Matroska Diagram

[Atamido]

I understand that taking a look at the specs for Matroska can be pretty overwhelming, especially when you just want to know how the file is layed out. So, I made a few pictures that describe the layout of a Matroska file, along with some explanations. The descriptions aren't done yet, but it should be good enough for anyone that just wants to take a quick look at how things work.

Please post any questions that you have about the pictures or explanations below. The more feedback I get, the more clear the page will become.

Matroska diagram (http://cvs.corecodec.org/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/~checkout~/matroska/doc/website/specs/diagram/index.html?rev=HEAD&content-type=text/html)

[ChristianHJW]

Neat ! Now, for the first time ever, i have a realistic chance to understand the structure myself ;) ....

[Animaniac]

Thanks. I learned a lot. ^_^

Originally posted by ChristianHJW
Neat ! Now, for the first time ever, i have a realistic chance to understand the structure myself ;) ....

._.

[robUx4]

There's one thing that should be corrected, the Tagging element should be at the very end of the file, always. That will make it easier for everyone to edit it.
If you need it at the beggining (for incomplete downloads) you can too ;) (ID3V1 vs ID3V2)

[Atamido]

Like I said on the page, you can have the elements in any order you like. But some orders are more efficient than others.

[robUx4]

You know the power of the default config ? It also applies to specifications :)

[Atamido]

Where is it in the specifications?

@robUx4: I'm going to try and add anchors for every element in the main specs this weekend. That way you can provide a link to a specific element, just like in the tag specs.

[robUx4]

Originally posted by Pamel
Where is it in the specifications?

You wrote that document that can be seen as a specification for a newbie. So it would be nice to make things clear. Is it very hard to make the Tag element at the end ?

[Atamido]

In a word, "Yes". But that is relative. Like it would be hard for me to get up and make myself some fajitas. Not exactly a monsterous task, but it ranks pretty low on the "Desire to accomplish"/"Effort to accomplish" scale.

[Atamido]

The Matroska diagram (http://cvs.corecodec.org/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/~checkout~/matroska/doc/website/specs/diagram/index.html?rev=HEAD&content-type=text/html) has been updated. It now uses HTML table to show the file layout instead of PNG's. The Tag element was moved to the end of the file. And there were discriptions added for the more complex diagram.

Again, any comments on anything that needs to be more clear would be greatly appreciated.

[dsmith]

Metaseek...
the other Level 1 elements if you did have it. ->
the other Level 1 elements if you did not have it.


The Information section contains basic information ->
The Segment Information section contains basic information

Track...
IWhat resolution is the video? ->
What resolution is the video?

***

Should explain basics of what chapters are in first section. Should not be dismissive of description in second section.

***

<:: Each of these elements are described in the specs. ::>
Should provide link to actual full specs.

pretty strait forward ->
pretty straight forward

<:: The Meta Seek section above explains this pretty well. ::>
Explains what pretty well? Structurally refers to previous paragraph, but explanation in Meta Seek paragraph seems to be completely independant of the earlier material.

The Information portion ->
The Segment Information portion

Clusters...
There is not set limit ->
There is no set limit

<:: The ReferenceBlock shown below, in the BlockGroup ::>
The ReferencesBlock is not shown below relative to this description (ie: it is not part of the figure below this paragraph), but below the previously referenced information on block structure, and should be adjusted to show where what you are referring to is.

-- Personal question on the ReferenceBlock: is the timecode reference an absolute reference to anywhere in the video stream (assuming it's video), or only to the relative timecodes of the blocks within the cluster?


--
David

[Atamido]

Updated (http://cvs.corecodec.org/cgi-bin/cvsweb.cgi/~checkout~/matroska/doc/website/specs/diagram/index.html?rev=HEAD&content-type=text/html) once again. Fixed the spelling and grammar mentioned above. Also added links to the main specs for the listed elements.

[ChristianHJW]

This is going to be one of the best, if not the best, pieces of matroska documentation. And it makes me proud that the developer of a Dutch broadcasting company is reading it while i am writing, because they decided to use matroska for internal file handling :) :) !!!