OT: DVD-Lab and MS

dand9959 wrote on 3/18/2004, 4:55 PM
Hi all...
After hearing all the positive reviews of DVD-Lab, and after finally tiring of a quirky yet dehabilitating bug in DVD X Maker, I've decided to give DVD-Lab a try.

How do y'all feel about the lack of a preview capability in DVD-Lab? Both other tools I've used (DVD X Maker and Studio 8 --- yuk...did I actually ADMIT to that??) have the ability to simulate the DVD you've built. DVD-Lab does not...you have to render/build the DVD and try it in an external app.

Has this hindered anybody? What are your thoughts? Is it worth giving up the preview convenience in favor of the flexibility of DVD-Lab?

Comments

GerryLeacock wrote on 3/18/2004, 6:25 PM
Personally, before I finally burn the DVD to a DVD-/+R, I always burn it to a DVD-/+RW first, just so I can play it on a TV and see what it going to look like. So I get to see the "final" and clear up any errors before I do a final burn. I guess the answer is that it doesn't bother me not having a preview screen.
IanG wrote on 3/19/2004, 12:40 AM
I haven't found it a problem at all! I compile my dvds to the hd and then test them with a software player. I use Power DVD or DVD Tray Player which is a freeware player, designed to help diagnose DVDs. It's probably a better choice as it adheres more closely to the DVD standards. Like Gerry, I do a burn to a rewriteable as a final test. DVD-Lab has the option to compile DVDs with blank videos, though I've never used it.

Ian G.
cbrillow wrote on 3/20/2004, 9:05 AM
Does this mean that it lacks the ability to verify menus and chapter links without rendering? I don't mind having to pop a DVD into a player to test a semi-finished project, but I'd sure hate to render before testing the menu structure on a preview basis? Am I misunderstanding?
IanG wrote on 3/20/2004, 11:10 AM
DVD-Lab doesn't render anything*, all the input has to be DVD compliant. MS produces this, so no problem so far. Once you've defined all the navigation, selected backgrounds etc, the final stage is to compile the DVD - this is much quicker than rendering. You can do this either to hd or a dvd and then check it all works. If the compile is taking too long, DVD-Lab has the option of using blank video for testing.

*That's not quite true - it produces short video clips for menu transitions

Ian G.