Need more DVD-RB automation

[elzmaddy]

I'm using Rebuilder Pro 1.00 beta and while it's a great program, it still lacks features for hardcore users. I have to engage in a five step process when I want to backup DVDs in batch mode. I have to rip with Decrypter, mount the ISOs with daemon tools, set up projects for each rip, burn the ISOs and delete the original ISOs. It is extremely tedious to create and add project files when you're trying to back up your whole collection. I'm looking for something that will automate 80% of the process for me: when I insert DVDs (i use multiple drives), have them automatically rip, become queued in DVD-RB (even if a project is already running), produce compressed ISOs named after the movie (so I don't get confused), and delete temp files and original ISO when a project is complete, and move onto the next project. Then all I need to do is load Decrypter and burn the ISOs, and delete them when done.

If I cannot entirely automate this process with this version of RB Pro, are there any scripts that can meet me halfway on this? Any help is appreciated.

:thanks:

[rendez2k]

Well I just use AnyDVD in the background - which cuts out the ripping and mounting part. I processed 3 movies this way the other day and it worked fine!

[Mr. Monte]

I agree with rendez, the only time I rip with DVDD to the HD now is if I need to do some pre-processing.

[jptheripper]

elzmaddy, instead of complaining:

we would love for you to write the script

and if you want to just put in the disk and have it rip, how will it know what settings to use... i would hate to think, with all the adjustability of rb, that you are using the default settings, keeping everything, on every disk

[elzmaddy]

I do indeed use the same settings for every DVD. Otherwise it would take too much time and work.

we would love for you to write the script

I will, I just thought somebody else had written it already.

edit: AnyDVD is EXCELLENT. A driver that removes encryption, amazing. Now I don't need to rip. That's 20% of my needs filled. Thanks rendez2k

[elzmaddy]

Here's what I decided to do..

Since I have 3 DVD drives, I set up generic Rebuilder projects for each of my drives.. DVD1.rbd, DVD2.rbd, DVD3.rdb. which output to \DVD1, \DVD2, \DVD3. So I insert 3 dvd discs, start Rebuilder, add the rbd projects in batch mode, and using the anydvd driver, I do the batch encode. Then I just have to figure out which DVD# is which movie.

But I don't understand why you can't add more jobs to the batch list WHILE the program is working. I have to wait until the whole batch process completes to add more. I would love to see this feature implemented in the next edition of DVD-RB Pro.

[feedback]

I seldom ever use batch mode myself.

IMO there are other things that would probably be rated higher up on the wish list by long time users of DVD-RB Pro., such as a two-click mode for instance. Just my opinion.

Regards,:)

[jptheripper]

as for default settings, you are shooting yourself in the foot. Quality versus speed, to save 5 minutes versus possibly 1000kbps in bitrate. Bad call in my opinion

[spyhawk]

But I don't understand why you can't add more jobs to the batch list WHILE the program is working.Do you mean when project 1 finishes, you pop in another DVD into drive 1 and append to the batch as project 4, and so on? Are you really in that a hurry? Don't you want to first test the result and burn it before starting another batch?

This feature is easily said than done. It requires DVD-RB to be either multi-threaded in the batch process or allows another instance to run, which is currently not possible.

[feedback]

I couldn't agree with jptheripper more. Using the video segment editor, for instance, saves a lot of space for me by using slide show on the credits for one. Besides, I am always fiddling with all the settings...hidden and otherwise to improve my movies. Matrices, DC precision, iDCT, TargetSectors etc.,etc. it is just a wonderful program.

Regards,:)

[elzmaddy]

>>Do you mean when project 1 finishes, you pop in another DVD into drive 1 and append to the batch as project 4, and so on? Are you really in that a hurry?

Yes

>>Don't you want to first test the result and burn it before starting another batch?

No

I'm backing up 100s of DVDs so I am looking for all-in-one settings. If I need to strip extras to produce good quality in 99% of cases, then so be it. It's time consuming enough as it is.

[apfraats]

I'm backing up 100s of DVDs so I am looking for all-in-one settings. If I need to strip extras to produce good quality in 99% of cases, then so be it. It's time consuming enough as it is.


I just found the solution for you:

Use empty DVD-9 DVD's and you don't even have to bother about DVD-RB or settings anymore..........
By the way, backing up 100s DVD's in a brief moment does raise some questions however........
Maybe a robotic DVD-duplicator is more of a solution in this case....
And I suppose you even want all DVD's full color printed.....
Even automatically inserted in boxes with an automated inlay printing and inserting process.....
And have CSS and the latest ACrrOSS copy protection on the duplicates.......

:p :p :p :p :p :p :p :p :p :p :p :p

[laserfan]

It IS amazing sometimes isn't it, the trouble that people go thru to "back-up" their DVDs, on the CHANCE that someday something might render them unreadable! Especially when most end-up in the $5 rack at Wal-mart.

Perhaps apfraats comment makes yet another point--if you compare a $4 DL DVD to a $0.40 one, is the time it can take to make a $0.40 backup REALLY worth it, when life is so short???

[jdobbs]

Does anyone actually sit in front of his/her computer and watch it backup for two hours?

[dragongodz]

while it's a great program, it still lacks features for hardcore users.
so I am looking for all-in-one settings.
It's time consuming enough as it is.
am i the only one to find these statements amusing ?

sorry i wont interupt anymore. ;)

[laserfan]

At the risk of hijacking this thread, is there any setting for the 3-step process that lets RB-PRO continue from the end of the Encode step thru to the Rebuild completion w/o stopping?

[elzmaddy]

I didn't put anyone down based on the way they create their backups, why do you put me down for trying to save time and effort while still getting DVD-RB/CCE quality?

I simply believed there was a demand for the kinds of things I am trying to do, but apparently not.

[Mr. Monte]

Does anyone actually sit in front of his/her computer and watch it backup for two hours?

Hell yea..don't you? :p

I actually wrote a script that puts cycadelic pictures on the screen that move to the harddrive access lamp. Man, that..some popcorn...some weed...whew!! :cool:

[jdobbs]

At the risk of hijacking this thread, is there any setting for the 3-step process that lets RB-PRO continue from the end of the Encode step thru to the Rebuild completion w/o stopping? That'll be in the Final version. I just forgot to implement it. If you press REBUILD when ENCODE hasn't been completed, it will do both.

[laserfan]

[Continuation from Rebuild to Encode will] be in the Final version. I just forgot to implement it. If you press REBUILD when ENCODE hasn't been completed, it will do both.:thanks: [bowing low]

[apfraats]

Does anyone actually sit in front of his/her computer and watch it backup for two hours?


Nope JDOBBS, just use youre handy option for batch-processing, first ripping up to 5 DVD's, do some preprocessing as needed , making the settings I want, save them to projects files, define the batch and go to sleep.

In most cases when I wake up again, and have had my first coffee, the PC is still working on it's job..........

Lukely I have a few of PC's yet, so going te read my mail on another one after that and doing the first daily things in live make it all a very easy job....

Just let it go, and it will finish with great result, if used by someone who at least takes the effort to get into DVD-RB-PRO from a users perspective....

So why bother ???? Compared to the quality you get in the end, I even don't upgrade my PC yet.... What's the big difference between a 180 minute job and a one that lasts 150 minutes ???? Yep, a few 1000 bucks...
(a LOT of DVD's so...)


It's of no sence to speak in terms of time, but to speak in terms of effort.

Even if DVD-RB would do all automatically (and even with atrificial intelligence choose the right settings for eacht DVD :D ), the most effort is taken by ripping and preprocessing, bacause that's the real work, especially with all the new ARccOSS protection schemes comming up. That will be a manual job for-ever I suppose.

And then I wonder if choosing to backup main movie only for the 100's of back-ups to make bij the starter of the thread is such a good idea....
Especially keeping episodic DVD's in mind....

It's clear to me he hasn't a lot of experience backing up, seeing the question and remarks made..........

[elzmaddy]

I've backed up TONS of DVDs with uniform settings and they all look great, but maybe they wouldn't look so good to an elitist. The only DVD backups where I see compression artifacts are discs where they exist in the ORIGINAL.

[feedback]

That'll be in the Final version. I just forgot to implement it. If you press REBUILD when ENCODE hasn't been completed, it will do both.
So, basically that will be the 2-click mode (feature request) that people (me included) have been asking you about?

If so...all right!! :D

Regards:)

[jdobbs]

So, basically that will be the 2-click mode (feature request) that people (me included) have been asking you about?

If so...all right!! :D

Regards:) Exactly. :)

[apfraats]

I've backed up TONS of DVDs with uniform settings and they all look great, but maybe they wouldn't look so good to an elitist. The only DVD backups where I see compression artifacts are discs where they exist in the ORIGINAL.


Let's make it POLL :)

It's IMPOSSIBLE to backup every DVD on the world (you say TONS, so let's make it EVERY) with the same settings, especially not if you are still doubting to remove the extras or not, as metioned in one of youre previous posts.

Even saying so, makes one look like a complete jerk (sorry moderators)....

You cannot really mean to say that using 8.4 GB material on a DVD, looks the same on a 4.35 GB DVD. This is even quite impossible....
Maybe there is something wrong with youre eyes.....
Or you just have a bad TV-SET, so y'll even not notice the difference.

This statement should theoraticalle mean you can compress ANYTHING to about 55% of it's size, without losing quality. That's impossible. It would mean that even an original with the same bitrate as the 55% compressed DVD BITRATE would be able to be compressed again to 55%, and so on.

This is pure noncense, as it would theoratically mean NO SPACE is needed to compress EVERYTHING with same QUALITY. This is kind of impossible.

When you have originally mastered HIGH QUALITY marterial with a average BITRATE of 4000 you can't compress it to 55% of it's size meaning average bitrate of 2100 or about that. If this should be true why don't they master it in the first place at 2100 average ? If there is no difference you should be able to compress 2100 average to 55% again and again, untill average bitsream is 0. Yep, sure you would get a nice picture....

That's nice. You can even backup youre tons of DVD's on just 1 DVD, yep sure you can, if you believe youre own nonsence.

In a HIGH QUALITY stream, cutting down on the AVERAGE bitrate means losing information. That's just mathematical MPEG2 basics.

And losing information means less picture quality.

Even a complete still picture uses a certain amount of bitrate.
The more complex the stream, the more bitrate is needed to reproduce it.

Cutting down on bitrate significantly always means losing quality, or all commercial DVD's could last 10 hours or more with excellent picture quality.

I have never seen one.....

Of course you have.

Even commercial DVD's uses sometimes too low bitrate....

And then you play the game: Count the blocks....

Sure you are able to do the impossible. Compressing these DVD's again by 55% and having the same already degraded quality....

Sure I believe you....

Just a lot of bullshit uptill now, especially considering this post from you


I'm backing up 100s of DVDs so I am looking for all-in-one settings. If I need to strip extras to produce good quality in 99% of cases, then so be it. It's time consuming enough as it is.

Just complete bullshit. Doing so will ruin youre Episodic DVD's..... Only the longest Episode will remain on the backup.....

And if you really have done TONS of DVD's you there is about a 100% change there are episodic DVD's amongst them.

Uptill now, everything you say doens't really make any sence in any way....


But please go on and try to convince.......

You'll only sink deeper and deeper.......

[dragongodz]

ok, sorry, had to respond.

why do you put me down for trying to save time and effort while still getting DVD-RB/CCE quality?
sorry but some of the things you are saying are funny and contradictory. saying that isnt trying to put you down. i will give you an example.
I'm looking for something that will automate 80% of the process for me
so I am looking for all-in-one settings.
but also say
lacks features for hardcore users.
sorry but how exactly is it "hardcore" to have a program do everything for you except maybe make your breakfast ? the whole point of simplification and automation is to make things newb resistant/freindly IMHO.

maybe they wouldn't look so good to an elitist.
in the end so long as you are happy with your result then it doesnt really matter if anyone else would like it or not. really though its probably not the best idea to say you are asking for features for "hardcore" users and then suggest others may be elitists. usage of such words are just more likely to get some peoples backs up rather than get across what you are asking. just MHO.

[jptheripper]

by hard core i think he meant high quantity. however, for high quantity backups, i can name, wait.. no tools that exist.

[laserfan]

I still think this was the right answer:

I just found the solution for you:

Use empty DVD-9 DVD's and you don't even have to bother about DVD-RB or settings anymore..........
By the way, backing up 100s DVD's in a brief moment does raise some questions however........
Maybe a robotic DVD-duplicator is more of a solution in this case...elzmaddy it is reasonable, although perhaps "not nice", for people reading your request as having suspicious origins. Backups are made for numerous reasons: you have kids who mishandle DVDs, you have one-of-a-kind or out-of-print DVDs that need protection, you have box sets that lose their value if one-of-a-number of DVDs gets ruined, you have favorites that you play all the time and don't want to wreck accidentally, etc. etc.

But needing to copy 100s of DVDs at a time suggests wrongdoing to any reasonable person. No "reasonable person" needs to backup every DVD in their collection--it's just not worth the time & effort on the off-chance a DVD might "go bad" someday. So some of us suspect you are swapping disks w/friends & family, which is illegal virtually everywhere, and frowned-upon everywhere else.

So you're getting "a hard time" from some people here. Too bad for you.

[writersblock29]

@elzmaddy

I agree with Laserfan. There's a chance that you're being totally legit about this -- and if so, cool; that's why these forums exist -- but you have to understand how bad it would look for a software developer to come up with a way of mass-producing copied movies. Sure, there can be a legitament reason! Say you have built up a collection of several hundred movies, and just recently heard about DVD backup software. Your girlfriend (soon-to-be fiance) has kids from a previous relationship, and you know they love Disney movies -- on the floor, in the couch, on the coffee table, and all at once. So you understandably have an urgent need to back up your collection before they fall victim to The Wrath Of The Little People. These things happen! We ALL have our reasons for being here.

But simply asking for a way to conveyor-belt movies in and out of your computer is GOING to raise an eyebrow or two around here. I'm sure the MPAA has people who read these forums in order to keep abreast as to what's going on with us dirty pirates, and THEY'D raise an eyebrow as well. Then we'd not have conversations like this... because there'd be no forum to do it on.

So I conclude that perhaps it's best to tell us a little about your situation to not only justify what has to be one of the most compromising requests I've read in my years on this forum... but to keep us suspicious-types off your back. We're only protecting our turf; how can we have personal vendettas against you if we don't even know you? Why the rush? What makes it so important to push this kind of product?

[laserfan]

...there can be a legitament reason! Say you have built up a collection of several hundred movies, and just recently heard about DVD backup software. Your girlfriend (soon-to-be fiance) has kids from a previous relationship, and you know they love Disney movies -- on the floor, in the couch, on the coffee table, and all at once. So you understandably have an urgent need to back up your collection before they fall victim to The Wrath Of The Little People... :D Great story! You're not having "writer's block" today are you!!! :)

:goodpost:

[writersblock29]

@laserfan

:D Well... it was either that, or a story about aliens who have an unsatible appetite for DVDs have moved into the basement... :D

[laserfan]

I would like to hear that one from you sometime! Be sure to post a link when you're done with it! :p