Encoding descriptions - where?

[Shorlex]

Hi!

I tried to search for good descriptions about everything in DivX encoding, but I've found only small scripts; for special programs, or small details.
Where can I find a great, circumstantial description, which interprets all the concepts (aspect ratio, bitrate, etc.), is clear, and easy to understand? If not here, or anywhere on the internet, then for example a book title?
I'm not new in DivX encoding, but I don't understand what I do. I want to know things, which doesn't claim an informatic knowledge.

[unskinnyboy]

Originally posted by Shorlex
I'm not new in DivX encoding, but I don't understand what I do.Never seen a more contradictory sentence before. :confused:

This (http://www.divx.com/support/divx/guide.php) is the Official DivX help guide which explains all the options in the Encoder. Is this what you were looking for?

[jggimi]

I think the DivX User Guide -- http://www.divx.com/divx/divxpro/guides/ -- is probably a better source for this sort of information.

[Shorlex]

OK. I mean, that I've already made a lot of DivX films in good quality, but I don't know, what I did in details. I know, that a film with more than 850-900 bitrate is acceptable, but I don't know, what is bitrate correctly. I know, that aspect ratio can be 16:9 or 4:3, and I can see it in DGIndex preview, but I don't know, what is aspect ratio accurately. I have ideas about all of these notions, and I know a little bit about them, but I would like to understand it narrowly. Shall I be an informatitian?

[jggimi]

Please review the documents at the links you've been provided. In particular, the DivX User Guide should answer most, if not all of your questions. It was very well written, includes graphical examples, and is available in multiple languages.

[unskinnyboy]

@Shorlex, So, you would like to know about bitrate and aspect ratios? I will give it a shot.

I would define bitrate as a quantitive measure of the number of bits per second a digital video is running at. There are two types of bitrate settings that most encoders and decoders support - constant bitrate (CBR) and variable bitrate (VBR). MPEG-1 (VCD compliant) is encoded in CBR (~1.15 Mbps) which means that in low-motion scenes, the bitrate assigned would maintain the video quality but for complex action scenes & panning movements, the bitrate available often won't be enough which results in pixellization and blockiness of the video.

VBR encoding ensures that more bitrate is allocated to complex action scenes and less bitrate allocated to low-motion scenes, so that the overall perceived quality is maintained. Needless to say, VBR is better. MPEG-2 (DVD data) and MPEG-4 (including the DivX you use) is VBR, which is why they look better.

Reg: Aspect Ratios, I can't explain it better than this (http://www.doom9.org/index.html?/aspectratios.htm).

Happy encoding! :)

[Shorlex]

Thank You for your help! I think, the DivX Guide is the best description, and if I don't understand things with it, I'll do this "not-understanding" in the future with others.
By the way, bitrates, and ratios were only examples of my imperfect knowledge, but now I'm closer with 2% to my aim. : )