The output's a disaster, please help

[Ketale]

Hi all,

After 6 or so rounds with the Big3 I still haven't got one single functional backup, I just don't seem to get it right. I've read the guide a dozen times and tried to follow it exactly, but the outcome is always somehow wrong:

The menus are always mixed up, here's what happens:

On Chicago:
After the language menu it should open the main menu, but it jumps into the trailer, then when I finally find the main menu, it jumps to the middle of the movie and the beginning seems to be missing completely. The subtitles are all yellow and blurry.

On Black Hawk Down:
The dvd starts with a little section from the beginning of the movie, then goes to the main menu, and when I then click on "play movie" it continues from where it stopped before the menu. So the menu is dislocated somehow. In addition the timing of the movie is off, the time bar in Power DVD is only in the middle when the movie is already at the end... In addition the audio is missing completely on the movie and only the wrong subtitles are availiable and when I try to change them, they disappear for good....

As you can see, there's something wrong big time!! Does anyone have a clue what I could be doing wrong?? None of the programs used gives me any kind of warning and everything seems to go exactly as stated in the guide. All movies are PAL, but I don't think that interlacing could cause this kind of problems, could it? I also tried the Header Flags in Stream Diagnosis but with similar results. I also read the improved IfoUpdate Guide to make sure there nothing wrong with that procedure either....

Has anyone had similar problems?? Help please! If I should post some logs I'll gladly do that, just tell me what you need!

Thank you very much for your help and your time!

jake

[jel]

hi Ketale and welcome to the forum!
After 6 or so rounds with the Big3 I still haven't got one single functional backupthis is something we will have to remedy.
well my instinct is telling me that it most likely an ifoupdate problem or an issue with reauthoring.
to rule out a few issues, can you tell me if you used NuMenu4U to reduce the size of your menus?
can you also confirm that you did not 'strip' anything from your dvd. by this i mean remove anything beyond audio and subtitle streams.
another question i would like you to answer for me before we can solve your problems is:as a first step, did you create an iso image of your dvd, and mounted it in daemon tools, as recommended by the guide?
oh and one more thing. did you notice these problems when you were viewing your back-up on the computer or when you had burned to a dvd-r/+r?
and most importantly ... dont give up.
the 'big 3' method can be challenging but the rewards far outway the learning curve.
j

[Ketale]

Thank you, thank you!!

I was suspecting the IfoUpdate procedure myself and I worked long and hard on this part, I was very confused at first since I realized that in the final listing of the files after the combining, the guide (http://www.doom9.org/index.html?/mpg/ra-guide.htm) did not have the VIDEO_TS.VOB and the VTS_02_0.VOB files. Then I read the Sticky:*** An easier way to do the IFOUpdate step - By Eyes`Only *** and I just realized that it must be a little bug in the guide, that's all. Well anyway I think (or hope) that now I got that part down.

So I suspect it's the reauthoring part. Are there some steps I have to do in Reauthorist or Scenarist which I have to do but the guide doesn't mention?

Another question arose: What settings do I have to have in DIF4U in the "post processing" section before the "Launch External App" section. There are some options concerning the creation of the VIDEO_TS folder and if it should use the ecrypted files directly from the DVD using DVD Decrypter. Which one should I check/uncheck here?


Here's some additional info about my process:
-I did not use NuMenu4u
-I did not strip anything but subtitles and audio streams
-I did make the ISO image and worked with Daemon tools to mount it
-I didn't burn it because it was a mess already on my hd when I watched it with PowerDVD

So now yesterday evening I started another run. First I opened DoItFast4U and deselected a few subtitles, I left finnish (yeah I'm from Finland) and swedish. It did the stripping and opened Reauthorist, and I realized that now the only subtitles that were left were Swedish and Danish!!! I deleted all the files and opened DIF4U again, and now left all audio tracks and subtitles in tact. In Reauthorist the preview was not functional, it just showed a white background, the timer was moving but no picture or sound. Well I let it run anyway and finally I got it into Scenarist and it found all the VTS:s in tact, the subtitles and audios seemed to be there. Unfortunatelt this morning I wasn't able to wait for the encoding of Scenarist to finish, so in the evening when I get home I'll combine the files, run IfoEdit and see what happens. I'll keep you posted. But thank you for your interrest and helpfulness!

[jel]

okay well it looks like your problem is actuall in your DIF4U settings and that your not copying across all your menu/video_ts details.

the settings i have checked/ticked (and they will differ from other users) are:

pre processing:
Autocreate all folders for this dvd
Autodetect and Uncheck Duplicate PGCs
Autoswitch VTSes containing angles to Vob-id demux
Autodetect subtitles/closed Captioning

global options:
create debug log
autocorrect ac3/dts delay

post processing:
note: these settings will change if you are using NuMenu4U
Create VIDEO_TS using unused VTSes (and CCEData.txt)
Launch external application
DoCCE4U (open Automatically).

other options:
'Frame Diagnosis'
Invert Field Order in File Names (DoCEE4U compatible)
Supress Aspect Ratio in Subtitle Filename (RA 1.0.0 compatible)

please also remember to only copy the .vob files for the VTSes you have encoded form the scenarist '0' folder to your VIDEO_TS folder and run ifoupdate on these VTSes only.

good luck with your project
j

[Ketale]

hi jel and thanks again for your input!

This morning I finalized the project, copied the VOBs from the /0/ folder and the contents of the VIDEO_TS folder to a new folder, ran IFOUpdate on all IFOs except the VIDEO_TS.IFO and surprise, surprise, the movie worked ... almost.

The movie started exactly as it was supposed to with the language menu followed by the FBI warning. But then when it got to Title 4 it just stopped! It should have opened the main menu but it didn't (again I'm doing this all in Power DVD from the finalized folder). If I then restart the movie and then in the language selection menu instead of choosing a language I use the right mouse button to access the main menu directly, it opens up the main menu without hesitation, the movie works fine, looks good and all audios and subtitles worked fine ( I didn't delete anything 'cause that caused troubles on my previous attempts)
Then in the extras there is this making-of featurette, which opens up all right but here the timeline is completely off. By the time the slider in the little Power DVD box is getting to the middle of the VTS, the featurette is already over. So I guess somewhere is some parameter defining the duration of this clip and it is approximately twice as long as it should be.

I have to check my settings in DIF4U again when I get home from work this afternoon and see if there's something different in the settings you outlined.

Is there a way to correct the error in the menus I described without having to run the whole process again?

Thank you again for your input and your time!

[influenza]

well about that slider in powerdvd: try ifoupdating with the option copy timetable ON.

[jel]

hi ketale,
good to see your making some progress :D

"ran IFOUpdate on all IFOs except the VIDEO_TS.IFO"

your error might be a result of this.

you only have to update the .ifos of the VTSes that you have re-encoded. if there is not a seperate folder in your main folder for that VTS, dont run ifoupdate on it.

example of directory:
JEL_BACKUP
VIDEO_TS
VTS_01
VTS_03
VTS_04
VTS_06

so in this example i would only run ifoupdate on the .ifos for:
VTS_01, VTS_03, VTS_04, VTS_06

VTS_02, VTS_05, etc would not require updating as they have not been altered.

see this thread for a fix for that
http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?s=&threadid=70621
good luck
j

[Ketale]

Thank you guys!

Your advice influenza surely corrected the sliding bar problem in PowerDVD.

The menu error is still there. It's weird, after the FBI warning it jumps from title 2 to title 4, but it doesn't start running it, it just stops.

This particular movie "Black Hawk Down" only had two VTS:s and they both were re-encoded, so I'm afraid that the IFO update of dummy-files is not the cause of the problem in this case.

Another huge problem I realized is that the final VIDEO_TS folder is 4.39GB large, so it will not fit the dvdr. I did not touch the default settings about target size, though.
I could try to run it through DVD Shrink and slighly compress the menus and see if that would correct the menu error as well, but if it doesn't I'll do the process again from scratch. I'll be sure to use exactly the settings in DIF4U that you gave, jel. I guess that you are in a PAL region as well?

I'll be off for a one week holiday, so I'll get back to business after that. But thank you guys for helping and encouraging me, I will get this process running!!!

[marpada]

@Ketale

DVDShrint won't work on a IfoUpdated DVD.

4,39 Gb it's like 10 Mb extra, try stripping FBI warnings, menu intros, a subtitle, compressing menus with NumMenu,..


Originally posted by Ketale
Thank you guys!

Your advice influenza surely corrected the sliding bar problem in PowerDVD.

The menu error is still there. It's weird, after the FBI warning it jumps from title 2 to title 4, but it doesn't start running it, it just stops.

This particular movie "Black Hawk Down" only had two VTS:s and they both were re-encoded, so I'm afraid that the IFO update of dummy-files is not the cause of the problem in this case.

Another huge problem I realized is that the final VIDEO_TS folder is 4.39GB large, so it will not fit the dvdr. I did not touch the default settings about target size, though.
I could try to run it through DVD Shrink and slighly compress the menus and see if that would correct the menu error as well, but if it doesn't I'll do the process again from scratch. I'll be sure to use exactly the settings in DIF4U that you gave, jel. I guess that you are in a PAL region as well?

I'll be off for a one week holiday, so I'll get back to business after that. But thank you guys for helping and encouraging me, I will get this process running!!!

[Trahald]

i have run dvd shrink on the last few big3 dvds i had with no problems. i dont know if its the newer version of ifoupdate or the fact i check update timemap when i didnt in the past. i also do get vts sectors with ifoedit after ifoupdateing (although except for once it seemed happy with what ifoupdate did and left it) so it might be the other changes

i sometimes run dvd shrink after an encode if its slightly too big on just the menu files.. at high % (75 and up) it seems ok. if it needs any more shrinking i make an image of just my ifos and menu vobs, mount it with daemon tools, and turn numenu loose on them. then toss it together and get vts sectors again.

[jel]

another option is to use 'rejig' on one of your extras .mpv or main movie and reduce as required (either % based or final size based - although still largely innacurate in its beta stage, so it requires a bit of 'massaging' to get it right). then rename the output the same as the original .mpv, delete your .vif file for that vts, and reload your scenarist project and compile as usual.
rejig is so fast that i find it quicker than using dvdshrink.....and it doesnt complain if your .ifos arent perfect:sly:

[Ketale]

Hi again guys, I'm back from my short vacation and still struggling to get my first fully functional backup with the "Magic 3"... um... I mean the "Big 3". ;)

I tried DVD Shrink to reduce the size of some menus slightly and it worked out really nice, but it didn't fix the little bug in the titleset.
So what happens is this: After the FBI warning (title 3) it just stops. (Again I'm using PowerDVD on the files on my hd) If I hit the play button again it resumes with Title 4 (the main menu) and from there on everything works like a charm.
Is there any way to see what is wrong at the end of title 3 or at the beginning of title 4 to find out why title 4 doesn't automatically start to play after title 3 is finished?

Well anyway, I now checked my settings in DIF4U and put in the same settings than jel suggested. I'm still waiting for my new project to finish in order to see if that did the job. The only difference in the settings was the "header flags" instead of the "frames diagnosis" and I have also the "run DoCC4U automatically" selected, since I wouldn't know what to change in DoCC4U anyway and thus it saves time to let it run the whole thing in one go. Is this ok? Thanks again for your input guys, this forum is awesome!

[Eyes`Only]

this bug has an easy solution which is found in the Knowledgebase.

[Ketale]

Dang, you guys are good!

Thanks Eye's Only, I found the answer I needed in the Knowledgebase! By changing the restricted Cell value to 0 in IfoEdit the whole movie works now like a charm!! My first (of many) "real" back-up!!! Thank you guys for your help and encouragement! This forum has definitely taken me so deep into the DVD-land that I'm gonna have difficulties finding my way out again! ;) Thanks again!

[jel]

moral of this story?
(well for me anyway :rolleyes: )

if you have any problems, then the first stop is to check the EKOB (Eyes`Only Knowledge Base)

i'm off to have a read now .... maybe then it will only take me 2 posts to answer a question instead 10 :D

edit: and in this 'perfect world' i will also use the IE spell checker before posting!

[Ketale]

Whoa, I'm starting to get the hang of this!! Yesterday before going to bed I fired up DIF4U on a new project, and I selected the "Reauthorist [Start automatically]" in the post processing options. Then in the morning I ran the files it created overnight through Scenarist while eating breakfast, put the files together, ran IFOUpdate, checked if it works, and.... again I had to go through the Cells to find the restricted one since the menu just stopped again after the FBI warning. But after the IFOEdit trick... voila, I got my second backup!!! Again, thanks to you guys!

[influenza]

well nice to see people post back positive results after some start up difficulties. :)

[Ketale]

Crap!!!
I now watched my second "real" backup on another machine, the movie worked fine and looked good, but I now realized that the extras had been interlaced and I hadn't checked that.... :( The outcome is slightly fuzzy.

It seems the "start automatically" option on Reauthorist is not very good in PAL countries! Well, you learn every day. Guess I'll have to do that backup again.

I also tried two other projects, "Lion King" and "The Cell", both containing angles, and both failed miserably. I guess I'll still have to do some serious studying before I claim to "master" the Magic 3... um I mean Big 3 ;)