[magusbuckley]

Hello:

I work in the IT industry and can't tell you how many users have asked, "Why doesn't it just work?" Today, for the first time in a long time, I'm asking myself the same question. I'm really having trouble creating a DVD. I created a slideshow video with Microsoft's PhotoStory 3 program. I moved the project into Windows Movie Maker to add even more special effects. Afterwards, I used an authoring program--Intervideo DVD Creator-- to put the movie on DVD. The only player I've found that will play that DVD is a player my mother has. That player has the DVD-R logo on it's face. That wasn't going to work for me because I want friends and family to see the video. It will have to work a large variety of players. I tried a demo version of a second program, ULEAD Movie Factory 4, and hoped for the best. The DVD created with this program only had audio on the main menu. Audio cut out when the actual movie started playing. I tried a third program. This was another demo program from ULEAD--DVD Workshop 2. The previous programs converted and burned my movie in less than an hour. The burned movie took up almost a quarter of the disk. Workshop 2, however, took fifteen hours to convert and burn the video. The file created with this program took up almost half of the 4.7 GB DVD-R. The video had audio this time, even the movie portion of the disk, but the transition from picture to picture was always a black screen. Some of the photos looked like reverse negatives. My wifes brown hair would be a nice shade of lime green and the photo would be severely pixelated. My question then, is this: Why am I getting three different results from three different programs for the same project? I assumed that any DVD authoring program would allow me to create DVD's that would play on standard DVD Players but apparently this isn't the case.

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Hey,

My first guess is that the movie file you are using has been compressed with a "difficult" codec once or twice. Let me know what file type you export the video as from windows media player and/or any other programs you have exported the movie out of.

[st22]

Hey,

My first guess is that the movie file you are using has been compressed with a "difficult" codec once or twice. Let me know what file type you export the video as from windows media player and/or any other programs you have exported the movie out of.

[magusbuckley]

st22:

Thank you for taking an intersest in my problem.

Here is the information you asked for.

1. Slideshow created as eight chapters with Microsoft's PhotoStory 3 program. The chapters were originally created as .ps3 files. That is the format used by the PhotoStory 3 program.

2. The eight chapters were converted, again with the PhotoStory, to .wmv format.

3. Those .wmv files were opened in Windows Movie Maker so I could add more special effects.

4. The files were saved from Movie Maker Program in the .wmv format again.

5. The .wmv files, or chapters if you will, were then imported into a program I already had--Intervideo WinDVD Creator 2. This program came with either my video card or my motherboard when I build this system less than a year ago. I created menus and burned the video to a DVD-R. The burned video took up about a quarter of the DVD disc. The process from conversion to burned movie took about an hour and a half. This DVD played fine in my X-Box (what I use for a DVD Player) and on my computer. On the computer, however, the video would only play if I used the Intervideo DVD Player Software. Windows Media Player, what I use to play my other movies, would not play this video. I used that working copy as a master to burn off almost 30 copies for friends and family. Only one person could watch the video! I couldn't believe it and started doing research. A friend of mine, who knows a little about this stuff, said that my master was probably copywrite protected by the Intervideo software and that the duplicates I had made would then be duds. So, my computer assumed I was trying to steal my own movie. He advised trying the Master somewhere else. I tried the master copy at my mother's house, but she couldn't watch that one either. I installed a DVD codec on her computer but we still had trouble. The main menu would pull up, but the video would not play. On her big screen, the video would play, but it looked as though the resolution was too large for her television because the picture spilled off the screen. You could only see the top left corner of the video and even that was blurry.

6. I was more confused so contacted my friend again. He recommended some ULEAD software. I downloaded a trial version of ULEAD DVD Movie Factory 4. This program burned the movie off to a DVD-R and produced a file about a quater of the size of the DVD. This was comparable to the file created with my Intervideo program. This program converted the video and got it burned to disk in about an hour. I popped this video into the X-Box and got the menu. There was audio so I was excited. When I clicked play, the video took off, but there was no audio. I only have audio on the menu. The actual movie has no audio.

7. I downloaded another ULEAD product demo--ULEAD Workshop 2. The conversion process this time took 15 hours!!! The burned file took up almost half of the DVD. The menu looks fine, but the vide does many strange things. Keep in mind that this video is actually a photo slideshow. The transition from picture to picutre is a black screen. I have setup various transitions, but the burned movie doesn't reflect those transitions. Also, some of the photos look really strange. Most are normal, but some are very pixelated, some have incorrect colors, etc.

8. My mother purchased a new DVD player with the DVD-R logo on it. With that player, she is able to watch my orignal master DVD created by Intervideo DVD Creator.

So, the files are really just .wmv until they get loaded into the DVD authoring software. From what I can tell, they all just convert the .wmv files into some sort of MPEG format. I haven't learned about the different MPEG formats yet.

Isn't that strange that all three programs do totally different things? I just assumed a DVD created with an authoring program would work on any DVD Player. My oh my was I wrong. Now, I'm just trying to get a working copy out to my friends and family.

Do you require any other information?

Thanks for the help thus far!!

Edited by magusbuckley, 31 January 2006 - 11:59 PM.

[st22]

Hi,

Can you try exporting the file as an uncompressed dv avi file, here how to do this:

..in windows movie maker:

1. click tasks.
2. click finish movie - save to my computer.
3. choose a file name, choose the path to save it.
4. click other settings - select "DV-AVI(PAL)" OR "DV-AVI(NTSC)" if you are in america and use NTSC tv system.
5. click next and it saves.

then try importing this into dvd movie factory 4. let us know.

bascially what im thinking is that because you have had it saved as .ps3 then .wmv and .wmv again from differnt programs is causing some problem,,, from experience i have noticed that importing files into dvd authoring programs that are of different formats and compressions caus many many problems and it always works when i keep the file as an uncompressed dv avi (pal, or ntsc) file.

and to answer your other questions the dvd authoring software convert it to MPEG2 for the dvd. and its best to keep that at its highest setting also.

Also check that you are working in the right tv resolution in all the programs PAL -720 * 576, NTSC - 720 * 480.

Hope this helps.
St22.

[magusbuckley]

st22:

I'll try that this afternoon and will reply in the morning. Thanks for the help.

Magus

[magusbuckley]

st22:

I tried using the dv-avi file per your instructions, but did not use MovieFactory 4. When I opened the movie with that program, I couldn't get the menus to do exactly what I wanted. The other ULEAD program is the one that has the longest conversion so I thought I'd try my Intervideo program first. The conversion to MPEG-2 was faster from DV-AVI than the standard AVI format. The DVD, however, performed exactly the same as it did before with this Intervideo program. There was audio, but only on the main menu. Should I try the other ULEAD program--DVD Workshop 2?

Thanks for your help thus far.

Magus

[st22]

Hi,
Yes, can you try Ulead DVD movie factory 4. and let me know the results.
Im going to have a look at Microsoft's PhotoStory 3 and see how this program works for now incase dvdmf4 doesnt work.
Thanks,
St22

Edited by st22, 03 February 2006 - 05:00 AM.

[st22]

Hi Magus,

I have just had a look at Microsoft's PhotoStory 3, try this also:

at the stage titled "save your story" :
1. under quality settings click settings.
2. select profile for creating dvds - ntsc
3. click next next and save it

st22