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-   -   Even simpler transfer of avi to dvd with menus? (http://www.digitalfaq.com/archives/encode/6563-even-simpler-transfer.html)

Bishop 11-06-2003 05:50 PM

Even simpler transfer of avi to dvd with menus?
 
I wanted to burn a bunch of Pokemon divx episodes I had to DVD and found I could probably fit 30-40 episodes (if I had that many) on a dvd. Since they are low res I used the KVCD template at 352x240 instead of up-sizing it to a mpeg2 resolution. This doesn't degrade the quality since they download at 320x240 and you can't get better quality by raising the resolution anyway. This format is supposedly a subset of the dvd standards so it should work on most set top players. The only thing out of standard, according to the guide I read, was the variable bit rate. My dvd player doesn't even accept svcd so I was a little skeptical but it worked.

DVD Lab (www.mediachance.com) accepts the encoded films from Tmpgenc without re-encoding them (some dvd authoring programs re-encode taking a long time!). I am using the trial version and it crashes when I try to preview the movies in its preview pane but the output works. The menus are easy to make and work just like a dvd menu. I put a list of 10 on each screen and had two menu screens. You simply insert a text button and right click to link it to the episode. You can also insert image buttons and other fancy stuff but I haven't tried that.

Here is a detailed how to. I started with this guide http://www.kvcd.net/portal/articles.php?lng=en&pg=23 (thanks Vmequita!)and had to make a few changes to make it work. I hope I don't forget any details.

Software needed:
Tmpgenc 2.5 (free unlimited use for mpeg1 encoding) www.tmpgenc.net
DVD Lab 30 day trial www.mediachance.com
dvd burning software. I used Nero 5.5

Note:------------DVD Lab has a burn feature but I didn't try it. Easy DVD creator that came with my burner did not have an option for burning video (it came with MYDVD instead) and I doubt it would work burning files as a data DVD because of the structure difference.

Step one.
Run tmpgenc and cancel the wizard. Choose your first pokemon.avi under source. Load the template.
I used the KVCD 352x240 film template with the following changes:
Frame rate set to 29.97 because it is not a 23.976 film.
Max GOP set to 18 as suggested for lower frame rate animation.
Audio included at 48,000hz and bit rate changed to 64kb (the videos I have were only 56kb so 128kb would be a waste of space) Tmpgenc can re-encode stereo audio it at the same time as the video, but I don't know about multiple channel audio.
Click start and it encodes the video as pokemon.m1v and the audio as pokemon.mp2. It takes my computer 15-20 minutes for each 20 minute episode. You can batch them all by pressing ctrl-alt-m instead of start. Just be sure to re-load the template with every selection. Tmpgenc kept defaulting to its own settings.
Before going to step 2 I had to change all the m1v extensions to m2v so DVD Lab would import them.

Step two.
Run DVD Lab. Import all pairs of episodes into the asset bin. I could only import 2-3 videos with audio at a time. It warns you that the video is non standard but may work anyway. The program would also crash if I tried to use the preview pane. I tried many other programs but none of them would accept both the .m1v and .mp2 files.
I used the Connections view to assemble the dvd. Drag a video component from the asset bin to the connection pane to add a new movie. Drag the audio onto the movie to combine the two. Don't worry about the number (eg. MOVIE3). You change the order. You might want to change the name unless you do them all in the order you want.
Edit the default menu. I used a template and changed it to suite me. Write your titles and right click to link them to the movies you created. Be sure to make text and a link to go to different menu screens. It shows a little number next to each linked title but you can set your own navigation order (responses to the remote controls navigation buttons).
I used the connections view to have each movie go to the next one instead of back to the menu. You can preview the menu but links to other menus and video weren't live.
Press Compile to create a DVD folder structure on your hard drive (ready to burn with your burning program). It took only a few minutes to compile the whole dvd. It warns you ahead of time how much space you will need.
You can then test it with a software DVD player that can load a DVD from a folder on your hard drive.
If it all looks great you are ready to burn.

Step three.
Run Nero or your burning program and choose DVD video
Drag the Video_TS files from your project to the Nero folder. The Audio_TS file for my project was empty. I assume that is for alternate audio files.
Click burn. It said it would take 20 minutes (for 20 episodes- 2.8GB) at 2.4 speed. I set it to shut down afterwards and went to bed since it was 1am.

Step four.
Test it in your set top player. Mine worked fine. I could make menu choices, press menu during playback, and press >>| to advance to the next episode. I did get a check disk error once when I pressed menu but I reinserted the disk and couldn't reproduce it.

I hope you have success. If you have a question or problem post here and I may be able to help.


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