Some DVD Authoring Questions

tygrus2000 wrote on 6/2/2005, 9:42 AM
These are generic all over the place questions so please bear with me:

1.) Can I get a DVD-9 single sided, pressed and silk-screened for an economical price? The video shops where I live will do a 4.7 GB which isn't enough space or 2 seperate discs which is more expensive or else a dual sided DVD but then I won't get a silk-screened label on it.

2.) Can I do silk-screening and pressing at home economically? What would I need?

3.) After silk-screening, what method of labelling is the best in terms of quality and apearance: inkjet, lightscribe or thermal transfer?

4.) How can I author my DVD to make sure all region codes are open? I have never seen this option in most packages I have used but then again never looked for it. I am using DVDLab Pro.

5.) Is there anyway to have PAL and NTSC compatability without having to have two versions of the video on a disc?

6.) Is there anything special to make a Hybrid DVD (i.e. DVD-Video/DVD-ROM) other than just dumping your ROM file into the structure?

7.) I want to make going to my menu optional only when the user presses menu. This is similar to a nature DVD I own which opens up with a 3 minute first play intro, then jumps right into the video and goes on through. It only goes to a menu if the user hits menu. How is this combination of firstplay/menu/main video authored to do this?

Thanks in advance.

Tygrus

Comments

Jsnkc wrote on 6/2/2005, 9:52 AM
In order to have your discs pressed and silk screened you normally would need to order a minimum of 500 discs depending on where you go. Some places still won't even talke any job under 1000.

You could do silk screening and pressing at home if you happen to have a spare warehouse attached to your house because the equipment is VERY large and VERY expensive....so while it can be done...not really cost effective.

With most software packages if you don't specifically set a region code, it just makes a region free disc which would be playable in any region. It's usually just the PAL and NTSC you need to worry about depending on where the discs are going.

For a hybrid dvd just put the VIDEO_TS and AUDIO_TS folders as well as another folder with all your ROM data in it. IT will work fine as long as you don't put anything in the VIDEO_TS or AUDIO_TS folders.

The last one...well that depends on what software package you use, but it can be done very easily. You just need to tell the program to go to the video first instead of the menu. Just have the main menu in the same title set as the video and that way if the user does press the menu button it will go to the menu, but the first play of the disc will still be set up to run the video first and skip the menu.
riredale wrote on 6/2/2005, 11:12 AM
Regarding replication: there are lots of companies such as this one. You will pay about $1,000 for a replication job even if you want only a few disks.

As for printing on disks, I am in the minority here but I've had great success with full-face glossy labels from Meritline. I apply them with a stomper tool and use a rolling pin to make sure they are uniformly applied with no irregularities or bubbles. I print to them with an Epson pigment ink printer, and the ink is vivid, waterproof, smearproof, and fadeproof, something the inkjet-printable disks can't achieve (yet). When they can, I'll be happy to change.
capturevid wrote on 6/2/2005, 1:44 PM

There are no Lightscribe DVD-9 disks available. I'm not sure if there are plans to ever release Lightscribe DVD-9.

Lightscribe CD images are crisp and sharp.

Lightscribe DVD images are 'different' than CD images. DVDs are manufactured with two layers while CDs have only one layer. This causes the DVD image to appear less crisp than the CD image. You probably will need to burn the DVD image twice to get the same darkness compared to the same CD image. The DVD image almost looks 'holographic' or like there is depth to it.

On the plus side, Lightscribe lets you add to your label or make an existing image darker. Try doing that with an inket printer! Also, if you can print a label, you know all you need to know to work with Lightscribe technology.

Brett Jones
tygrus2000 wrote on 6/2/2005, 2:35 PM
Brett, are you not limited to just one monochrome color with lightscribe? Thats where I find that it might not work in some applications. A color label whether stuck on, printed on or silk screened just has some more impact I think.
Jsnkc wrote on 6/2/2005, 2:58 PM
You just get a monochrome color with lightscribe....not to mention the blank discs are about $2.50 a piece! While it's a good concept...I can see it fading away pretty quickly because it is not cost effective.
tygrus2000 wrote on 6/2/2005, 7:08 PM
The guy at CompuSmart said today they are working on a color version of lightscribe. Maybe that will catch on better.

Me, I tried some inkjet labels tonight and they are close to the look and feel of silk screening to me.