Well, we were just burning the DVD with MyDVD

of the six short videos, with the one that was

not good enough encoded by the Canopus MPEG2

encoder replaced with an MPEG2 file made by

MyDVD on a test disk, then copied. This failed.

We then replaced the file with an MS-codec

converted AVI file and let MyDVD encode it. This

failed the first time (error message near the

end of the process before actual writing to

disk), but on the second attempt, the error

message did not appear, and the disk is now

being written... If this disk works, it appears

we will use the MS codec when editing and

producing files for DV and use MyDVD for making

the disks - or, if the material is not "difficult"

(with a lot of motion with fine detail [tests

indicated that I prefer good detail along with

minor artifacting to reduced detail with less

artifacting...]), use the Canopus codec and

MPEG2 encoder (it looks good when it doesn't

fail, and permits up to about 1.5 hours of

material on a disk with the same image quality

as MyDVD-encoded 1-hour disks - and there are

times when I need to make disks that slightly

exceed 1 hour, but without the quality-losses

resulting from making 2-hour encodes). So,

we ****MAY**** be getting close to having two

methods for burning DVDs (the choice depending

on encoding-difficulty of the source material,

and on the disk play-length required). Ah,

the finished disk just popped out......;-)

 

On Sat, 31 May 2003 07:57:15 -0700, "Tom Smale" <iNew$@$maleremovethis.net> wrote:

 

>Yes. Thanks for your posts on MPEG2 encoding.

>I'm still awaiting a solid VBR solution, hopefully posted by you when it

>arrives!

>I currently use the same as you.

>

>In fact if you look at the leading edge posts in this NG over the past 3

>years, you'll see a trend.

>First posts about not being able to capture. Then posts about not being able

>to edit and file size limitations. Then posts about MPEG2 encoding, and DVD

>burning. And most recently posts about printing onto DVDs (and audio!).

>

>It makes you wonder whether DV editing for DVDs ever really worked to any

>decent quality standard on a PC! I know it didn't and could never on the

>Compaq I was sold for video editing 3 years ago.

>I certainly wish I'd got a MAC with FCP a long while ago. I'd have spent a

>lot more time editing footage rather than futzing around installing a grab

>bag of software from different vendors and figuring out why stuff doesn't

>work.

>

>--tom

 

>"Neuman - Ruether" <d_ruether@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>news:3eddb44b.6658248@newsstand.cit.cornell.edu...

>> (Mis)Adventures in DVD-Writing...

>>

>> A ways back I posted a comparison of various

>> MPEG2 encoders we tried (including a couple

>> that crashed on our system), made a selection

>> of Sonic's MyDVD and Ulead's Video Studio

>> (ver. 6 SE-DVD) as the two that were both

>> easiest to use, and with the best encoding

>> quality of ones we successfully tried. The

>> Ulead software offered some advantages, so

>> that is what we were going to go with until

>> a fatal glitch made itself evident: with

>> Canopus Raptor files, the blacks were "killed"

>> by the double-raising of the NTSC black

>> pedestal from RGB 0-0-0 to 16-16-16, then to

>> 32-32-32. UGH! No way around it! Fortunately,

>> we discovered that there is a Canopus MPEG2

>> encoder that is easy to use, works as a

>> Premiere 6 plug-in, and which solves the

>> (lack of) black problem. After running

>> successful tests with this, we burned a DVD

>> thinking we now had a successful, direct,

>> easy to use DVD-writing process available.

>> Unfortunately, in the difficult areas of the

>> video that had previously passed the tests,

>> the Canopus encoder failed when making a

>> whole DVD. Back to square 5 or so...;-)

>> On the Canopus web site is a lossless file

>> type conversion utility, so we converted the

>> part of the DVD that failed with the Canopus

>> encoder to MS-codec, and ran the Ulead on

>> it (time-consuming, and "not neat"). This at

>> least worked and maintained good blacks, so

>> now we are about (possibly....;-) to burn a

>> successful DVD with all six short videos on

>> it - but the amazing number of "hoops" we

>> jumped through to do this makes me think

>> this DVD-writing stuff is not yet ready for

>> "prime time", unless one just gives in and

>> uses the MS DV-codec in the first place.

>> Darn...! ;-)

>>   David Ruether