puting movie to cd to play on pc's or dvd players

JimmYAOsmondfan wrote on 8/17/2001, 9:48 PM
Ok I have already made my movie (phew) but now how do I save it where I can record to a cd so I can or others play in on thier computers or dvd players.. I am wanting to make a family movie and give as gifts but making the movie is the easy part saving it and putting it on cds for others to view is the tricky part for me, I have read the book that came with the video factory but still can't figure it out..Can anyone plese help me

anita

Comments

wvg wrote on 8/18/2001, 12:01 AM
If you have version 2 of VF just click on Make a Movie on the Tool Bar, then click on the 3rd button that says write a movie to CD. That assumes you want the video to also play on a DVD player hooked up to a TV that can read VCD. Many can, but not all.

If you don't have version two or you want to put multiple videos on one CD or you don't want to use the wizard you need extra software like Easy CD Creator 5 or Nero. You then need to choose the Video CD NTSC template which will make a video readable by a free standing DVD player.

Once you do that you need to follow the instructions for either Nero or Easy CD Creator which as you probaby guessed requires a duplication of the video you made in yet another format which that software will take care of. I'll assume you know you also need a writeable CD burner in order to burn the CD regardless which method you use.

On the other hand if you just want to distribute the file and wish others to play it off their computers only, it really don't matter as much which template you pick assuming the video isn't that large. So I would stay away from DV or AVI.

I would suggest you still pick the Video CD NTSC template or one of the RM templates (512 KBPS) which would make a more compact file and you'd use some quality. It also requires you users to download a free copy of Real Media player.

Also remember that you are limited to about 700MB on a single CD, only 650 if your burner takes only the older format of media.

Have fun. I know lots of work, I've made dozens so far but it is worth the effort.
JimmYAOsmondfan wrote on 8/19/2001, 3:04 PM
Thank you WVG I also have easy cd creator I got it from anohter cd I purchased..but I will try the first suggestion you gave me and see how that works thanks again I will let you know,I also have hp cd writer it came wiht my cd burner internal one I have.so do I burn my movie on a data or audio cd which onmy movie has both vidoe and audio ??

anita
wvg wrote on 8/19/2001, 5:15 PM
Thank you WVG I also have easy cd creator...

Just so you know... The regular version of Easy CD Creator that comes with many PC's and CD burners won't create a file that's playable off a free standing DVD player. You need the Deluxe version #4 or the Platinum (#5) version of Easy CD or Nero or some similar software.

That's why it is nice that there now is a option to burn a CD in VF. Haven't tried it myself yet, think someone else said it is limited to just one video.

so do I burn my movie on a data or audio cd which onmy movie has both vidoe and audio ??

Nope. To make a CD that many newer DVD players can play you need to use the Video CD NTSC template, or just use the VF wizard in version #2.

If you on the other hand want to play the movie off your computer, then render the file to disk in the directoy of your choice. You then can burn it seperately (from your hard drive) for a CD for storage, it should also play find in Media Player either right from your hard drive or if you burn it to a CD.

Again, depends more on how you're going to play the video. Unless you've got deep pockets and want to pop for a DVD burner as opposed to a CD burner you're pretty much stuck with the Video CD NTSC MPEG-1 template if you want to play the video off a free standing DVD player.

Of course you can also record to tape and have it play back through a video camera or a TV that way, but that method isn't good for distributing your video. I'm assumming you more or less are asking how to get the video you made to a CD.

While the quality is a little less you can have your cake and eat it too. Just use the Video CD NTSC format. Once you render using that template it will play off your computer as-is under Microsoft's Media Player and many others. If you also want a version of the same video playable off a DVD player, then render a 2nd copy using the wizard, or use Easy CD Creator which will convert it to a format your DVD player can read.
SonyEPM wrote on 8/20/2001, 8:44 AM
One note on VideoCd/DVD player compliance: Most Sony DVD players do not like CDR media and will only play VideoCd's burned onto CDRW media.
wvg wrote on 8/20/2001, 4:46 PM
Another note on DVD players. They are not all created equal. Even if they say they can read VCD's that does not necessarily mean they can read all brands of media. I don't know if it is true or just sales hype but some DVD players claim dual lasers is the answer. One for reading DVD disks, the other VCD's. The reason being the commerically made disks have a different level of reflectivity then the home brew efforts we're making. So if one brand of media don't work, try another. My experience is media that has a coating on the back side that is not that shiny works best at least on my DVD player. Your milage may varry.

If you haven't bought a DVD player yet or are looking for a new one, I would suggest you burn a test video CD then off to the local eletronics store to test if the player you have in mind can read your media. I'm not going to knock any brands, however the one I had in mind couldn't on the higher end model, but worked fine on a much cheaper model. Go figure.