August 12, 2001 DVD: Interesting news article on DVD on MSNBC today, and how the format that was once greeted with apprehension and/or indifference by many of the big studios is now "largely fueling Hollywood’s current growth." Very interesting is why holdouts like Paramount, Fox, and director Steven Spielberg held out as long as they did, and what it took to bring them on board. Curiously enough, Divx wasn't mentioned at all in this article purporting to give the inside story on the birth of DVD; as time goes on, it is becoming more and more apparent that the much-maligned rental format wasn't some great dark force out to destroy DVD and sell-through, after all. July 8, 2001 Divx: We now know what was planned for the Divx shutdown: back in 1999, all accounts were set to expire around July 7, which instructed the players to dial in to a very-much-alive billing system for remote-decommissioning. By now, all registered Divx players have either been expired (if they aren't connected to a phone line) or decommissioned. The only machines left with Divx playback capability are the few that were "unlocked" and converted to unlimited play (something the Circuit City Board of Directors refused to allow for all the registered players). So, with the death of Divx, the world becomes a little more sterile and less interesting, but we move on. All good things must come to an end, but the vacuum they leave will be replaced. The rental market abandoned by Circuit City is now being serviced by Netflix and Rent My DVD, which offer near-Divx convenience, a huge selection, and low prices. In the meantime, the burgeoning sell-through market has made available an ever-increasing selection of collectible DVD titles, at prices enthusiasts of the clunky and unwieldy Laserdisc format could only dream of. And best of all, the hardware for optimum playback of this cornucopia of software is more affordable than ever, with 16x9 displays, surround-sound systems, progressive-scan DVD players with scaling, and home theater computers now within the price range of the average enthusiast. Divx, October 27, 1995 - July 7, 2001. Abandoned by her creators, scorned by the home theater elite and rabble, but prized by her legions of everyday users - may she rest in peace! July 2, 2001 Divx: The big day of the billing system shutdown came and went without incident; players are continue to work. What next? At some point in the near future, the player will dial in to the Divx central billing system, which will then remote-decommission the player, deregistering it. If the player is not connected to a phone line when this occurs, the next time an attempt is made to use it for Divx playback, the player will not play the disc, but prompt the user to connect it to a phone line so that it can perform the remote-decommissioning. In either case, the player's Divx playback capability is over with, and it reverts to being an ordinary DVD player. June 25, 2001 General: MSNBC had two stories on DVD today, one on the spate of A-releases scheduled for the fall, and another on the sparse, slow-growing selection of opera titles on the format. Divx: Time is running out for Divx - there is less than a week to go before the billing system is scheduled to be shut down. Spin those platters while you can! June 16, 2001 Editorial: Today marks the second anniversary of the end of marketing and development of the Divx home video system. As I suspected, the event has gone virtually unnoticed, and this site may well be the only place where it is commemorated in any form. Two years after the plug was pulled on Divx, it's interesting to reflect on how much has changed in the world of DVD. In June of 1999, it seemed most of the DVD thunder generated by the major studios emanated from Warner and Columbia/Tristar, and in fact, the head of the former's home video division was perhaps DVD's biggest champion. The Divx-supporting studios were much more conservative in their releases, especially Fox, Disney, and Paramount. Online DVD resellers such as Reel.com were adopting the 40%-discount-off-MSRP as standard DVD pricing, and those near-wholesale prices could be reduced even further through the use of easily-available coupons. And, of course, the cause célèbre in the online DVD world was the much-maligned Divx home video system; virtually every disc-related Web site on the Internet had lined up against the devil from Herndon, with the subject constantly figuring in their editorial content; the issue had even spawned a number of protest sites specializing in anti-Divx rhetoric. Two years later, a lot has changed. The status quo concerning DVD releases finds itself reversed, with former Divx studios like Fox, MGM, and Dreamworks being the source of most of the software excitement in the DVD world. Fox has become a synonym for excellence in collectible DVD, MGM releases catalog titles at a rate greater than the rest of the big studios put together, and Dreamworks holds the record for the biggest-selling DVD to date. Warner, the one-time champion of the premier home video format, appears to have relegated it to the back-burner; I can't even remember the last interesting Warner release. Online DVD prices eventually crept back up to more realistic levels, with 40% discounts now being rare, and coupons all but unknown. After the demise of Divx, the Internet sites whose wide audiences were due primarily to their fierce anti-Divx vitriol tried to find new purpose. Some, like FightDivx.com, were able to and still exist, albeit as a shell of their former selves. Others fell by the wayside, including the famous DVD Resource. Mainstream sites like The Digital Bits now concentrate primarily on disc release news and reviews, shying away from strong stands on contentious issues like region encoding and HDTV copy protection schemes far more intrusive than anything Divx had (could the fear of lost advertising revenue have muted their criticism?). The individual anti-Divx protestors themselves have moved on to other issues: for a while, it was making 16x9 enhancement the standard for widescreen DVD; then it was the lack of Star Wars on DVD; and most recently it was MGM's strategy of marketing DVD to everyone via a wide range of releases featuring limited extras, instead of a few "loaded" versions aimed at collectors. Like the Web sites, conspicuously absent here are the contentious HDTV copy protection schemes that threaten to relegate home taping and time-shifting to the dustbin of history. And this writer? For me, Divx has been fun while it lasted, but like all good things it had to come to an end. However, that end, only two weeks away, will not spell the end of the DOA site; DOA will continue on, both as a historical reference, and as a soap box for the occasional editorial or newspiece related to DVD or home theater. May 25, 2001 General: I've added another entry to the Links page. This one points to Exhumed Films.com, a site specializing in "dead" films. Groovy! May 21, 2001 General: MSNBC has a news story on Something's Got To Give, the last film of the late Marilyn Monroe. May 18, 2001 DVD: BIG news on the release front - the long-awaited Forrest Gump is headed for DVD on August 28! More details to follow! May 17, 2001 General: For those interested in the upcoming Marilyn Monroe: The Diamond Collection box set, the Fox promotional page is now available. April 27, 2001 Exclusives: The Disney animated classic, Dumbo is headed for DVD on October 23! Also, with The Ice Storm, The Truth About Cats And Dogs, and Working Girl all available on Open DVD now, I have removed them from the Exclusives list. Divx: The DOA marks its first appearance in the national media today, in a Washington Post story today on the last days of Divx. A very interesting read - the author was able to get answers from Universal and MGM to the question of why they have yet to release many Divx titles to Open DVD (Disney and Fox had no comment). April 26, 2001 Site News: The Forum is back up again! DVD: For those looking to replace their Divx discs with DVDs, 800.com is holding a sale on MGM titles. Prices start at only $9.94, a heck of a deal when you consider that to rent those same titles from Blockbuster would cost you $3.99 apiece! April 24, 2001 Site News: The Forum used by DOA is down until further notice; I may have to look into setting one up here on the site. Sorry for the inconvenience! April 21, 2001 I just found out that the Pitt of Horror, the official Web site of Ingrid Pitt, Hammer's Countess Dracula, is still very much up and running. I will definitely be adding this one to the Links page! April 20, 2001 The Image DVD News Update came in on time, for a change. The announcements include several WWII documentaries from Delta, a slew of 1920s films from Kino, a documentary on the late opera singer/film star Mario Lanza, 10 episodes of the 1950s TV Western The Rifleman, and last, but not least, yet another crocodile movie from Trimark (Blood Surf). April 19, 2001 DVD: More indication DVD is mainstream: Reuters reports that video rental giant Blockbuster credits DVD in no small part for a 23% surge in first-quarter profits, achieved despite the economic downturn. General: In another story, the Washington Post offers a rare glimpse into the secretive world of MPAA film raters, the folks who determine those G, PG, PG-13, R and NC-17 ratings that adorn almost anything film-related, from movie posters to theatrical trailers and DVD packaging. Fun stuff: Fox is offering an online exclusive preview of the new trailer for its Planet of the Apes remake, on the Planet of the Apes publicity site. Showtimes are Friday, April 20 at 7:30pm PST / 10:30pm EST, and Saturday, April 21 at 2:30am GMT April 16, 2001 DVD: The New York Times has an article today on how DVD sell-through is beginning to pose a challenge to the long-established business model of video rental. You can read the story here on Yahoo!, without having to register on the Times site. Just heard a rumor that MGM is adding a LOT of titles to their Midnight Movies collection in August, including the following: Count Yorga, Vampire Invaders From Mars Island Of Dr. Moreau It! The Terror From Beyond Space Killer Klowns From Outer Space Mars Needs Women Planet Of The Vampires Reptilicus The Beast Within The Dunwich Horror The Monster That Challenged The World Theater Of Blood Twice-Told Tales Also rumored for August are: Audrey Rose Blow Out Breeders Candyman 2: Farewell To The Flesh Carrie Dressed To Kill Haunted Honeymoon Scanners Silence Of The Lambs The First Power The Howling I may have been premature in buying a copy of Candyman 2: Farewell To The Flesh on pan&scan laserdisc! April 12, 2001 General: Not much happening in the world of DVD today. However, I did manage to find a story in the Philadelphia Inquirer on the slow, but steady pace of growth in the popularity of HDTV. April 11, 2001 DVD: The long-awaited Disney animated classic Snow White was officially announced by Disney. They've also made available a publicity page on their Web site, which will be updated with further news and details on the subject in the months to come. Nostalgia: Absolute Divx, perhaps the most famous and easily the best of the old pro-Divx sites, is back up, in its final incarnation, for a brief time only, courtesy of its Webmaster. Catch this piece of of history while you can! Laserdisc: For those of you interested in the venerable old 12-inch platters, I came across this resource site with all sorts of goodies, including a guide to laserdisc players and a list of disc manufacturer "mint marks." April 10, 2001 General: The Baltimore Sun has an article today on the dominance of Original Aspect Ratio (OAR) in DVD releases, and the growing number of complaints fielded to studios about about "black bars" on 4:3 TVs. As DVD becomes more and more a mainstream product, these gripes will only increase; let's hope that the studios don't reverse course, and offer titles in pan&scan only! Site News: The site is almost completely converted over to the new format - only the Titles page remains to be done. Enjoy the old look while you can, folks! April 9, 2001 General: MSNBC reports that President Bush is proposing legislation that would encourage broadcasters to move over to digital signals by ensuring that they are "fairly compensated." The move is designed to clear the analog airwaves, so that the spectrum can be auctioned off to wireless companies. This might be good news for those of us with HDTV-capable TVs who are tired of the slow pace of conversion to digital (which can best be described as glacial). April 8, 2001 General: Actor Jack O'Halloran, whose credits include Superman, Superman II, and Dragnet, turns 58 today. Happy birthday Jack! And for those looking forward to the upcoming DVD release of Some Like It Hot, MGM now has a publicity page. Enjoy! April 7, 2001 Site News: Well, here it is - the new look of the DOA! The new layout has been tested with IE 5.X, Netscape 6.X, and Netscape 4.X, and Netscape 3.X, and I'll be moving the site over to the new format incrementally over the next couple of weeks. For a while, there will be a mix of pages in both the old and new format; please excuse the differences in style you may encounter while the changeover is in progress! March 26, 2001 Site News: A major reworking of the site is in progress, which will brighten up the look and feel. DVD News: In a story a few days old, Jackie Brown is apparently slated for Open DVD in September, at long last, and I have updated the Exclusives page accordingly. March 19, 2001 DVD News: Bedknobs And Broomsticks, the Disney classic, is now available on DVD, allowing me to remove it from the Exclusives page. Alas, it looks like it will be the last Exclusive we'll be getting from Disney for a while; that leaves several dozen titles that will be available for home viewing only on VHS (or maybe laserdisc) once the Divx billing system shuts down on June 30. March 09, 2001 DVD News: Yet another three titles digitally exclusive to Divx are coming to Open DVD in June: Bachelor Party; That Thing You Do!; and the long-awaited Two Girls And A Guy. This time Fox is the releasing studio, virtually guaranteeing that these discs will be full-fledged collector editions. Look for them on June 5th! March 01, 2001 DVD News: Three more titles digitally exclusive to Divx are coming to Open DVD in June. One is the legendary Billy Wilder comedy and AFI Top 100 classic, The Apartment. Another is The Misfits, the last film for the late Clark Gable and the last film to be completed for the late Marilyn Monroe. Completing our trio is The Madness Of King George, which previously was available in R1 in Canada, and which is now making its debut on U.S. R1 DVD at long last. Editorial: On the subject of MGM, lately I've seen a lot of sentiment against that studio, regarding its policy of releasing a lot of bare-bones DVDs instead of a few special editions. I'd like to add my thoughts to the fray, which is that the main purpose of DVD (or any home video system, for that matter), is to deliver movies, and that commentaries, mini-documentaries, or whatever are secondary. My home video purchases are mostly restricted to catalog titles; I seldom buy new releases. In the past, I've been very frustrated at the slow progress of the major studios in releasing their catalog titles to the premiere home video format, which restricts my choice for such material to used laserdisc or VHS (and by implication, no 5.1 or DTS and no progressive scan). In the last few months, MGM has become a notable exception to this concentrate-on-new-releases policy, releasing all sorts of goodies to DVD, in many cases with anamorphic transfers, and at very attractive prices. MGM's DVDs, while often far from reference quality, are still vastly superior to VHS or used laserdisc, and at least they are available for rental, which laserdiscs are not. In the cases where the transfers are anamorphic, I get glorious progressive widescreen playback, and even when they are not, they often feature 5.1 sound, which is still major plus over laserdisc (I don't have a demodulator). Sometimes I can't help but wonder if the people who complain so much about MGM's DVD release policy hold stock in VHS duplication facilities or eBay (my primary source of used laserdiscs and laserdisc hardware). Also, I find it ironic that the same people have complained bitterly about Divx-exclusive titles, and now do the same when MGM releases those same titles, with the added plus of OAR, to DVD. Thank you MGM - your efforts are appreciated by many of us! Tech News: DiVX Codec Version 4 Goes Final! Read: 7114 times. Version 4.0 of the DivX codec is now available for Windows-based systems. Word from Doom9 Indicates this release may still have issues on some systems, but it looks like a large number of the problems the beta versions have been having have been fixed. Reported problems include issues with Matrox Cards (the G-400 particularly) and IBM Thinkpads. If you`re using these types of hardware, I`d suggest sticking with DiVX 3.11a for the time being. Read More... | 3568 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-22 00:07:50 | Internet News: Music Industry Blames CD Burners for Downturn Read: 231 times. HB/svu COLOGNE. Germany`s music industry said Wednesday that illegal and private copying of CDs and Internet piracy are the main reasons why it expects to post a loss for full-year 2001. Read More... | 1488 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-22 00:04:04 | Application Update: Microsoft Gears Up Windows 2000 SP3 Beta Read: 415 times. Screening has begun for testers who wish to participate in the developmental phase of the latest service pack for Windows 2000. As per the usual, key areas being focused on by the sustained development team are setup, application compatibility, operating system reliability, and numerous security issues. There are no plans to incorporate new features into Windows, as this is solely a maintenance release. The soon to be released update marks the third installment of a service pack since Windows 2000 went gold in December of 1999. Read More... | 4272 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-20 01:27:15 | Internet News: Cyber Citizen lands Felony Charges? Read: 1009 times. A good deed may lead to prosecution for Brian K. West, a 24 year old sales and support employee for an internet service provider in SE Oklahoma. Mr. West has become a statistic for the Computer Analysis Response Team because he alerted a local business to a serious security flaw in their website. On February 1, 2000, one of West`s co-workers created a banner advertisement to be placed on the Poteau Daily News website as part of a legitimate advertising campaign for his employer. To test how how the finished ad would look on the site, West clicked the `Edit` button on Microsoft`s Internet Explorer. This action brought up Microsoft FrontPage and should have created a local copy of the web page, allowing West to do a mock-up of the site on his own computer. Read More... | 6216 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-19 00:12:04 | Misc/Other: DiVX Release Lists Maintained again Read: 168 times. After much waiting, you can see that the Global DiVX website is under renovation again, with the winners being you, the users, as we bring you yet another much requested feature. The DiVX Release lists are now back online and fully maintained. These should be updated every few days, up to daily or more frequently most of the time. One last minute Update: The DupeCheck functionality is now back online. Read More... | 3768 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-18 11:37:15 | Misc/Other: New Guides Added Read: 24 times. 2 New Guides added to the Faq/Howto Section. First is a ``Beginners Perspective to Ripping DVDs``, simply a commentary and write up of what it takes to rip a DVD. Should be a good read for anyone new to DVD Ripping, and interested in learning about it. The other new guide up is a guide to Installing the DiVX and SMR Codecs, for newbies. If your having trouble installing either of the codecs, or wondering why you get sound and no picture, then this guide is for you. 5216 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-18 01:51:15 | Internet News: All the News That`s Fit to Strip Read: 882 times. Quick, name the number of jobs where taking your clothes off is mandatory to get the job, and Washington internships don`t count. For 16 would-be newscasters, that would be with Naked News, which uses the tag line ``The Program With Nothing to Hide.`` That includes its on-air talent. The 10 women who present the news start out their reports dressed, but as they read the news, they slowly strip down until they are stark naked. Read More... | 3536 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-09 06:59:10 | Video News: Dolby Tells NetBSD Project: Don`t Decode AC3 Read: 632 times. There`s a new entrant into the open source DVD legal battle: Dolby Laboratories. The NetBSD Project received this letter demanding that links to the open source ac3dec package be removed. What`s next? Read More... | 1600 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-08 04:01:43 | Application Update: GDiVX 1.9.0: Update Read: 107 times. If you hadnt already got the word, GDiVX 1.9.0 is out for downloads, featuring heaps of new cool things, check out the news story a few posts down for details. This update is simply to let you know that if youd already linked to the download file, please note the url has changed. Also, due to a mistake on my behalf, GDiVX 1.8.5 shipped with the words ``1.9.0`` in the splash screen. Just to clear a few things up, check your about box (click the GDiVX Logo in the player) to see what version you actually have. If yours is 1.8.5, grab the real 1.9.0, and enjoy the new features, like playlists! 4912 bytes Lord-Data, 2001-08-05 08:32:20 | Misc/Other: Team GDiVX Statistics Read: 30 times. In the short time since we started TeamGDiVX, on the UD (Cancer Research) project similar to seti@home, we\'ve already accumulated over 1 year, 308 hours of processing time! This works out to be roughly 10 hours of processing time, for every hour that goes by .. So put those spare CPU Cycles to work for cancer research, and join TeamGDiVX. Check the stats, and join the team at UD`s Website. Article Written by: Global DiVX, last updated 2001-04-06. Viewed: 27302 Times. To Start with, you will need the following Tools. You will need DeCSS Mpeg2AVI DiVX Codec VOB Snoopy AC3ED AudioActive Production Studio Make sure you have all of the above before you begin. Step 1 - Ripping the DVD 1. Load DeCSS, it will auto-detect your DVDROM and DVD 2. Select ALL the Vob files available, and merge them into one. 3. Put it in a directory (e.g. C:\Ripped) call it 01.vob 4. Make sure you have at least the same amount of space free as the new VOB file takes up, converting it to mpeg and ripping the sound will take up lots of space. Step 2 - Converting MPEG to DivX AVI 1. Open a DOS Box 2. Copy your mpeg2avi into your C:\Ripped 3. Figure out if your DVD is NTSC or PAL (itll say on the cover, so if you cant read youre fucked) 4. Enter one of the following command linesPAL mpeg2avi -b C:\ripped\01.vob -f - 1 720 480 -07 output.aviNTSC mpeg2avi -b C:\ripped\01.vob -f0 -3y 416 - 1 720 320 output.avi5. At the prompt select the DiVX Codec. 6. Change the KEY to 1 7. Leave everything else at its defaults. Youve got your moving pictures. Step 3 - Converting the Sound 1. Load VobSnoopy and click on your VOB file 2. Click extract and select *m2a,*mpa,*ac3,*wav 3. Wait for the fucker to extract to C:\ripped 4. Open a DOS box again, and copy AC3ED to C:\ripped 5. Type in - AC3ed audio01.ac3 sound.wav 6. Leave the codec as default 7. Load up Virtual DUB (part of Audioactive Pro. Studio) 8. Select the wav, and convert it using the following information -Audio conversion 44100 or 48000 depending on format of the wav Audio Interleaving Preload 10 000 ms Interleave audio every 250 Audio Wav Audio (select the wav) AudioFull processing mode Audio Compression Format Mpeg Layer 3 Attribute : 96 Kbit/s 44,100 ou 44,800, Stereo Step 4- Merging the sound and video 1. Load virtual dub again 2. Open your AVI 3. Copy the Video Frame Rate 4. Click Change so the video duration matches the Audio 5. Click on 44100hz Audio Interleaving Preload 10000ms Interleave Audio every 250 Audio WAV Audio 6. After that, click on your WAV and select Full Processing Made, FileSave Extended AVI. 7. Put in whatever filename you want Article Written by: Unknown, last updated 2001-04-06. Viewed: 20509 Times. Acquire the necessary tools: DeCSS MPEG 2 AVI AC3 DEC MPEG2AVI GUI DivX ;-) codec Virtual Dub Optional Accessories: Sonic Foundry Sound Forge Avi Chop Advanced DivX Bitrate Calculator Side Note: The DivX codec includes the Fraunhofer MP3 codec (8-320 kBps) and the M$ hacked WMA codec. You do not have to d/l these to encode DivX. It will take an average of 5GB of space for the raw VOB file, another 600 MB for the DivX video (depending on the bitrate) and about 1GB for the raw audio: TOTAL = ~7GB. Make sure you have enough free space before you begin!! 1. Ripping the DVD to Disc Make sure DVD is in DVD-ROM Run DeCSS Select Destination Folder and VOB files to Rip Check “Merge VOB files” box 2. Converting DVD to DivX video Open GUI Switch mode for W98 or W2K (click on windows icon w/ ? superimposed) MPEG2AVI should be highlighted along the top – if not, click it! Box 1: Find these files Box 2: Look at DVD back cover to determine NTSC/PAL, click appropriate box and “Maintain Ratio” Box 3: “Create my Avi” Encoding window will pop-up: Select DivX Low Motion Codec Configure: Crispness 100% Bitrate: Decide using DV-Tool (720 is the minimum allowed by DivXnews.com) Video encoding takes 3-6 hours depending on processor power 3. Converting AC3 audio to WAV Re-open GUI Switch to AC3DEC at top of window Box 1: Locate Files Under “AyeSeeThreeDecode GUI” select language Language 0: usually Dolby Stereo Language 1: usually 5.1 Dolby Surround Language 2 – 9: alternate languages “Create my WAV” Encoding window will pop-up: leave as 48000 PCM Audio rip takes about 1 hour (once again depending on processor power) Check WAV for volume level – adjust using Sound Forge if necessary NOTE: DivXnews.com requires audio be converted to 44100 Hz - this is because mouse soundcards do not support 48000 Hz 4. Merging Video with Audio Open Virtual Dub File: Open Video File Audio: WAV Audio Audio: Full Processing Mode Audio: Interleaving Preload 10000 ms Interleave every 250 ms Audio: Compression Select “DivX ;-) Audio” for WMA Select “MPEG Layer – 3” for MP3 Choose desired bitrate Video: Framerate Check “Change so video and audio durations match” box Video: Direct Stream Copy File: Save Avi NOTE: You may want to experiment with the “Options” menu to increase audio and video write buffers and processor priority – this will speed up the merging process. With buffers at max and priority set to “highest”, merging should take between 1-2 hours w/ MP3 audio, much longer with WMA. This guide will outline in detail the process used to create high quality divx files from a dvd source. This method will give you a divx file of exactly the size you specify and it will be of the highest quality for that size. As far as high quality Vki-Mm4 encoding goes, this is also probably the easiest method. for this process you will need the following: 1. A pc with a dvd rom drive:) 2. The dvd disc you want to encode 3. About 6gb of hard drive space 4. Smartripper 5. Ac3dec & mpeg2avi/ac3dec/vstrip gui 6. Fairuse 7. Virtualdub 8. Krystal Studios Divx codecs pack 4.3.3 or newer 9. Half a brain This guide is split into 3 sections. 1.Ripping the audio 2 Ripping and encoding the video 3 Compressing and Multiplexing the audio Section 1: Ripping the audio. ----------------------------- Insert your dvd disc and run Smartripper. Select `movie` as your rip method, select your target directory and hit start. This will rip the entire dvd to your hard drive. Once done, close smartripper and run the ac3dec gui. Hit the ac3dec button on the top of the window and set up the Locate Files section on the top left. Ac3dec: the path for the ac3dec .exe file Input: The path for the FIRST vob file in your set. eg d:\vts_0*_1.vob (the * could be any number, depending on the contents of the dvd) Output: The path and filename for your output wav file. (remember to add the .wav to the end of it:) Next, you need to identify the audio stream you want to rip. Select Language 0 from the bottom left of the window and hit the big `Play Source` button. Verify that this is the audio language that you want to rip by listening to it. If it is not, then select language 1 and repeat. Continue until you have found the one that you want to rip. Next select the following check boxes from the middle right of the window: 1.Span over multiple vobs automaticaly 2.Convert the 48000 stream to 44100 Now hit the `Create my Wav` button and wait for it to finish. You now have your complete wav file for the movie. Close ac3dec and delete the vob files that you ripped from the dvd earlier Section 2: Ripping and encoding the video. ------------------------------------------ This section will be done entirely with Fairuse. Open Fairuse and create a new project. Hit next and select your dvd drive from the list. Now you need to select your movie from the list. It is usually has the longest duration. Select it and hit next. Fairuse will now rip the dvd to the hard drive. from this point, you will not require the dvd disc again. Next you must set the cropping values to remove the black bars from the picture. Hit the Auto set button. Next, if there are any subtitles that you want to be permanently part of the movie select include subpictures and then the subtitles you want. (this feature will be rarely used, as it will encode the subtitles into the video, so you will not be able to turn them off. It is however usefull if you are encoding a movie like The Mummy for example, where there are sections of the dialogue spoken in egyptian which would normally have subtitles on screen, or any movie where the dialogue is in an `Alien` Language etc). Hit next. Now select your field combination mode by hitting the auto detect button. hit next. The next page is where you will set the size of your final DivX Avi file. usually this will be 700mb, to fit on 1 80minute cd. Next select the audio bitrate, so that enough space can be allowed for adding the audio later. I would recommend 128kbits for this. I suggest that you read this page thoroughly, as it contains an excellent desription of how compression ratios effect the quality of your video. If you cannot get the desired compression ratio within 700mb, you may want to consider doing a 2cd rip, in which case, select 1400mb as your size. Now, select your chosen video size from the right side of the window, based on the compression ratio as explained on the left. The basic rule is, the lower the compression ratio, the better but if you follow these guidelines, even a 1cd rip will look fantastic. Hit next. Next you select how many passes you want the encoder to make. Again, read this page thoroughly as it explains this process in full. Usually 4 passes is fine, as long as your compression ratio falls in line with the guidelines on the previous page. If you are at the limit of that ratio (152:1 for example) you may want to do more passes to keep the quality high. When you have decided how many passes you want fairuse to make, select that number and hit the auto add button. Hit next. Now fairuse will encode the selected number of passes. this will take time, depending on your cpu speed. When done, you will see the final page in fairuse, where you combine the different passes into 1 high quality video file. Hit the recalculate button, then hit finish. fairuse will tell you the filename of your finished video file when complete. Now, go into the directory containing your fairuse project and move your finished video file out of it. rename the file to something easily identifiable and delete the project directory. You now have the video and audio files seperately, time to stick it all together. Section 3: Compressing and Multiplexing the audio. -------------------------------------------------- This is the final Stage, and it is done using Virtualdub. First, install the krystal studios codec pack Open Virtualdub and select open video file from the file menu, open your video file. from the video menu, select direct stream copy. from the audio menu, select wav audio and open your wav file. also from the audio menu, select interleaving and set the interleave to 1ms from the audio menu again, select compression and choose mpeg layer 3. set the bitrate of your mp3 to the same value as you specified in fairuse (normally 128k) and 44100. next, on the audio menu again, select full processing mode. Now, from the file menu, select save avi and give the file the name you want to use for your finished DivX file. (remember to add the .avi extension to the end of your filename) Virtualdub will now create the finished file. That`s it!! all done, open your file and enjoy:) DivX is based on the MPEG-4 compression format. MPEG-4 is a new standard of video compression that is both high quality and low bitrate. They are usually only a fraction (around 15%) of the size of a standard DVD, even at 640x480 resolutions, making them the best home video format thus far. They only take half the time to encode, and yet at the same time is smaller in size than MPEG-1 - due to their incredible compression technology - some have even called MPEG-4 the "MP3 of the video world". Quality ranges from net-streaming quality to DVD and better !! Just to clarify, this is NOT related to the old defunct DVD Rental System, named DiV/X. The truth about the DivX revolution 2001-09-07 19:20 GMT DivX is already here, it's already being used and, most importantly, it's great quality at full screen, we were told. It is the equivalent of MP3 for videos and the world will never be the same. Hollywood studios are right to be worried and they may already be too late. more... Source: The Register Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Filmmakers Say: Hi, Resfest 2001-09-07 00:07 GMT The Resfest film festival, which opens on Thursday at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts, will showcase some of the year's most innovative independent film, video and animation. more... Source: Wired News Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Pocket PC Upgrade Brings Handhelds Into Their Own 2001-09-07 00:05 GMT Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will launch a new Pocket PC operating system on Thursday in a bid to vault into the top spot in the handheld computing market as those devices become more powerful professional tools and shed their status as pricey address books and accessories. more... Source: AP Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend New habits die hard 2001-09-07 00:04 GMT College campuses should be the dream marketplace for online entertainment. Robust computing power, high network bandwidth, and fast processing speeds abound. Even interactive content is common. Today's college students have a veritable digital revolution in their dorm rooms. But ask companies like Icebox, Nibblebox, Heavy.com, and The Romp, which targeted the one demographic in the United States with the requisite high-speed Internet connections and desktop computing power to enjoy online entertainment, and they'll say otherwise. more... Source: Red Herring Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Firms Try to Spark Interest in Net Video 2001-09-07 00:03 GMT One reason the studios are moving to the Internet is the expected arrival of an entire line of devices that bridge the gap between the Net and TV, said R. Jordan Greenhall of DivxNetworks, a company that delivers video through the Web. He predicted that a more affordable wave of set-top boxes will arrive by mid-2002, aimed at consumers with high-speed Internet connections more... The truth about the DivX revolution 2001-09-07 19:20 GMT DivX is already here, it's already being used and, most importantly, it's great quality at full screen, we were told. It is the equivalent of MP3 for videos and the world will never be the same. Hollywood studios are right to be worried and they may already be too late. more... Source: The Register Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Filmmakers Say: Hi, Resfest 2001-09-07 00:07 GMT The Resfest film festival, which opens on Thursday at San Francisco's Palace of Fine Arts, will showcase some of the year's most innovative independent film, video and animation. more... Source: Wired News Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Pocket PC Upgrade Brings Handhelds Into Their Own 2001-09-07 00:05 GMT Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will launch a new Pocket PC operating system on Thursday in a bid to vault into the top spot in the handheld computing market as those devices become more powerful professional tools and shed their status as pricey address books and accessories. more... Source: AP Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend New habits die hard 2001-09-07 00:04 GMT College campuses should be the dream marketplace for online entertainment. Robust computing power, high network bandwidth, and fast processing speeds abound. Even interactive content is common. Today's college students have a veritable digital revolution in their dorm rooms. But ask companies like Icebox, Nibblebox, Heavy.com, and The Romp, which targeted the one demographic in the United States with the requisite high-speed Internet connections and desktop computing power to enjoy online entertainment, and they'll say otherwise. more... Source: Red Herring Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Firms Try to Spark Interest in Net Video 2001-09-07 00:03 GMT One reason the studios are moving to the Internet is the expected arrival of an entire line of devices that bridge the gap between the Net and TV, said R. Jordan Greenhall of DivxNetworks, a company that delivers video through the Web. He predicted that a more affordable wave of set-top boxes will arrive by mid-2002, aimed at consumers with high-speed Internet connections more... Source: LA Times Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Disney, Fox Seen Making Video on Demand Move 2001-08-29 20:40 GMT On the heels of the recent VOD announcement by five major studios, Fox and Disney are rumored to be investigating a rival service that could launch in the near future. more... Source: Reuters Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend VOD crowd downloads studio buzz 2001-08-29 20:40 GMT Although the launch of the studios' recently announced Internet video-on-demand plans is still months off, others in the download business wasted no time in cashing in on Hollywood's heightened interest in digital delivery. Another company hoping to make hay in the new Internet sunshine is San Diego-based DivXNetworks, the developer of the DivX compression/decompression system widely used to transmit video through the Internet more... Source: Video Business Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Road to Nowhere: DSL Growth Running on Empty 2001-08-29 20:40 GMT High-speed Internet access over ordinary telephone lines is a technology that was to pave the promised information superhighway -- but for most consumers it's become a road to nowhere more... Source: Reuters Comments [1] Click HERE to send to a friend Sony Signs Cable Movie Deal With Supplier In Demand 2001-08-29 20:39 GMT Having persuaded a group of Hollywood studios to offer movies on demand online, Sony Pictures Entertainment said Tuesday that it agreed to make its films available on demand through cable TV. more... Source: LA Times Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Movie studios won't be Napster-ized 2001-08-24 00:21 GMT The movie industry took out an insurance policy on Thursday, when five of the eight major studios announced plans to distribute movies across the Web...They were undoubtedly watching when their associates in the recording industry failed over the course of a year and a half to offer a viable alternative to the Napster song-swapping system, even as the record labels scored a string of victories against the company in court. more... Source: Upside Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Qwest Communications to Host DivXNetworks' Web Presence 2001-08-24 00:21 GMT Qwest Communications International Inc. today announced that it will serve as the sole dedicated Web-hosting provider for DivXNetworks, Inc., the technology company that created the popular MPEG-4 Internet video format DivX(tm). DivXNetworks compresses full-length movies into sizes small enough to be sent over the Internet or stored on a single compact disk. more... Source: Digital Video Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend DivXNetworks Ships MPEG-4 Video Codec 2001-08-24 00:21 GMT The official release of DivX 4.0 is here. The newest version of the codec (compressor/decompressor), is available for download at www.divx.com and features improved performance, faster encoding speed and near-DVD visual quality, offering the best MPEG-4 video codec on the market. more... Source: Digital Producer Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Senator Working on Copy-Control Legislation for This Fall 2001-08-22 22:10 GMT Sen. Ernest Hollings may introduce a bill this fall that could require all consumer electronics devices and computers to use copy-control technology to prevent the piracy of movies, music and software, a Senate source said. more... Source: Webnoize Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend Interactive spec on tap for high-end DVD players 2001-08-21 23:44 GMT The DVD Forum is quietly working on an optional format for enhanced DVD-Video and DVD players that would deliver advanced interactivity for consumers while salvaging margins for OEMs hard hit by price wars more... Source: EE Times Comments [0] Click HERE to send to a friend HP unveils first DVD+RW drive 2001-08-21 16:48 GMT The DVD-writer dvd100i, which will cost $599 when it hits store shelves in September, will be the first commercially available drive based on the DVD+RW standard. With it, consumers will be able to record video onto a disc, play it on a typical home DVD player, and then erase and record again on the same disc. HP plans to incorporate the drives into its PCs later this year. more...