Chapter Import With MuxMan

[EpheMeroN]

How can I properly add chapter points using timecodes?

Below is what I have been trying to import from a simple text file called "chapters.txt":
-------------------------------------
00:08:05:819
00:09:06:546
00:15:26:634
00:15:57:832
00:24:37:810
00:25:16:265
00:34:54:509
-------------------------------------

When authored, there are no chapter points. Am I entering the timecodes invalidly? They start just a bit after 8 minutes in, and the last chapter is nearing the 35 min mark.

[midnightsun]

you have to enter frame numbers, not times :)

example:

1457
25907
77548
128756

etc...

[EpheMeroN]

I tried entering frame numbers the last time I used MuxMan to author a dvd, and it still did not work.

Does the text file with the chapter points have to be imported at a specific time during the authoring?

Or do the frame numbers have to fall on an I-frame or something?

[mpucoder]

Since the information in the chapter list is needed for the creation of the default navigation, the list must be imported before navigation is created. This happens whenever the project is saved or multiplexed, so import the list prior to saving or running the project.

Chapter points can only be set at the start of a GOP. This is not the same as an I-frame, as closed GOPs (which are quite common) begin with B-frames. MuxMan starts the chapter at the first GOP at or beyond the frame number.

[goonix]

If your timecode were HH:MM:SS:FR (frame) instead of HH:MM:SS:TH (thousandth), you can use PgcEdit's "Celltimes" plugin to convert from timecode to frame numbers and back.

goonix

[mpucoder]

Current versions of MuxMan use only frame numbers, not time codes, in the chapter import file. The mxp scripts, however, use hh:mm:ss:ff

[laserfan]

I tried entering frame numbers the last time I used MuxMan to author a dvd, and it still did not work. Does the text file with the chapter points have to be imported at a specific time during the authoring?You do know you have to import the txt file with the frame numbers from the File menu? Then at the bottom instead of "no chapters" it will say "11 chapters" or however many entries there are in that file.

[EpheMeroN]

Okay, I imported the encoded .mpv into VirtualDubMod, and used the frame numbers it gave me, and saved that as the new chapters.txt.

Although it did work, and the end result did have chapters now, they were all off by many minutes. Why is this? An example is the second chapter was to start around the 8 min 30 sec mark, but starts during the 6 min mark.

[manono]

Maybe you got the frame numbers based on 23.976fps? You have to use the pulled down 29.97fps frame count. You can multiply the current ones by 1.25 to get the correct frame numbers.

[EpheMeroN]

Maybe you got the frame numbers based on 23.976fps? You have to use the pulled down 29.97fps frame count. You can multiply the current ones by 1.25 to get the correct frame numbers.
That is what exactly was the problem manono! Thanks a ton.

I guess VirtualDubMod removes the pulldown and only lets you view the 23.976 stream. I wonder if there's an option to disable that, so I can get proper frame numbers.

[manono]

Hi-

I don't believe that VDubMod has that option, but VDub-MPEG-2 does:

http://fcchandler.home.comcast.net/stable/

And the ChangeLog (http://fcchandler.home.comcast.net/stable/changelog.html) for Version 1.6.8 build 23638 (July 4, 2005) says:
...the option to allow "repeat first field" flags, which is enabled by default. RFF flags are described in the MPEG-2 specification, and until now VirtualDub-MPEG2 has always ignored them. Allowing RFF should fix a lot of the audio/video sync problems which have been reported for years, especially with mixed NTSC/FILM content. On the other hand, allowing RFF may cause pure FILM content to appear interlaced! In this case you can choose NOT to allow RFF flags, and then the decoder's behavior is the same as it was in previous versions.