Archived from groups: rec.video.desktop (
More info?)
"Adam Skeggs" <askeggs@optusnet.com.auZZ> wrote in message
news:410889d3$0$19298$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au...
>
> "Adam Skeggs" <askeggs@optusnet.com.auZZ> wrote in message
> news:41086e07$0$4754$afc38c87@news.optusnet.com.au...
> > Righto then,
> >
> > All I want to do is read from DV and write a DVD.
> > I am using ULEAD VS 7.
> > If I capture as AVI then it seems I can only write DVD as DVD+R. I
> > don't see where this is set it just sort of happens. Manual doesn't
> > say.
> > If I capture as DVD then I can write as DVD-R (my DVD player does
> not
> > read DVD+R) - again it just does this. In this case capture stops
> when
> > the file was 2Gb - I know there is a 4Gb limit but...
> > Also, the automatic scene splitting does not occur with DVD capture
> > which is not a killer but a hassle.
> >
> > So ideally I guess I want to capture AVI (with the nifty scene
> > splitting thingy) and then convert all those clips to DVD so I can
> > write the darn DVD-R.
> >
> > Finally the question: There are stacks of utilities for converting
> > stuff. What's the best free one around?
>
> The term "stuff" of course means AVI -> DVD.
There's no such thing as an AVI to DVD converter. DVD is a storage medium,
not a format.
With that said, you need to learn something about the process in order to be
able to do it successfully. I'm not familiar with the Ulead product, so
I'll speak generally:
"Capture" is a misnomer since, with respect to miniDV, you are not
capturing, but merely transferring a file from the camcorder to the
computer. I use a program called Scenealyzer Live, and inexpensive program
that not only captures reliably in the background, but can also split up a
large video file based on real-time analysis of either time code or content.
The resulting file(s) is/are in AVI format. AVI is a "wrapper," nothing
more than an envelope which can hold video encoded in a variety of formats.
Which format is used depends on the codecs installed on your computer. Most
software will capture miniDV and encode to AVI using the Microsoft DV Codec.
Once the AVI files are on your computer, they must be edited. Again, I'm
not familiar with the Ulead product -- I use Premiere Pro. If you are doing
anything other than straight cuts editing, e.g. dissolves, color correction,
etc., you'll need to render the result. Rendering means calculating the new
values for each frame of video after the effect has been applied. Some
editing programs do this as a separate step, some do it in the background
automatically.
When the edit is complete, you are left with a variety of AVI files, both
original and rendered. These need to be converted to a single mpeg2 file.
This process is called transcoding. Some editing packages can transcode
internally. However, I get the best results using a standalone transcoder
called tmpgenc. It's an inexpensive program, and very slow, but it produces
the best results when properly configured.
To use a standalone transcoder, you have to write the final edited file out
as an AVI file. This function is usually called "export." Again, since AVI
is only a wrapper and not a video format, you have to make sure you're using
the correct codec which, usually, will again be the Microsoft DV codec.
Tmpgenc and other transcoders usually offer the option of transcoding to a
single multiplexed, compressed video file, usually with a .mpg extension, or
demuxed into separate streams. I prefer to work with separate streams for
reasons discussed below. Transcoding at the highest quality, using 2-pass
variable bit rate, tmpgenc takes 24 hours to transcode 2 hours of video on
my 3 GHz P4.
Once the transcoded file has been produced, it must be authored to DVD.
This requires "translating" the single, large mpg2 file into the various
formats required by the DVD spec (for example, VOB files, which are the
wrappers for mpeg2 video on a DVD, can be no larger than 1 Gbyte, so an
mpeg2 must be broken up into separate VOBs). Again, YMMV, but I use
stand-alone authoring software, as it gives the best quality and maximum
control over the final product (I use Adobe Encore). Most authoring
software can actually burn to DVD, but I find the Adobe product somewhat
unreliable in this regard, so I have it create the necessary files on my
hard disk, and then use Nero Burning ROM to actually burn them to a DVD-R.
There are a lot of websites that explain the whole process in greater detail
than I have here. Unless you're willing to spend a little time learning the
process, you probably won't be happy with the results, assuming you can
produce any results at all.
>
> >
> > Thanks,
> > Adam.
> >
> >
>
>
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