Comments

Former user wrote on 5/13/2012, 12:35 PM
Grazie,

Not sure what you are asking. Are you asking if the end action of a scene can be a menu?

If so, yes, set the END action.


http://www.sonycreativesoftware.com/forums/ShowMessage.asp?MessageID=810712&Replies=6

Is this what you need?
Dave T2
Grazie wrote on 5/13/2012, 1:05 PM
Er . . . I'm playing a Scene from a Scene Selection I had created.

Yes, that's exactly what I am asking.

After the Scene plays, I want the DVD to go to a Menu, the Main Menu or any Menu at present!

I've followed the instructions: Click on the Scene; Select End Actions > Select from the Drop Down Menu the Destination after playing, ie, the END action - yes? And what I'm getting is that it keeps on playing the remainder of the movie. That can't be right?

Arrghhh...

Grazie
Former user wrote on 5/13/2012, 1:10 PM
Okay, follow my link above and it gives you some direction.

Dave T2
Grazie wrote on 5/13/2012, 1:15 PM
So, the Skinny is that I can't get a return from a Scene Selection made in DVDA. I need to bring in separate MEDIA. I made Chapter Markers in DVDA and used THEM to produce my Scene Selection - which it does. But I be beggared if I can make the End Action work this way.

G


Former user wrote on 5/13/2012, 1:20 PM
I tell you how to do exactly that in the other link.


But the short how is

Import the media in once for each chapter. It will only be copied to the disk once, but you will have several entries for it.

Then select each one and make an IN and OUT point on the timeline. Select next and do it again. Do this for each chapter that you want to play.

Then when you make your chapter buttons, point to each of these files instead of the Full Play file.


You don't bring in separate media, you import the same media multiple times and use the timelines to set your in and out points. The actual media is only physically imported once.
Dave T2

videoITguy wrote on 5/13/2012, 2:05 PM
Double post - see this answer as well in DVDAPro forum

Just enter the following search phrase in the DVDAPro forum..
"previous button navigation" - then read all posts in all threads...

Then rephrase your question based on what you have learned from these discussions.
Grazie wrote on 5/13/2012, 3:31 PM
So, making a Scene Selection isn't the way to do it ? Yes?

G
farss wrote on 5/13/2012, 3:41 PM
Yes.
I've done this once.

Prepare all the scenes as individual movies.
Bring them into DVDA in the order of the complete movie.
Repeat above.
One set of your sub movies have their end actions set to play the next submovie. Hence the link to the start of that chain makes the whole movie play
The other set of your sub movies have their end actions set to return to the menu.

Much care is required as the physical layout of the media on the disk is critical to achieve smooth playback when the movie as a whole is played out.

Bob.
farss wrote on 5/13/2012, 4:04 PM
There is an alternate way but first a vital piece of information.

The end point is a property of the movie.
The end action is defined in the link that plays the movie. That only happens when playback reaches the end point.

Taking that on board you alternatively can do the following.

Bring x copies of the entire movie into DVDA where x is the number of chapters.
Set the end point for each of the x copies to the end of the chapter each chapter as required.

Now when you link to each copy you specify the end action as desired.


DVDA will let you rename your movies, I strongly recommend you do this so you can keep track of what each copy is for. For example.
"Play All" End point set to end of movie
"Play 1 only" End point set to chapter 2
"Play 2 only" End point set to chapter 3

Bob.
Former user wrote on 5/13/2012, 4:14 PM
YOu don't have to make individual movies. YOu only have to make the movie once and import it multiple times.

I see Bob listed the alternate way. That is the way to do it. YOu set In and OUT points on each timeline. This is also in the DVDA Help.

Dave T2
Grazie wrote on 5/14/2012, 1:59 AM
OK . . . .

Firstly, thank you.

Secondly it is NOW obvious to me that I should NOT have started with making a Scene Selection - that was undeniably WRONG. I should've started making, what I call, "bookmark" links using INs and OUTs from within a FULLY Copied representation of the MAIN video.

I was approaching this the wrong way - I got it.

So, this approach means I have to rename the copies to something representational or rename the "Button" that appears on the Menu. I can't see a way to circumvent this. Can anybody?

Now, is there a way to add video and audio fades, so that my OUTs aren't so abrupt? Is there a way to ADD "Fade Blackouts" or Audio redux? From within DVDA?

Grazie
PeterDuke wrote on 5/14/2012, 2:07 AM
If you want both a faded section for end-of-scene and unfaded for playing straight through, I would think that would mean separate video files.

Can you organise the main video in advance so that the end of scene won't be so abrupt when you leave it?
Grazie wrote on 5/14/2012, 2:24 AM
So, Peter, the answer, from within DVDA, is a "no"?

I'm being fussy, and mostly the Scene splits over either a nice visual or audio BUMP or there IS a thru' black on the Main video.

Just asking to see if I can tweak this somewhat.

Hmmm.... ProdSug? SCS?

TAXI!

Grazie


Former user wrote on 5/14/2012, 7:31 AM
If you want transitions on your in and outpoints, then you would need to render separate media files for each scene. Or you could get tricky and just render a transition segment, but you run the risk of a pause or not playing smoothly between your video and transition segment. This can work sometimes on a commercially pressed DVD, but a burned DVD does not access as quickly.

Dave T2
PeterDuke wrote on 5/14/2012, 9:27 AM
If I have two or more videos on a DVD and make the end action of the first link to the start of the second, the two videos don't play on my equipment as a single combined video would. There is a momentary hesitation before the second video plays.

Furthermore, the counter on the player is reset to 0 at the end of each video.
videoITguy wrote on 5/14/2012, 10:13 AM
There have been several important points made about the "stutter" that will occur with burned discs over transistion points in the DVD author process. DVDAPro thankfully gives you the ability to order files on the disc which can help. For example a loop can play best (with seamless quality) if it is 1) short and 2) nearest the inner most circle of the burn.

A transistion between two different media executes a better transistion if they are ordered consecutively. Unfortunately there is not a fool-proof method to know what will happen on a given set-top player since variables that manifest in the stutter effect include how warmed up the player is from previous play cycles.

True scene to scene delivery will be seamless because the player is only moving over a chapter mark in one piece of media. So if you want to include your main program authored once as seamless and in the other instance - utilize in and out points - for individual scene play and menu returns...your main program will have two true media paths on the burned disc. That will mean you can only be able to incorporate a program length that is half of the DVD capacity. For me this has never been a problem because I usually produce programs that are about 25 minutes in length - comparable to a half-hour broadcast program.