Remove Titles in PGCedit

[meRobs]

I have been using PGCedit successfully now for about 7 months with VobBlanker via tools. However, when using PGCedit to kill playback, etc, of unwanted titles using either Ctrl-K or Ctrl-Delete, all works but the title is still listed in PGCedit (in an IFO?).

This is OK for a normal DVD player, but in a software player like WinDVD, these titles are still accessible via the navigation panel and if selected the App and my PC hangs up.

Presumably, the title plays its 10 kB blank then returns to its menu button, which had been 'Hidden', or to a sub-menu that had been 'blanked' -- neither being present!

Is there any way of avoiding this?
Maybe of deleting such titles from the list in the IFO?

Thanks in advance
meRobs

[Wombler]

Have you used PGCedit to remove uncalled material?

If not, try that and see what happens.

If you've already done that then playback has been killed but the titlesets have not been removed in order to preserve the commands associated with them.

If you know what you're doing you can trace playback, remove all jumps to the blank titleset and copy the essential commands (if any) to an earlier one.

You can then use PGCedit to search for and safely remove the now uncalled material.

These titlesets probably are played by the standalone player but because they're blanked you don't notice as only the commands are executed.

I'm not sure if it's normal for the software DVD player to crash in these circumstances though and there may be a configuration issue with your machine.

The experts here can advise further though.


Wombler

[meRobs]

Thanks Wombler, but as I said initially, I had been using PGCedit and these titles had been blanked using Ctrl-Delete (I have also tried Kill Playback). A standalone Player will have no problem because it is not easy to select a blanked Title since the menu buttons had been hidden in PGCedit or blanked in Tools > VobBlanker.

With WinDVD, one can select a Title from the list of all titles in the navigation pad. On selected one, it seems to run through the 10 kB blank and, I suspect, returns to the menu that normally jumps to it. Then, the player hangs up because these buttons are no longer!

Thanks for the try.
meRobs

[r0lZ]

Difficult to know what's wrong without the IFOs, but you can relatively easily prohibit the call of the Titles by setting the "Title Play Or Search" PUO on all playable PGCs. (I know, it's tedious: you have to modify each PGC with video contents manually.)


Another way to prevent the players to crash is to insert a jump to the First-Play PGC at the beginning of each blanked PGC. However, it is not safe to simply insert a CallSS, as if the PGC is still called during the normal navigation, the DVD will restart itself when it should not. If you have a free GPRM, you can initialize it to any non-zero value in the FP-PGC pre-commands, and test it to know if the title is called manually by the user (in which case its value should be 0) or during the normal navigation (value > 0.)

Assuming that GPRM 15 is free, you should add this command in the FP-PGC:

********** pre commands:
[71 00 00 0F 00 01 00 00] 1 Set gprm(15) =(mov) 1
[00 B1 00 0F 03 FE 00 0B] 2 ... (original commands)

And, in each blanked PGC:

********** pre commands:
[00 B1 00 0F 00 00 00 03] 1 if ( gprm(15) != 0 ) then { Goto line 3 }
[30 08 00 00 01 00 00 00] 2 (CallSS) Call the First Play PGC, resume cell 1
[00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00] 3 NOP
[00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00] 4 ... (original commands)

This method has several drawbacks, as your DVD will restart from the beginning each time you call manually a blanked Title, and you might loose your language and subpic settings, for example.

Note: To test how the navigation behaves when Title 1 is called manually, right-click on the "Insert DVD" button in the trace panel (or select the trace menu entry State -> Restart Playback from the Exit Domain), and run the trace normally. To test another title, use the same method, but before running the trace, select the entry PGC of the title you want to check.


IMO, the best method to get rid of the blanked title is the method explained by Wombler. If a title does not exist, it cannot be played. However, making all blanked title unreferenced is somewhat difficult, as there are no automatic function to do that.

[meRobs]

Thanks rOlZ.
However, it looks too messy to remove blanked titles from the IFOs.

Your PGCedit has many snazzy operations that do involved tidy up jobs, I was hoping one of them that I hadn't yet tried would do a tidy up of unwanted, blanked titles. Unfortunately, no.

Thanks anyway & keep up the good work
meRobs

[setarip_old]

@meRobs

Hi!

If you have, or are willing to purchase DVD95Copy Pro, you'll find that you can delete whichever titles you desire by simply UNchecking them (Set to "Rip" mode if you don't want to compress)...

[blutach]

You can't just delete titles from a DVD structure like that setarip.

The method I use is to ensure that all PGCs have PUO bit 2 set (title play) = 4. So that a title can only be played via the DVD's navigation. This is trivially easy with the "Set PUOs in current domain" function of the PUO plugin to PgcEdit. Of course, removing uncalled PGCs/titlesets might also help.

r0lZ's method is used quite extensively on commercial DVDs, where if a title is entered via the remote (e.g. if the original PUOs are removed during a rip), then the DVD essentially restarts - better than an exit, I suppose.

Regards

[Wombler]

Good tip there Les re the PUO plugin.

I must remember that one for future reference.


Wombler

[r0lZ]

(I know, it's tedious: you have to modify each PGC with video contents manually.)
This is trivially easy with the "Set PUOs in current domain" function of the PUO plugin to PgcEdit.
I was wrong! Indeed, the first method I have suggested above is easier to implement than I thought!
Sorry, PgcEdit is now so complex that I forget some of its functions. :rolleyes:

[setarip_old]

@blutach

Hi!You can't just delete titles from a DVD structure like that setarip.I'm guessing that you're not familiar with the abilities of DVD95Copy.

When you deselect a Title, in addition to deleting the Title, the program modifies the .IFOs as is necessary.

If you think bout it, it would be rather silly for the program to offer that option if it didn't perform all the necessary steps.

The fact that the program makes the changes transparent to the user is a good thing ;>}

[blutach]

Setarip - please stay on topic. As well, if a title is simply NOP'ed by a program, then if it is needed to be entered for nav commands (eg setting audio streams and gprms), then that nav needs to be honoured. If you want to start a topic about DVD95Copy and nav commands, you are welcome to do so.

Regards

[setarip_old]

Setarip - please stay on topic.Surely, simply offering an alternative solution, without getting into the "nuts and bolts" of its inner workings, to a fellow member's problem isn't really "offtopic"?

[meRobs]

Thanks Blutach. However, I must be doing sonething wrong or I have mis-interpreted.

I installed the PUO Plugin and opened a DVD folder in PGCedit. Then, to test your suggestion, I selected (clicked on) an unwanted title (title 7), selected Plugins > PUOs > Set PUOs in current domain and turned on bit 2 (ticked the Title play bit). Then, I closed (and saved) PGCedit and examined the VIDEO_TS in WinDVD, my software player.

Unfortunately, I could still select title 7 on the Navigation panel!!
There was one change in behaviour, though: once title 7 was selected, selecting any other title was prohibited from the navigation panel (greyed out)!

Any suggestion??

If I apply 'Kill PGC Playback' or 'Blank out all VTST titles', how does your other suggestion help: "Of course, removing uncalled PGCs/titlesets might also help" ??
What else does this do?

In any case, I often use VobBlanker via Tools to ruthlessly blank all unwanted titles. This is far quicker, since I can select all VOBs with no wanted menus and hit Blank in one go!

Looks like I am getting close to a solution.
Thanks
meRobs

[blutach]

You need to set the title play PUO for ALL domains (including VMG).

There was one change in behaviour, though: once title 7 was selected, selecting any other title was prohibited from the navigation panel (greyed out)!
Showing that it works :)

Regards

[meRobs]

Now it is even more mystifying:
I set the PUO for Title 7, an unwanted title in the hope that manually selecting it in a software player, rather than via normal navigation, would not play it. Yet it does play! This to me is a failure, since playing it (a blank) would take play to its parent menu that I had blanked and thus cause a hang up.

The fact that after selecting this title (and freezing the player) then prevents me from selecting other titles is of no use!!?

Secondly, you say I should set the Title Play PUO for ALL domains (including VMG). In other words I need to set a PUO for the VMG and every VTST and every VTSM. In my current disc there are 21 titles, each with a VTST and a VTSM. A lot of clicking!

In which case, it seems not worth the effort. I shall simply ruthlessly blank out all the VOBs or PGCs of the unwanted titles and the corresponding sub-menus in VobBlanker and hide menu buttons of menus I keep. Then take care to use normal navigation in a software player and not make manual selections.

Have I got that right.
Thanks
meRobs

[r0lZ]

The Title Play PUO prohibits calling any title during the playback of the PGCs having that PUO set. It is not possible to prohibit calling only one specific title. In your case, as blu said, you have to set the PUO on all PGCs, except on dummy PGCs since they are not playable. So, yes, you have to repeat the action on the 21 VTST domains, and on the menus domains containing non-dummy PGCs. The PUO plugin for PgcEdit can help automate somewhat this task. You can also copy/paste the PUO value, without having to go to the PUO editor each time.

[r0lZ]

If I apply 'Kill PGC Playback' or 'Blank out all VTST titles', how does your other suggestion help: "Of course, removing uncalled PGCs/titlesets might also help" ??
What else does this do?Nothing else. If a title is never called, PgcEdit can remove it automatically. Note that "called" doesn't mean "played". A title that has been killed is still called, but its video content is never reached, as the navigation continues with the next PGC as soon as the pre-commands have been executed.
So, to be able to delete a Title, you have to edit manually its calling PGC(s) and clone the pre-commands of the blanked PGC in the calling PGC(s). That takes much more time than setting a PUO on several PGCs, and requires some skills, so I guess this solution is not suitable for you.

You can also reorder the Title numbers (via Title -> Remap Title Numbers) and push the blanked ones to the end of the list. It will be easier to remember which titles cannot be called manually.

[meRobs]

Thanks

[blutach]

The other thing you can consider is to rip without removing PUOps. Many DVDs have title play PUO set on all relevant bits of video. But rippers tend to take PUOps out. Then you might wanna come along and in selected PGCs, alter things like next / previous PG and forward / back scan and time search.

But 21 domains is not a lot. Just leave the PUO plugin screen open by clicking on the ---- line and then you can position and click.

Regards

[meRobs]

Agreed!

Thanks all, for your help.
Regards
meRobs