DVD-lab

[yuyu]

hi

I just downloaded the trial versin of DVD-lab. It's seems to be quite good (not tried it too much). I was just wandering about one thing. I looked it up in the help file but couldn't find any answers there.

So my question is this. Is it possible to make the thumbnails of chapters play? I want them to play maby 10 seconds from were the chapter point is and forward in the movie.

thanks

[oddyseus]

Most probably no. U need an external app to do this. Try Premiere or After Effects for this trick.

[mikaru]

i think this is what you want to do. take a look at #3. hope it helps.

Mike

http://www.mediachance.com/dvdlab/tutorial/motionmenu.html

[Fat Bast'rd]

Can anyone recommend using DVD-lab? On the face of it, it looks quite exciting, but as usual the proof of the pudding is in the eating...

(Or should I say, the proof of the haggis in the belchin').

[oddyseus]

producing a video with still or animated bacground with animated clips on the background, like the chapter selection menus in commercial dvds, is behind the scope of any authoring program. U have to produce such video in a nle program such as Premiere or vegas for example. I am sure that other nle r capable of this but these two I can recall right now.n There is a sticky in the advanced dvd authoring forum (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=27176) about this.

[maa]

DVD Lab is fantastic if you want great menus.
However in the current version only one audio stream is supported and even that can be a problem - check out the 30 day demo.

[bb]

I bought it as soon as the first version was available. And I'm very happy with it. Easy to use if you need static menus only (can create menu trasitions with a lot of blending effects, though).

Real motion menus with buttons etc. have to be created outside DVDlab. You can add the subpictures and the linking in DVDlab, though. I did that a few times (DV sources).

There's no better authoring program, and it's just $79,- (introductory price). If you need more than DVDlab can offer, you probably have to cope with Scenarist or the like. But these professional programs are not easy to use, no quick authoring, and thousands of bucks to pay...

bb

[Fat Bast'rd]

Originally posted by bb
Real motion menus with buttons etc. have to be created outside DVDlab. You can add the subpictures and the linking in DVDlab, though. I did that a few times (DV sources).

Any good for importing chosen menus off DVD, and then re-linking automatically to imported VOB's (or would this have to be done manually)?

[bb]

This would be quite some work, because you'd have to relink manually, and you'd have to create the subpictures in DVDlab. I don't think it's possible to import subpictures in DVDlab (yet), but I must confess that I never tried.

bb

[maa]

I re-built some of the StaWars menus - its easy and is fun - if time consuming. The choices are just colored boxes over the Words which are in the movie so you just need to draw a few rectangles, adapt the colors to taste and then link as you like - great fun.

I'm working on a guide right now to use DVD Lab for menu creation with dummy films that are linked into the -IFOs afterwards with IFOEDIT .....

This will circumnavigate the audio limitations and bugs and allow multiple VTS.

[bb]

maa, please give me a hint when your guide is ready (e.g. via pm).

bb

[Goldfinger_007]

it looks like v1.3 could be the answer (to original posters Q)

http://www.mediachance.com/dvdlab/tutorial/rendermotionmenu.html

[daehkcid]

Hello,

Suppose I ripped a whole DVD with Decrypter. I then go into DVDShrink to re-author the movie only. This will result in me having Vobs file with Chapter points. Now if I import that into DVD-Lab, will it strip out all the chapter points, or will it keep them?

Any idea?

EDIT: Actually, I'll try it out with a DVDRW.

[callstreet]

You can do it, almost free.

In DVD-lab, you can add buttons, hot spots, and whatever on a motion menu. All you need is a video clip with thumnails of chapters playing.

1st option: Ulead video studio, 6 will do. Cut out a 10 sec of a chapter into a mpg. Use overlay to put it on a background, video or still. You can shrink it and position it on the background. Then make it into a mpg. Next time use it as the background and add another clip, until all the chapters on the page are added. Yes the alignment and size have to be carefully done via imports & exports, but it comes free with the camcorder and video capture device. In addition, the thumbnails can fade in and out. They can also move across the background! Ulead can resize of the thumbnails. Showbiz that comes with MyDVD can zoom in different parts of the original picture.

2nd option: Use MyDVD, 4 will do. You can make the motion menu very easily. Rip back the menu vob into a mpg and use it in DVD-lab. Otherwise MyDVD is useless. It cannot do chapters, the thumnails are titles! I got it free with my sony burner.

[callstreet]

That would let DVD-lab make home movies like hollywood movies. Yes there's no multi-angle and seamless branching that sort of thing. But you don't expect that in a theater either!

There are practical uses. If you mux text and video, or mux music and voice, you have to keep the original video and sound track if you may one day edit the movie again. Putting in all into the DVD you can have the option to turn it on or off. Sub title would be great to add date stamp and event notes on the movie.

-----
Found it. I read ripping guides too much and never thought infoedit is an authoring tool. But are there anything a little bit simpler?

[callstreet]

Originally posted by daehkcid
Hello,

Suppose I ripped a whole DVD with Decrypter. I then go into DVDShrink to re-author the movie only. This will result in me having Vobs file with Chapter points. Now if I import that into DVD-Lab, will it strip out all the chapter points, or will it keep them?


No, DVD-lab won't keep the chapter points. You can rip the movie again using such as Doitfast4u. The chapter info is in a separate text file. However, the time doesn't seem to be in hr:min:sec format. If you know how to convert the numbers, then you can import the text file back into DVD-lab again. Anyway, the new DVD shrink can keep and compress the original menus.

[vtwin0001]

I have learned to create dvds using dvd-lab, its amazing, however its not very flexible since it does not let you create more that one VTS

It also complains when you mix 16:9 and 4:3 videos and the worst thing of all is that you cannot add substreams (subtitles) nor more that one audio stream... also forget about the Angles.....

now.. onto something else:

QUOTE:
-----------------------------------------------------
No, DVD-lab won't keep the chapter points. You can rip the movie again using such as Doitfast4u. The chapter info is in a separate text file. However, the time doesn't seem to be in hr:min:sec format. If you know how to convert the numbers, then you can import the text file back into DVD-lab again. Anyway, the new DVD shrink can keep and compress the original menus.
------------------------------------------------------

To have the time rip the desired movie with the chapter points with dvd decrypter in IFO mode and choose in Settings BEFORE ripping it (Settings -> IFO Mode) Chapter Information xxx and choose Scenarist (i think) or something like that, I just did that and it gave me by times, so I easily marked all the chapters

Just in case choose all the Chapter information Additonal files and open each until you find the one with the times 'cause I dont remember very well which one was it and am very lazy right now to check it out for you, but I think you get the idea

:D

[tmac]

I think you can keep the chapters. It has an import button. You can also do motion menus.For the money this is an excellent program. I used it to author a dvd with a compliant mpeg 2 capture and an svcd file of a photo slideshow with no problems.

[maa]

Yep - give it some time to develop - Multiple VTS is on its way and besides - with my guides you can do just about anything with a little editing already.
Oscar is a one man show developing several softwares simultaniously and they are all quite exceptional for the price.

[farmer dan]

Let me jump into this too.

I have been able to do everything discussed in this thread using:1. DVD Lab
2. IFO Edit
3. Menu Edit
4. Vob Edit
5. and MAA's GUIDES Since I have owned DVD Lab, it has progressed almost to the point at which I would not have had to use anything but DVD Lab for my projects.

maa is right. Currently, you need a lot of "mousefinger grease" and patience. But the results are worth it.