Observation and the questions it raises

[syzygytec]

OK,

Moving along in my DVD backup learning I have been using D2S/CCE Today noticing that the main movie only, ripped to the HD was smaller than a DVDR media. This made me want to know how to back this up w/o re-encoding. I knew it would have to concern editing the IFO somehow, so I knew of DVD Shrink so decided to try that instead. Last week I did a backup of MonstersInc using D2S + D2SRoBa + CCE and got a full DVD+R, reauthoring the same movie in DVD Shrink gives me about 3.8GB. As far as I'm concerned I did the same thing as with D2S, kept the main movie and main soundtrack only, with DVD Shrink as far as I'm concerned, since it was under a DVDR media size it was just straight copied the oringinal w/o compression so what I have is the untouched original video. If I am right, what went on with D2S? did CCE encode at a higher bitrate than the original or what? Obviously that method came out with a larger video file size.
If I have stated this all clearly enough as I understand it by my logic then I have to ask, what's better the untouched original video by DVD Shrink, or the re-encoded by CCE?

[syzygytec]

Oh and that leaves me with another wierd idea, how about ripping with DVD Shrink instead of D2S with either internal routines/vstrip/or dvd decrypter, You could set your target size to custom and set it high enough to cause no compression in DVD Shrink, reauthor and rip then load that IFO in D2S and run same as starting off the IFO previously rip through D2S, anyone see any advantages or dis-advantages to this? I see one possibly, it might help on multi-PGC movies where if you just click rip and convert you might get the wrong thing, where as reauthored first would prevent that.

[auenf]

if you check the guides, there should be full dvd backup and partial dvd (movie only) backup guides, have a read thru them all and see which would be best for you.

Enf...

[Kedirekin]

To answer your first question, yes I think D2S must have recompressed the movie to a higher bitrate, which is pointless. Recompressing the movie, even to a higher bitrate, will degrade quality (though probably only by a small amount). The DVDShrink/No Compression route is both faster and better.

The answer to your second question is really up to you - do you find value in that approach? If you do, then use it. One advantages of pre-processing in Shrink is that you'd catch the above scenario before starting D2S, and knowledge is power.