Comments

MPM wrote on 2/27/2007, 11:03 AM
"in DVD studio pro, it's easy to create a link to a webpage"

No offense, but I'm not sure that's accurate:
http://www.mmbforums.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=16743&highlight=hyperlink+dvd

I was curious because I remembered something from back in the early Spruce days, so did some quick googling, checked the DLP 2 help pdf etc... That forum post seems to cover it.

I have seen recent retail DVDs I think with the Interactual BS that prompts you to install whatever when the DVD is inserted in your PC's drive... You might want to contact them about current licensing & usage, and what it takes for the interaction.
bStro wrote on 2/27/2007, 9:15 PM
No offense, but I'm not sure that's accurate:

That's because you're looking up the wrong program. ;-) That thread you found is about DVD-Lab Pro. The original poster said DVD Studio Pro.

Rob
[r]Evolution wrote on 2/27/2007, 10:03 PM
You can look into Sonic eDVD. It opens your DVD Authored to a Folder and allows you to create links to Documents, Web Pages, etc. You can then burn to DVD using your DVD Authoring program or Nero or whatever you use.
MPM wrote on 2/28/2007, 9:06 AM
"That's because you're looking up the wrong program. ;-) That thread you found is about DVD-Lab Pro. The original poster said DVD Studio Pro."

Actually no... Googling on "hyperlink DVD" didn't find any good references - the link posted I think is a decent summary of the issues. The process may be easy enough using DVD@ccess in Studio Pro, but the perception I get reading that statement is IMHO misleading &/or inaccurate... And unfortunately looks like eDVD is no more...

Diving a bit deeper… Apple has DVD@ccess which needs to be installed on Windows PCs to enable interactive content on a DVD authored with DVD Studio Pro using DVD@ccess. I didn’t see any mention of it working on *nix.

Going back several years this poses problems in my experience: Asking to install ANY software means that you then in practice become product/tech support for any possible computer related problems anyone suffers no matter the cause. If you think this is a minor cost of doing biz, http://rinkworks.com/stupid/ might provide a bit of enlightenment along with a dose of amusement.

While many (most?) will be reluctant to install anything, you also have the biz environ where it’s simply often impossible on a networked PC because of security settings… Unfortunately this is exactly where interactive content can be most useful, and includes players and codecs that the viewer might need. Authoring apps like Director manage everything, but are often platform limited & you may be faced with licensing fees beyond the initial cost of the software.

Probably the easiest way to add optional content is with a menu page giving a web address with some description of the value-added features found there. I think the next step is a simple auto-run setup that shows a similar notice or perhaps an html version with active links, but bear in mind that this turns off the automatic opening of a DVD in the PC’s DVD player software -- & yes, this can be a hurtle for some people. I can also imagine situations with kids where parents busy fixing dinner might not want to be interrupted to start the DVD playing.

Additional content can always be placed on the DVD, including links to any software that might be needed – if the viewer can’t view PC optimized video content, this at least places the support responsibilities elsewhere: on the shoulders of the right people who are in a better position to help anyway.

If you’re certain of the viewer’s Windows environment, Microsoft provides some good routes with hta, powerpoint, Windows Media (which can provide a pretty nice interactive experience), and so on.

For an interactive experience most of the DVDs I've seen in the retail consumer market use Interactual -- Shrek & Monsters Inc. come to mind where they had quite a bit of content for the kids. Initial costs would probably be much higher than using DVD@ccess, but, they would be client costs -- as far as I can tell googling, there really aren't any viewer support options for DVD@ccess other than the DVD author.

But that's all for whatever it's worth as always. ;-) Based on my priorities which is 1) meet the needs of the project 2) when I finish with the project, I'm finished with it 3) living as stress free a life as possible. ;-P