DVD Shrink Reauthor

[Sbofen]

Has anyone noticed when reauthoring, that you can crop (? set start/end?) with 2 different compression levels?

Normally I drag 2 instances of my movie, 1 for the main movie and crop it. The other for the credits and compress them to stills.

I noticed if I drag 1 instance of the movie up, set start/end, change your compression level, then move the start/end to the original. You'll end up with 2 compression levels.

[mrbass]

yes we've noticed. I like to call it Little House of Chop Shop.

http://forum.digital-digest.com/showthread.php?&threadid=21884

[maa]

I noticed if I drag 1 instance of the movie up, set start/end, change your compression level, then move the start/end to the original. You'll end up with 2 compression levels. Thats a really neat trick - dragging in twice results in a multiple VTS output but your method doesn't ! Wonder if you can do this more than once...

[Sbofen]

Thats a really neat trick - dragging in twice results in a multiple VTS output but your method doesn't ! Wonder if you can do this more than once...

Great idea!! YES, I've done it. I tested a trailer for convenience. I set the whole thing to no compression, set start and end to beginning of trailer, changed to level 2. Then I selected the middle part, set to level 5. Then the end to stills.

Finally I set start/end to the whole Title, and it came out with 3 compression levels.

[dvdshrink]

Think of the compression levels being stored as a kind of "bitmap" - then the start/end control just defines which part of the bitmap you are painting.

The smallest unit is one vobu - approx 0.5s of video.

You could set every vobu in the movie to a different compression level, but it would take you a long time ;-)

[luphy]

Here's a wacky idea that I have not tried yet.
Let's say you have a movie that has some some action scenes
that Shrink just can't shrink too well. I wonder if someone
could selectively single that scene out, and choose a lower
compression on it, and allow Shrink to do automatic on the
other two fragmenets of the rest of the movie (before the
action scene, and after).

Can't see any reason for this not working, but I'm not sure if there will be any pauses going from one to the other.

Maybe someone could recommend a movie with a very tough scene to shrink - even for the new ver3.


Oh oh, DVDShrink, I have a small request. :-) When the window
for Start/Stop pops up so you can edit, would it be possible to make
that window larger so that the movie windows could be larger. Thanks!

[Sbofen]

Originally posted by luphy
Here's a wacky idea that I have not tried yet.
Let's say you have a movie that has some some action scenes
that Shrink just can't shrink too well. I wonder if someone
could selectively single that scene out, and choose a lower
compression on it, and allow Shrink to do automatic on the
other two fragmenets of the rest of the movie (before the
action scene, and after).

Can't see any reason for this not working, but I'm not sure if there will be any pauses going from one to the other.

Maybe someone could recommend a movie with a very tough scene to shrink - even for the new ver3.


This would be fantastic! I would opt for the 'tough scenes' to be done with no compression, and the rest automatic though..
Maybe an advanced option to work along side of analysis button in beta3

DVDShrink, thank you again for such a flexible program.


*edit* OOP, my bad, I need to learn to experiment before posting. I guess you can switch from automatic to ratio and adjust from there.

[daehkcid]

dude, can you give me the detail please? ur post #1 is not clear i dont get how to do it.

[Sbofen]

This post was before 3.0beta versions (shrink 2.3)

I noticed if I drag 1 instance of the movie up, set start/end, change your compression level, then move the start/end to the original. You'll end up with 2 compression levels.


Here's an example:

1) Choose Reauthor
2) Drag your title up to the main window
3) Choose Start/End button
4) Move START Frame to beginning of credits
5) Press OK
6) Choose Still Picture compression Level
7) Choose Start/End button again
9) Move START Frame back to beginning
10) Press OK

You now have 2 compression levels

[daehkcid]

What if i want chapter 12 and chapter 17 to be no compress while the rest is 50%.? LEt's say i have 20 chapters. Does that mean, i just put the 'start' cursor everytime going backward?

Hey thnx buddy, i'll test this .. very usefull :)

[Sbofen]

Just set the whole title to 50%.
Then set the start to chapter 12, End to 13 (or choose 13, and press the back button once).
Set compression of this 1 chapter to none.

Do the same with 17. Then, after that's set to none, set the start to the beginning of movie, set the end to the very end.

You'll now have the whole thing set to 50% except for chapters 12 and 17 (which are set to none).

What a great program!:D

[dvdshrink]

The start frame means "start of" and the end frame means "end of"... so if you set both start and end to chapter 12, that will cover the whole chapter.

If you set start frame to chapter 12, and end frame to chapter 13, then you will cover two chapters.

[daehkcid]

Nice, .. :) thxn both of you. The only thing is.. that it can't compress more than 57% and so it does not fit into 4.7gb. Hope we can go lower than 57% in the future.

[Sbofen]

Originally posted by dvdshrink
The start frame means "start of" and the end frame means "end of"... so if you set both start and end to chapter 12, that will cover the whole chapter.

If you set start frame to chapter 12, and end frame to chapter 13, then you will cover two chapters.


AHHHH!! Thank you for clarifying!:p

[Kedirekin]

57% is probably the maximum compression that DVDShrink can achieve on that particular block of video with the transcoding algorythms it uses. I believe DVDShrink (and most of the other transcoding tools) change the quantization in the video stream to shrink the size.

Note that 57% is the maximum for that block of video only. I have seen maximum compression ratios as low as 41% in some of the stuff I've done. I think it depends strongly on the level of quantization in the original - little quantization (i.e. very high quality) in the original gives lots of room for compression, while lots of quantization (low quality) in the original means little room for compression.

Also, I'm willing to bet these maximums are not just chosen at whim, but that they are theoretical maximums. Once your increase the quantization as high as it will go, it can't go any higher. Achieving higher compression requires a full re-encode with new motion vectors and the whole nine yards.

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by Sbofen
I noticed if I drag 1 instance of the movie up, set start/end, change your compression level, then move the start/end to the original. You'll end up with 2 compression levels.
What "original"??? What am I missing here???

[Sbofen]

Originally posted by layer3maniac
What "original"??? What am I missing here???

Sorry for being confusing, I had meant the original Starting point and Ending point of the VTS.

Just follow the example I posted earlier for a clearer explanation

[layer3maniac]

Ahhhh the original starting AND ending point. That's where I was going wrong. Thanks for the clarification!

[gnipooldd]

Hi all. :)

A guide I made a while ago. ;)

http://www.dvdshrink.info/re-author-advanced.php

[layer3maniac]

Nice guide. But I was trying to figure out how to do it using only one instance (resulting in only one ts). Now that I've figured out how the OP accomplished this, I'm curious to see if this will remove the small gap.

[gnipooldd]

"Nice guide."
Thanks. :)

layer3maniac, maybe I did not read this thread carefully enough, but what is it you're trying to accomplish using only one instance? :confused:

[maa]

You can compress certain portions of the material heavilly and others lightly - and it all stay in one VOB set.
Good for high action scenes to compress lightly and in slow scenes heavier. Makes for better overall quallity!
(oh no - another guide to write...)
:D

[gnipooldd]

I got that bit, maa. :D
It is not possible using DVD Shrink only. :(

But maybe it will allow for "seamless" merging of titles in a future release. ;)

[MackemX]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
I got that bit, maa. :D
It is not possible using DVD Shrink only. :(

But maybe it will allow for "seamless" merging of titles in a future release. ;)

so how would you do it now?

use VOBEdit and join the VOB's?
use an authoring program also?

[layer3maniac]

See, that's the whole point of this thread.It certainly IS possible if you follow the somewhat confusing directions. The only question I have remaining is this - is the end result seamless? In 20 minutes, I'll let you know!

[maa]

Well you obviously still havn't got it. :rolleyes:

This is a big secret but you CAN already do it DVDShrink, read "Sbofens" 4th post and "DVDShrinks" first post in this thread again and again.

edit
Look at it like this:
Start by setting compression to "No Compression"
Open the start/end dialog
Set to start and end markers to chapter 3
Close dialog.
Set compression to 50% then open the dialog again and move to another chapter - say chapter 5.
Close the dialog and see that the compression is now shopwing "no Compression" again - well set it to wehat ever you like and open the dialog again.
If you don't want to compress any more chapters or scenes then drag the sliders to thier outmost positons and close the dialog.


BTW
It would be so easy to understand with ;) WINK ;) but its very time consuming to do and the background thing is confusing me at the moment. I was thinking of changing all my guides to that format but it wont load pictures - only from the clipboard or fresh capture.

[MackemX]

Originally posted by luphy
Here's a wacky idea that I have not tried yet.
Let's say you have a movie that has some some action scenes
that Shrink just can't shrink too well. I wonder if someone
could selectively single that scene out, and choose a lower
compression on it, and allow Shrink to do automatic on the
other two fragmenets of the rest of the movie (before the
action scene, and after).
does Deep analysis not try to do this but not on a grand scale?

if it does then great :), if not then why not? ;)

a 2 pass is the best way to go and if it took one hour, even two hours to do a pass and record the video data to then distribute the compression efficiently then I'd wait :D

quality takes time :cool:

[layer3maniac]

Perhaps you can answer my question before my burner even finishes, maa. IS the end result from using this method seamless?

[gnipooldd]

I get it NOW. :D

Wowow, I've got to try me it. :)

[maa]

IS the end result from using this method seamless?

YEP !!

[layer3maniac]

Does that mean that another one of your killer WINK guides is coming soon? It took me nearly a day to figure out how the OP was saying to do this.

[MackemX]

Originally posted by maa
Well you obviously still havn't got it. :rolleyes:

This is a big secret but you CAN already do it DVDShrink, read "Sbofens" 4th post and "DVDShrinks" first post in this thread again and again.

Look at it like this:
Open the start/end dialog
Set to start and end markers to chapter 3
Compress chapter 3 to 50% then drag the start and end sliders to the beginning and end of the whole film, close the dialog.
[Now you still have the whole film but chapter3 is compressed at 50% the rest NOT compressed]

Open the dialog again and set start /end to chapter 5.
Compress to 25%, drag the start / end points to the start of the first chapter and the end of the last chapter again and close the dialog.
[Now you have chapter 3 at 50% and chapter 5 at 25%, the rest is NOT compressed]

BTW
It would be so easy to understand with ;) WINK ;) but its very time consuming to do and the background thing is confusing me at the moment. I was thinking of changing all my guides to that format but it wont load pictures - only from the clipboard or fresh capture.

Compress chapter 3 to 50% then drag the start and end sliders to the beginning and end of the whole film, close the dialog.

that's the bit I don't get, Is is me missing something or do you have to click OK to close the start/end window to access the % settings?

all I see you have to do is click start/end, choose the chapters you wanna compress, click OK, set % and then move onto next bit and compress it to what you want and finally set start/end to original start/end

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by maa
YEP !! SWEEEET! :D

[maa]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
I get it NOW. :D
Oh thats good - you can write the guide :D

[MackemX]

Originally posted by maa
Oh thats good - you can write the guide :D
I still don't :confused:

[maa]

Originally posted by MackemX
all I see you have to do is click start/end, choose the chapters you wanna compress, click OK, set % and then move onto next bit
Yes you're right - thats my fault for not having DVD Shrink on this computer - anyway it seems to have helped a bit:D

:D :D

[gnipooldd]

Well I think I do. :D

I'm gonna give it a try and let you know.
If it works I will be making a guide. ;)

[maa]

OK - I'm goga look and re-write the above mess in just a minute ....

[MackemX]

LOL, I knew it was simple :D

you just select the parts you wanna compress differently and do it
finally set the start/end to original start/end

it's as simple as that (or is it?????)

why is everyone so confused????? :confused:

trying it now anyway

[MackemX]

yep, it's as simple as that :D

[gnipooldd]

Simple but not working. ;)

Screen captures coming up in 5.

[layer3maniac]

Trust me, it DOES work.

Here's what I did, step by step, to convert the credits in chapter 32 to stills.

1. Drag one instance into the Reauthor window.
2. Set the compression to Automatic.
3. Click Start End
4. Select Chapter 32 for both the Start Frame Chapter and the End Frame Chapter in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
5. Click OK in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
6. Click Still Pictures to compress the Credits to stills
7. Click Start End again
8. Select Chapter 1 for the Start Frame Chapter and Chapter 32 for the End Frame Chapter in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
9. Click OK in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
10. You will now see TWO compression streams ticked, one at the automatic level (for the main movie) and one as stills (for the credits)

[MackemX]

Originally posted by layer3maniac
Trust me, it DOES work.

Here's what I did, step by step, to convert the credits in chapter 32 to stills.

1. Drag one instance into the Reauthor window.
2. Set the compression to Automatic.
3. Click Start End
4. Select Chapter 32 for both the Start Frame Chapter and the End Frame Chapter in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
5. Click OK in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
6. Click Still Pictures to compress the Credits to stills
7. Click Start End again
8. Select Chapter 1 for the Start Frame Chapter and Chapter 32 for the End Frame Chapter in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
9. Click OK in the Set Start/End Frames dialog
10. You will now see TWO compression streams ticked, one at the automatic level (for the main movie) and one as stills (for the credits)

too confusing ;)

1. select the parts you wanna compress and do it
2. set the start/end to original start/end

just kidding of course, but it does work but it took me a while to finally get the idea

[maa]

OK - its re-written - hjope its clearer now...
:rolleyes:

[gnipooldd]

I do agree that DVD Shrink indicates two (or more) levels of compression are being used.
What I'm not sure about is if it actually works. :)

[MackemX]

have you tried using stills in the middle of it?

that definitely works

maybe you can only have 3 different settings to set them at

automatic/ratio and stills?

[gnipooldd]

Nope, I haven't done the actual backup yet.
I'm still trying to understand these:

http://www.dvdshrink.info/temp/images/compressions.gif

Can someone explain me all these numbers? :confused:

[MackemX]

@ ddlooping,

instead of using a complete title, crop 3 chapters from that and create a miniDVD then use that to play with as processing takes minutes

I'm thinking if you set the first bit you want using the ratio to say 70% and then set another part to 80% it overwites the previous setting to 80% also

I wonder of you can only tell parts of the title to either be whatever the original automatic setting is, ratio or stills

or can you have independent ratio's

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
I do agree that DVD Shrink indicates two (or more) levels of compression are being used.
What I'm not sure about is if it actually works. :) It actually works. I'm looking at the finished product on my standalone, with the credits converted to stills, right now.

[layer3maniac]

And, BTW, it's COMPLETELY SEAMLESS!!!

[2COOL]

To go even further, you can now bypass that still (shrunk) chapter by editing the Cell's Playback time and entry point sector value in IFOedit.;)

[gnipooldd]

I have edited my previous post to link to a single image containing the 3 screen captures.
I believe I didn't make myself clear. ;)
I have no doubt that you get still pictures if you select to apply it to one or more portions of the title, or that a deleted or highly compressed portion of the title will be deleted or highly compressed.
What I'm still not convince about is that the gain in space is actually used.
Please look at my screen captures and try explaining the figures to me. :)

[layer3maniac]

well, I actually enjoy reading credits. Go figure...

But if you don't want to see them, wouldn't it be better to just eliminate them with the Start/End so all the available space can go toward the movie? :confused:

[MackemX]

it should make the process of keeping menus/extras easier and quicker to do as you should be able to replace the new movie VOB's and click Get VTS to correct it all

[MackemX]

@ddlooping
in the mixed compressions pic you can see you have set 4058MB to 78% and 601MB at still pictures giving the total

in the two instances it looks like you have selected two parts of the DVD in automatic so it's showing two of them

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
What I'm still not convince about is that the gain in space is actually used. Please look at my screen captures and try explaining the figures to me. :) The figure that tells you the extra gain in space is being actually used is the size of the finished product number - in the case of the screenshots you posted - 4464 mb.

Think of it this way, if both the DVD's are using the same space -4464 mb, and one is using LESS for the credits, where is the remainder of the space being used? The main feature, of course!

[MackemX]

has anyone mentioned you can remove the audio from the end credits also?

[gnipooldd]

Oh I don't know, I'm confused. :D

I'm gonna try it and see what the resulting files sizes are. :)

[gnipooldd]

"has anyone mentioned you can remove the audio from the end credits also?"

Not much point in keeping the end-credits then. :)
The all purpose of this exercise is to keep the music so as to allow the mood of the movie to carry through (and not end abruptly). ;)

Well, it is for me anyway. :P

[MackemX]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
Oh I don't know, I'm confused. :D

I'm gonna try it and see what the resulting files sizes are. :)

ignore the figures

just set it to automatic 1st

then select the parts you want to be stills and also set the parts you want different ratios for

DVDShrink will stick to those settings you change and then automatically fill the rest of the DVD with the parts set to automatic

don't set parts to automatic which it looks like you did

[MackemX]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
"has anyone mentioned you can remove the audio from the end credits also?"

Not much point in keeping the end-credits then. :)
The all purpose of this exercise is to keep the music so as to allow the mood of the movie to carry through (and not end abruptly). ;)

Well, it is for me anyway. :P

like I mentioned above, I think it may be possible to just replace the movie VOB's and then click Get VTS sectors without having to use the longer methods for keeping menu/extras when using DVDSHrink reauthor ;)

[maa]

Before I start I set to "No Compression" to protect the fast scenes.
Then compress the rest around them with the trick. Anyone read my corrected post (http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=59039#post374357)? Make sense now ?

[gnipooldd]

Hi all. :)

Here is the beta version of the guide. ;)

http://www.dvdshrink.info/mixed-compressions.htm

I haven't finalized it yet because I was hoping you could check it first, to make sure the process is right. :D

[maa]

Yes - very good. I now see the advantage in pre-setting automatic because you can't change the "rest" later.

Of course it doesn't need to be done by chapter - that was just an example. Scenes can be done on a frame basis (would be nice if shrink became more frame accurate)

This technique does help improve the percieved quality considerably.
For really long films it may be neccesary to run the whole film through the procedure twice.

[gnipooldd]

"Yes - very good"
Thanks for the positive feedback, maa. :)

"Of course it doesn't need to be done by chapter..."
That will be indicated in the guide, at the point where I use the start/end on chapter 9. ;)

[JediSthlm]

Howdy

A question, what program is used for making the guides?

Thanx,

[gnipooldd]

Hello JediSthlm. :)

As indicated under all the guides (:p), it is "Wink". ;)

http://www.debugmode.com/wink/

[JediSthlm]

Thanx :)

[gnipooldd]

You're welcome. ;)

[Sbofen]

Glad to some people have made sense of my gibberish! :D

gnipooldd, the only thing in your beta guide I would change would be instead of selecting 'ratio 100%' for chapter 9, just select 'no compression'.. I guess its user preference though :rolleyes:

[gnipooldd]

Thanks for the reply, Sbofen. :)

"...instead of selecting 'ratio 100%' for chapter 9, just select 'no compression'"

I intend to indicate this option in the accompanying text. ;)

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by Sbofen
Glad to some people have made sense of my gibberish! :D Actually, you did an excellent job of explaining and exposing this secret feature. When I first came across this thread it was immediately clear to me that you had discovered a nugget of gold and I was blown away that such an awesome feature was still virtually unknown a month later. The technique itself is just naturally confusing, as indicated by all the subsequent failed attempts at clarifying it. IMHO, that makes this an ideal candidate for one of gnipooldd's excelent WINK guides.

What an awesome program! This community owes DVDShrink (the author) a huge debt.

[gnipooldd]

"I was blown away that such an awesome feature was still virtually unknown a month later."

So was I!! :D

"...that makes this an ideal candidate for one of gnipooldd's excelent WINK guides."

Thanks layer3maniac. :)

Have you viewed the beta version of the guide?
http://www.dvdshrink.info/mixed-compressions.htm (beta)

I'm working on the final version right now. ;)

[atreides93]

Amazing...I've been using DVdShrink for a few weeks now and never knew this technique existed. In fact I was just talking to a friend about how cool it would be if you could select different ratios for different chapters!!! doh!!!

The only thing I don't like is I would prefer knowing what percentage it was "automatically" calculating...but that's ok i guess.
I imagine this method works for version 2.3 as well? I am using 2.3 mostly.
I wanted to avoid the bugs in 3.0beta 5 that I heard about.

[MackemX]

Originally posted by atreides93
The only thing I don't like is I would prefer knowing what percentage it was "automatically" calculating...but that's ok i guess.

why not do as maa suggested earlier and set it to no compression and reduce each part to exactly what you want?
:EDIT: or set it to the lowest you want it to ever go using the ratio and then raise the selective areas with the space you have created?

[gnipooldd]

I have finished the guide. :D

Please have a look and tell me what you think. ;)

http://www.dvdshrink.info/mixed-compressions.htm

It is not yet linked to the site (hence the bland and empty page),
but will be soon. :)

[maa]

:cool:Perfect:cool: - well done. Seems to cover every useage. :D

[gnipooldd]

Cool, thanks. :D

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by atreides93
I imagine this method works for version 2.3 as well? I am using 2.3 mostly. I wanted to avoid the bugs in 3.0beta 5 that I heard about. It seems to work with 2.3 as well. But because of the added quality attained from the Deep Analysis feature in 3.0 beta 5, I definitly prefer it.

[layer3maniac]

Originally posted by gnipooldd
Please have a look and tell me what you think. I think that you did a GREAT job! With complicated techniques like this, those WINK guides of yours are KILLER! Thanks!

[gnipooldd]

"I think that you did a GREAT job!"

Thanks, layer3maniac. :)

"With complicated techniques like this, those WINK guides of yours are KILLER! Thanks!"

My pleasure. ;)

[Richk50]

Another great guide. You have the ability to break down complicated things down and make them appear simple.

[gnipooldd]

Thanks for the compliment, Richk50, I really apreciate it. :)

[Sbofen]

Originally posted by layer3maniac
It seems to work with 2.3 as well. But because of the added quality attained from the Deep Analysis feature in 3.0 beta 5, I definitly prefer it.

I thought Deep Analysis was for automatic compression so the software would give more bitrate to the fast acction scenes. But if your setting each scene manually, now I'm confused on what its actually doing. :confused: (or made for):confused:

[layer3maniac]

Personlly, I don't set each scene manually. I set the credits to stills and if I think particular scenes need special attention I set them manually. The rest is on autopilot.

[ddlooping]

I just wanted to add that your last selection does not have to be the whole title, as long as it contains the previous selections. ;)

[Karovaldas]

Dear DVDShrink,

Very cool feature--multiple compression settings for one title!!!

Here's something I'd like to see in the future versions. Rather than "stills" being the highest compression setting, would it be possible to replace the video with a blank (black?) screen.

Purpose? I am not much interested in the credits--can look that information up on the internet, if need be. So a logical way to save space would be to cut the entire credits portion out when re-authoring. I don't want to do that, however, because very often there's nice music playing while the credits are rolling.

Is there a way to do that already?

And a follow up question--can anybody shed light on the amount of space that I would be saving by eliminating the stills and replacing them with blank video.

Thanks again! (to the author and for the guide!)

[ddlooping]

Hi Karovaldas. :)

I'm affraid DVD Shrink development has ended, and no new features will be added:

http://forum.digital-digest.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30700

As far as your second question is concerned, it all depends on the length and bitrate of the end-credits.
All I can say is that in most cases, using "Still Pictures" on the end-credits will make them about 20% or less of their original size (not including the audio).
This in turn yelds a gain between 2 to 4% on the overal compression ratio.
Using a blank image would then save most of the rest (still not including the audio).
Keep in mind these figures are really approximations. ;)

[Scarpad]

Howdy all. I usually use DVD2 one when I want a movie only copy because I've been basically uncessfull with DVDShrink. I've read the reauthored guides but it seems when I do movie only the resultant disks do not play.

Basically I rip using Decrypter in File Mode all files. Then I open the disk in that location. I choose Reauthor and I drag the main movie vob over, I then select the streams I want to keep. I then process into another folder and then burn with Record Now Max.
Shrink in Full movie mode works great but I never can do movie only. Any suggestions?

[ddlooping]

I'm affraid I do not have any suggestions, Scarpad, as you seem to do everything properly (even though you do not really have to rip with DVD Decrypter first). :confused:

What kind of error message - if any - do you get when trying to play the DVD Shrink "movie-only" backups?
Can you play them from your hard-drive (using WinDVD "DVD from folder" for example)?
What burning procedure do you follow when making full-disk backups, and in what way does it differ from a movie-only one?
What DVD Shrink version are you using?

[Scarpad]

No difference in the burning proceedure I burn with Record Now both the Audio and Video TS folders. I get a Disk cannot be read error or that it just endlessly loads on my other standalone. I'll try again this time I might try keeping a trailer or something...

[ddlooping]

Scarpad, are you using a recent DVD Shrink version, like v3.0b5 or v3.1.6?
If yes, whether you're using full-disk or not shouldn't make any difference to your backups/set-top compatibility.

[Scarpad]

I reauthored 3 disks last night with the latest version of 3.16 and they all worked beautifully. So I'm not sure if it was the other versions, Bad media or something else. But it works. I love this reauthoring I make a pretty good looking backup of my disk I thru on the Studio's into, then the trailer for the movie then the movie itself. Very neat. I do have a question I'd love to be able to take some Dolby Digital Vobs and insert them before the movie starts, I Have the vobs in a seperate folder. Would I have to drop the vob into the movies Video_TS folder prior to reauthoring and reupdate the ifo with something like Ifoupdate so that shrink Sees it ?

Appreciate the info...

[dvdshrink]

If the Dolby Digital vobs are part of an entire separate DVD (with IFO files etc) then you can add them in DVD Shrink re-author mode, just browse to the folder containing them with the "DVD Browser", which works in similar fashion to Windows Explorer. Re-author mode will let you combine titles from multiple discs in this way.

[Scarpad]

they are not they are just seperate vobs but I could use Ifoedit to create Ifo files for the seperate vobs so that shrink sees it as a dvd Correct?

[dvdshrink]

Yes, I think so. Make sure it creates a VIDEO_TS.IFO file as well, or DVD Shrink won't see it as a DVD.

I'm gonna have to try this myself one day, so I can give better advice ;-)

[bobwillis]

Hi,

Ifoedit will indeed create the ifos required; http://ifoedit.wh.fr0zen.com/createifo094.html

Regards,
Bob

[dvdshrink]

I tried it, and it does indeed work.

If you don't care about the correct language code being written to the IFO file, the steps can be made simpler:

1. Copy the vob file to an empty folder
2. rename it to VTS_01_1.VOB, if it isn't called that already
3. Run IFOedit
4. Hit "Create IFOs" button
5. Check "Create 1 PGC only" and "create chapter for each cell"
6. Select the source vob file
7. Check destination folder is "Same as source"
8. Hit OK

Then just close IFOedit. No need for "Get VTS sectors" or any other messing around. The resulting DVD can be opened in DVD Shrink by selecting the folder, or browsing to it in re-author mode.

[ddlooping]

Scarpad, here is a little guide that might be of help once you've created the IFOs. ;)

http://www.dvdshrink.info/compilation.php

[Millenium Falcon]

How does one know when using Shrink what parts of the movie relate to what? Using Shrink the movie will show up as the largest mb. What about the others containing the trailers etc. Also keen to know how to cut out the credits at the end of a movie. Thanks

[sweetness]

@Millenium Falcon (I always wanted one of those, but Santa Clues never brought me one :( )

In Full Disk mode you will see DVD structure and folders that say menus, main movie, extras and unreferenced material. Under that you will see stop and play button with a black area. just expand one of those folders and highlight a title and press the play to preview it.(Note: when you are previewing something you can right click the playing title and pick which audio you want to here as well.)

In Re-Author mode all your titles are under the tab that says DVD Browser. Highlight and preview as well.

For cutting out credits you can only do this in Re-Author mode and your menus will not work. Check out ddlooping link DVDShrink.info (http://www.dvdshrink.info/) for guides. But you can use DVD stripper to cut out the credits then run it through dvdshrink if you want to keep the structure.

[Millenium Falcon]

Appreciate your response. Will try it out. Take care out there!:cool:

[techniquefreak]

Hi there folks - nice feature you,ve discovered there - just thought I'd let you know it can be done in recode 2 as well it seems.