Best Program for Hundreds of Menus on DVD

[clipper]

I need to create a DVD-Video that can show dozens (probably hundreds) of screens of information for my work colleagues.

The screens will actually be menus with buttons enabling jumps to other screens.

The screens will contain mainly text and each jpg menu file will be automatically produced by adding the text from a database.
I've created some small sample XML project files for DVDStyler/DVDAuthor, but navigation is limited.
The program will need to be able to read the automatically produced project (XML) file.

Can anyone suggest a suitable Windows program either Freeware or Buyware that will do the job.

Thanks

Stef

[admin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by clipper

The program will need to be able to read the automatically produced project (XML) file.

I'm not aware of anything that can do this. XML is honestly outside the realm of what DVD authoring programs were intended to handle.

The Linux program "DVD Author" (that has been ported to other platforms, including Windows and Mac OS X) is the only one that I'm aware of as having the abilities to interact with XML.

Sonic Scenarist does some XML, but I believe that is isolated to Blu-ray authoring, not DVD-Video authoring.

DVD Studio Pro can handle some XML, but I believe it's intended for Final Cut Pro XML import, not just any old XML.

There are also limits in the DVD spec, as to how many titles you can have (99), and how many menus are allowed in each title (again 99). Different programs are known to have their own lower limits, so it's something to watch for.

Sorry I can't help more. If you do come across something that fills your need, do be sure to come back here and post about it.

Good luck.

[clipper]

Thanks for replying admin.

I've been looking for a program to do this for weeks now and I suspect that you are correct that DVDAuthor is probably the only possibility.

I'm surprised that there isn't something out there that can do what I want.
I think that an application that can accept data from a data source and produce 'slides' for presentations/training etc. for viewing on a stand-alone DVD player would have a place in the market.
-Similar to a standard slideshow, but allow jumping from a chapter to any selected chapter.

I know there are programs that can convert Powerpoint presentations to DVD-Video, but they can't handle navigation very well when lots of menus are involved.

I did ask a similar question on a different forum some weeks ago and I had a reply from 'Lordsmurf'.
He suggested trying Ulead DVD Workshop2, but when I looked at the features of DVDWS2, I couldn't see how it could do what I wanted.


Thanks again

[admin]

Well, Ulead DVDWS2 is an excellent program for authoring DVDs, and has good control of menus. However, authoring is more of an artistic endeavor than a programming one.

I'm not at all surprised that there is not an automated solution that interacts with XML -- which is by all rights a programming language.

DVD Author is a pretty rough program, made for Linux. I don't think it would be a stretch to say it was created by a programmer (a techie geek, as opposed to a more artistic type), and is why it includes the type of techie XML interaction you're wanting.

Authoring is about presentation, not automation.

But good luck on your project, all the same!