutts to see people spending hundreds of dollars on software for DVD. Moviefactory 2 is 45 dollars.

Just to think that in the old days we just took the VHS tape out of the camera and put it into the machine!

[Duc851]

LOL re: zenith's comment about the "old days".

They were a lot simpler weren't they? Since computers came into my life I have gradually run out of valuable time for pursuing other interests that involve going outside into the world and interacting with people.

Now to the subject: I have torn my hair out trying to get Nero Vision Express to work right. In my opinion it is a waste of time and money. Nero may be good at other things but not for authoring and burning DVDs. The video comes out real crappy. I'm switching to Dazzle DVD Complete to see how that works.

Those of you who have used Nero know about the audio bug and the UDF 1.05 situation which will not play in set top boxes. Yes, there are work arounds but who needs to waste valuable time screwing around with workarounds? Give me a program that just works and works well.

BTW, I tried Sonic MyDVD with terrible results. The video capture was streaky. Nero did well on video capture but not much else with burning DVD.

[coeng73]

I think I found the answer I've been looking for....Ulead's DVD Workshop.
It was recommended by a friend.

In my first attempt at DVD Workshop I was able to create menus and chapter points at will. It has many advanced features too like menu background music and total customization of menus. I burned a quick project last nite and it came out absolutely perfect. Now all I have to do is do more touchup work on the menus. Thank god my DVD player likes only DVD+RWs.

By the way, DVDit PE gave me a hard time setting chapter points (i.e. it was very slow when I moved the timeline indicator). There were other nuisances but I can't recall now because I've been thru so many applications. Ulead makes setting chapter points (and chapter thumbnails) super quick and easy! (I have a P4 1.8Ghz, 1GB RAM)

I have a question regarding the setting of chapter points:
I know "I-frames" are a component of an mpeg video stream (something to do with GOP sequence), but what really are they? In DVD Workshop there is an option, that when selected, causes the preview window to advance approximately 10 frames at a time (each time you click the up arrow). If I-frames is unchecked, it advances only 1 frame at a time. However you cannot set chapter points unless I-frames is checked. I noticed that in DVDit there was no such option. I was racking my brain trying to figure out how to advance one frame at a time. It was probably (by default) only advancing to I-frames.

Back when I was working with DVDit, I had to compensate for this issue. What I did was as follows: in my Adobe Premiere project, between each of the fourteen chapter points I added two seconds worth of black video such that the end of each chapter fades to black and the next chapter fades in from black. I also adjust the audio to fade out just before the video does for a cool dramatic effect. This way when I set chapter points in a DVD authoring program I can easily choose a frame (or I-frame in this case) that is in the somewhere in the middle of the black video frames. When a chapter starts (if selecting a specific chapter from a menu or submenu), the video fades in from black, the narrator (camera person) begins to speak, and about two seconds later a nice looking title overlay appears for a few seconds indicating the geographical location and/or setting of the footage for that chapter.

If I didn't follow this approach, I would have chapter points that would either be a few frames before or after the actual start of the chapter, which in my opinion defeats the concept of setting chapter points.

Does anyone else have an alternate technique?

[apaw]

i tried MYDVD the choices to pick your own menu backgrounds and designs from your own j-pegs are great but when i come to burn the file, it takes up too much room!!!! same for Magix's movies to cd and dvd! why is that ? i take a 600 mb video cd file, design my own menu with my own j-pegs, and end result when it comes to burn on cd says 950 mb!!!!!!

help!!!!!how can i shrink the file to the normal limits? or any alternatives to these?

[ackovski]

i think that because MyDVD is converting any mpeg file to 1/2 DVD mpeg format before burning... that would be about 3500kb/s, so if your file has a lower stream than 3500kb/s MyDVD is converting it to that one, u can burn about 2 hrs on a single layer DVD, and thats why its making it larger no help there, try other authoring software that doesnt do that

[Doggiedaddy]

I tried a lot of them also and believe me this ain't Hollywood,
You addressed the level of you frustration very well, but you fell short of explaining what it is you are trying to achieve with your authoring program choice. If as you said " I just want to be able to create menus and chapters at will" this should work. I use DVD Complete and with my limited skill I can make chapter points and menu's where ever I want them, motion backgrounds, and or motion thumbnails at any point using the existing film itself or custom video and or still .bmp. I also can use custom buttons from photo shop add custom intro music via import .wav files. I don't know what you want other than that but maybe you are trying too many programs rather than learning the workings of just a single program no dis intender.
Strength and Honor
dvd9to5 me

"LEARN or DIE LEARNING"
http://www.dvd9to5.com

[coeng73]

DVD Complete limited me very significantly.

In DVD Complete, I hated the fact that there was no option to manually create menus. They are all automatically generated based on how many chapters you have...3 chapters per menu page. You can manually edit the chapters and add more chapters per page (i.e. I like six per menu), but the actual menus (that were already created) cannot be deleted in the "project structure" (at least I couldn't do it). In DVD Workshop, this is not a problem. You are free to create menus and submenus as you choose.

If I recall correctly, in DVD Complete you can't resize the chapter thumbnails after they are placed on the menu. In DVD Workshop, this is not a problem. You can resize to your heart's content. You can even copy and paste "attributes" saving you time making sure that each thumbnail is the same size.

In DVD Complete, I couldn't figure out how to add my own custom menu background music. You are stuck with the program's sound clips. In DVD Workshop, this is not a problem. You can choose any MP3 you want for any menu.

The list goes on and on. In my opinion, DVD Complete (and DVDit and MyDVD) don't come close to DVD Workshop. I highly recommend it for people that are as anal as I am when it comes to burning video projects onto DVD.

[Petco]

Yep, I ended up with the same conclusion. For home videos and TV Captures I use DVD Workshop. Easiest but yet powerful. You can also drag direct AVI and Mpeg directly in ULead Workshop and let do all the work instead of converting to MPEG2 using TMPGEnc or CCE.

But for DVD Ripping , I still use DVD Maestro.

[Nolonemo]

If I frames are 10 frames apart, in NTSC, at 30 fps, that means 1/3 of a second between them. That's close enough for me, I don't mind missing the first 1/3 of a second of the chapter if I jump to it.

[drewson99]

I use ULEAD DVD moviefactory and after 300+ dvd burnings, I only had one error, but it was windows freezing, not the Ulead product. if you had burning problems with this it may be some hardware/software (maybe both) incompatibility issue.

I have used scenarist and Maestro, and it is too complex for me, and all I need is the abilities that ULEAD DVD moviefactory gives me (bg images, bg music, and intro movies.)

so thats what i use now.

[BJ_M]

chapter points ALWAYS have to be on a I frame ... in any program

[coeng73]

I'd still like to know what an I-frame really is and why chapters can only be created on I-frames. Is there a not-too-complex FAQ on this anywhere that would answer my question?

[Nolonemo]

MPEG-1 and MPEG-2 motion video compression standards are based on the interframe method of compression. This means that some frames are encoded based on representing changes comparatively to another previously encoded frame(s). Since usually only a small portion of the frame changes, it helps to reduce the amount of data to be stored.

An MPEG stream can have three types of frames:

- Intra (I)
- Predicted (P)
- Bi-directional interpolated (B).

Intra (I) frames are coded without any references to any other frames. Predicted (P) frames are coded with references to previously encoded P or I frames. Predicted frames provide significantly better compression than Intra coded (I) frames. Bi-directional interpolated (B) frames contain references to both previous P or I frames and the next P or I frame. Bi-directional frames provide the best compression.

A minimum independently encoded rectangle on the frame is called macroblock. It has a size of 16x16 pixels. When encoding P or B frames the encoder searches each macroblock for the most similar block of pixels from the previously encoded frame. This process is called Motion Estimation. As a result, the encoder transmits motion vectors that represent the relative coordinates of macroblocks. Then the encoder transmits only the difference between current and preceding macroblocks. To reduce spatial redundancy in data, Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT) Quantization and Huffman encoding are used.

[BJ_M]

we have a nice glossary here now also

[tgpo]

I think we have all been there at some point.

Sorry, not me. Toast Titanium works perfectly everytime.....now if only you had a mac...

[joeAgain------]

Coeng73,

Of all the ones I've tried(about 6 now), I'm finding Ulead's new MovieFactory version 2 to be the easiest and most fool proof. It will do all the basic chaptering and titling things you asked for. And has never failed to burn my DVDs.

[yg1968]

Coeng73 said:

In DVD Complete, I couldn't figure out how to add my own custom menu background music. You are stuck with the program's sound clips.

This is no longer true. The DVD complete update allows you to change the background music to whatever music you wish.

[DVDAdvisor]

You already have what it takes Premier 6.5 Adobe mpeg encoder(MainConcept) and dvdit

Now you just need to get your setting right

What is your problem?

Are your files DVD Compliant?

MPEG-2 video:

Audio 48kHz 16 bit Stereo ?
Video frame rate 29.97 ?
Video frame size 720 x 480 ?
Aspect ratio: 4:3
Bit-rate: 8.0mbps or 2.0 – 8.0/9.4


I have just about every dvd authoring software and I have no problems with any of them, but then again I not trying to use ripped movies.

I use Adobe Premiere 6.5 to capture, edit and export mpeg files

I also use PixelTools adobe encoder plug-in to make program streams, and I have never had a problem with sync.

I also use TMPGen and I use it a lot of time to convert one thing to another.

I mainly shoot video on a Canon GL1 camcorder
Import or capture to Premiere 6.5, export to a folder either using Adobe Mpeg encoder for elementry stream, Pixeltools for program or elementry stream, and TMPG if I want to do the encoding faster

and have successfully created DVD's with these files with Cyberlinks, Dazzle, InterVideo, Pinnacle, Sonic, Spruce, Ulead products and most of the DVD authoring software they sell.

I have found that you must read the information about any DVD authoring software to find out what they except, and then create the files to the specific and you want have a problem or at least I don't.

Be well informed and create you source files to the specs of each DVD authoring software before you even begin creating your files, that will save you a lot of time and frustration

State your problem and I am sure someone here well tell you how to solve it.

[coeng73]

DVD Advisor:

I cannot export MPEG-2 with Premiere 6.5 because I get an "assert failure" after only a couple hundred frames are processed. This is a known problem (posted in main concept's forum) and I am not the only one having it.

I therefore use TMPGEnc to convert to MPEG-2 (ES-video only). I export the audio via Premiere and link them together in the DVD authoring program.

When I created chapters using DVDit, the application responded very slowly when I moved the timeline indicator to find the desired I-frame. This may be an OS issue. I have WinXP Home. This is not a problem in DVD Workshop. The application is quick and very responsive. It also makes setting the thumbnail for the chapter easier than DVDit does.

Honestly, the only thing that took me more than five minutes to figure out in DVD Workshop is the linking of objects, images, text, and buttons to movies, chapters, menus, and submenus. Once I figured this out I have to agree that this is a very easy-to-use (yet extremely powerful) application. The only thing I wish it also has is an optional "snap to grid" feature or "ruler" view so that things would line up perfectly on a menu. I guess you can't have everything!

[coeng73]

I haven't tried this yet, but has anyone used an AVI file as the "source" for DVD Workshop project and allowed the application to convert to MPEG-2 on the fly and burning it?

I'm curious to see what the difference would be with what TMPGEnc currently gives me. In TMPGEnc I use 8000kb/s CBR. I used to use VBR but the length of time to convert my 40 min video (20 hrs) vs. 6 hrs for CBR was not worth it. The result from CBR is more that adequate.

Also, when I go to burn a project, why does DVD Workshop ask me for bitrate settings and VBR/CBR option? If my MPEG-2 video (that was the source for the project) was CBR encoded what possible effect will this setting have?

[Nolonemo]

Re: DVD Workshop snap-to:

There are alignment features in the right-click context menu on the Menu section. You have to hightlight (ctrl-click) 2 or more objects for it to be active. There are options to align, evenly space, match size, etc. I don't think this feature is even mentioned in the manual. But that's DVD WS for you: great product, shit support.

[teljeur]

Something everybody seems to miss is that SpruceUp can import AC3 audio file's. As far I know the others don't. If you are a serious in creating DVD's than in mine opinion this is a must.

[donpedro]

Pinnacle Impression DVD Pro and SE can import AC3 sound too. In addition Pro version can author DVD with 2-Angels, 8-Language tracks, 32-Subtitle tracks and motion menu backround. I know that thera are softwares than can do this too If you are authoring your own DVD's, I don't believe that you will need AC3 sound. At least my camcorder does not record sound with 4 microphones

[yg1968]

For an additional 200$, Ulead will soon give you the possibility to encode to AC-3. See these threads:

http://www.dvdplusrw.org/cgi/forum/ikonboard.cgi?s=6ece8ace6b89fbf5e688b88fa107c6ea;ac...=ST;f=7;t=5068

http://www.ulead.com/aboutulead/press/pr01-23-03-2.htm