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02-21-2010, 09:54 PM
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See -- now you're at the fun part!! Decision making time. That's definitely a sign of learning, as you now know enough to have to decide on a course of next action.

Upscaling in software would possibly look bad, as the 352~720 does not translate well. (352~704 is an exact double, however, so it's fine most of the time.) There's really no reason to upscale 352 to 720, as you won't gain any quality -- indeed, you'd lose quality from another re-encode between compressed formats.

Remember that a DVD+R DL is not an exact double of a single-layer disc. It's about 4GB extra, not 4.38GB extra. You also need to manually set the layer break, so plan your chapters accordingly. You MUST have a chapter at a layer break -- and there may be a slight pause on some DVD players. (Or worse, a skip! My Philips DVD recorder sometimes skips a half second on layer breaks found on retail discs. I think it's the way it was authored.) I use PgcEdit + ImgBurn for layer breaks.

I keep many VHS tapes here, too -- just in case. In the early days, I did a lot of personal "test projects" with TV shows. When done, I threw away the tapes, thinking that's all that could be done. Many years later, I was wrong -- there were new filters that could address the old issue. Luckily, most everything I did worst at has now been official released to DVD, so I threw out most of the homemade DVDs. They're sharing a landfill with the tapes somewhere. (I know, I know -- best to recycle, but nowhere around here recycles tapes.)

Tapes don't really "go bad" as boogeyman myth would have you believe. Most damage is done by being played, or by a "hungry" VCR that "eats" the tape. Poor storage can affect it too, when tapes are stored in attics, garages, or bad temperate/humid conditions. Tapes on the shelf in a home or office are fine for many, many years. You have time to carefully and slowly archive them properly to DVD. I always tell folks there's no reason to rush.
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