For 2 or 3 years I have been trying (with no success) to convert many Family VCR tapes to DVD movies to give to my children. My Sony PCV-RS 530G has a Gigapocket recorder. I have had no problems taking/converting the VCR tapes into Mpeg files on my hard disk. However, several of the tapes are 4 to 5 hours long and make big mpeg files. One vcr tape alone I split into tape 1_1 (5,274,993kb, tape 1_2 3,331,607, tape 1_3 5,274,591 and tape 1_4 5,274,551 mb. I have tried editing the mpeg files in NERO VISION EXPRESS 3 but I have no idea what I am doing. I know these large files will not fit onto a regular DVD-R so I have tried to cut-out unwanted parts of the video and , again, have no idea how to do it. How much will a DVD-R fit? How do I perform the "cut" in the file (seems like when I try to make a cut I am left with the portion I don't want rather than the portion I want to include)? How do I insert a title/menu? Seriously, I have been trying to make these DVD's for a couple of years, then I get frustrated and stop for a couple of months. Are there any "How To" videos available as a guide for dummies? I am 62 years old now, have run a successful buisness for 25 years but can't figure out how to do this elementary task. HELP
You can use AviDemux to do simple edits on mpeg files. Run AviDemux and open the file or drag it onto the window. The left side menu should be set: Video>Copy Audio>Copy Format>Mpeg-PS (A+V). Use the slider and play button to get to a point you want to cut and the A/B buttons to mark the start and end of the cut. Note that there are a right and left 'Key frame' buttons you should use before using A or B (because the software will only cut on key frames). When you have the A/B buttons set for the cut, click 'Edit' > 'Cut' on the top menu. Repeat as required. The maximum running time for a DVD is a nominal two hours - so cut anything over this length - the running time is shown in the lower left of the pane. When you want to save your project, click 'File' > 'Save' Give the output file a new name (including the extension) e.g clip1.mpg http://www.videohelp.com/tools/AviDemux
AVIDemux looks like a straight forward, simple program to use. So, I can then take one of my captures, a 5,274,994 kb mpeg file, and divide it into several smaller, logical parts and burn a seperate a DVD movie for each part, right? Approximately how large should the resulting files be for a 2 hour DVD?
The authoring program will maximize the space on the disk according to the running time of the source. A blank DVD-5 disk has a nominal capacity of two hours running time, so the entire 4+GB would be used. If you squeezed three hours onto the disk the quality suffers as more running time is squeezed into the available space. Since you are using VHS quality to begin with, you don't want to lose anything more than you have to.
So, now I am confused. I took my original mpg file that I captured (5,274,993 kb), ran it through AVIDemux and found a running time of about 1Hr 30Min. I saved the file as an mpg and opened up Nero Vision Express to make a movie, or simply make a video DVD. In both cases Nero said my file was too large for a DVD5 disk and Nero would not make it smaller to fit a DVD5. What am I missing?
I don't know what the problem with Nero is - I haven't used it for years. I routinely record TV shows around 6~8GB MPG (one hour running time) that can be loaded into the likes of DVD Flick without a problem. You could tell Nero that you are saving to a DVD-9 instead of a DVD-5 disk (just output to a folder and don't opt to burn). When it's finished, check the size of the output folder to see if it is over 4.4GB
Is it possible that I am using too old of a version of Nero Vision Express (3) or a "trial" type version without many working features? The version I am using came with a nearly 3 year-old desktop using XP Media Center. It is a Nero OEM version 6.1. No matter what I do to my mpeg file, if it has a run-time of 1.75 hrs Nero says it won't fit. I was successful in burning a DVD using a file with a run-time of about 1:07 with Nero. When I added a simple title it was too large for the 4.7 DVD disk. What authoring software do you use? I need a simple one which will allow me to add a title and a date, the 1.75 to 2 hr run-time mpg file, burn it to a DVD and send it off to the kids. (did I say Easy to Use?) The first VCR tape I am working on was shot in 1984, and is about 5 hours long. When I first captured it I broke it up into about 3-2 hour captures, but the resulting files were around 5,274,900 kb each and Nero can't handle them. The 7 year-old that was playing soccer on the tape is now a 30+ year-old attorney in Las Vegas - he has never seen the tape!
I will try one of those authoring programs. I was looking at another capture that had a running time of 2:51. Can I use avidemux to split the file at about 1:25 and 1:26 and save both of the files to be used later?
