Oh, I sure hope I'm using the correct forum for this. Here's my problem... Last year I made a DVD video from my grand-nephew's pictures throughout the year for his birthday. It turned out beautiful! This year there were so many pictures and I didn't want to leave out a single one, so the video will take up nearly the whole DVD. My 7 year-old workhorse XP machine can't handle it. The processor is too slow and it only has 512mgs of RAM, so I'll need to use my Vista laptop. My problem is that my Nero 7 won't work on it. I even spent four hours downloading their 'fix'. It didn't fix a thing. So, is there a program that will work on Vista that will let me customize a menu? Each month has already been encoded separately so his parents can just go to one month or another or play it all at once. Uh.. free, of course, if its possible. I've seen many, but when I start to read about them, I see where someone else will say it won't work on Vista, or the quality was bad. Clif of ClifNotes sent me here so I sure hope you can lead me to an easy-to-use free program that will let me build a custom menu and burn the whole mess to DVD. Thanks, Karel
Nero 8? Did you try asking the guys at Ahead (Makers of nero)> If this was a function that you used in Nero 7 I think that they would be the most logical choice in asking if features have been ported to a version that runs on Vista.
Yes, several times. That's how I ended up spending four hours on a 399 mg download (I have slow DSL) that did everything except make it work on Vista. I had Nero everywhere! It took hours to clean it all up and its still stuck in every corner of my laptop. Thanks, though..
Did I say or do something wrong? I'm sorry if I did. I only wanted some help with this and Clif said I could find some here..
Well, that was my one suggestion. I don't use Nero for editing DVDs and I don't use DVDs for stills so as far as alternate suggestions I'm not much help. I use TMPENg DVD Author for Authoring DVDs and maybe that would do it. You can download a free eval copy and see if it works.
I'm going to take dailun's recommendation a bit further. LOL! 1. Arrange your pics in nicely worded folders, making sure there are only pictures in them, no text files, etc. 2. In each folder, rename your pics by prefixing them with, say, 001, 002, 003, etc, so that they're nicely arranged the way you want them to appear. 3. Go get the evaluation version of TMPGEnc Author Works 4 (new name for TMPGEnc DVD Author). 4. Start a new DVD project, click on "Add a slideshow". Click on "Folder import". Now, get busy adding "transition" effects, like fade in/out, wipe left/right, etc, etc. You can also just use 1 transition for the whole set - lazy/simple. Or ask the software to do this randomly for you. 5. Create 1 slideshow for each folder - easier to manage later on. Or merge in as many folders as you want. 6. You have the option of grouping multiple slideshows to a single track, or put 1 slideshow for 1 track, or a mixture. This affects how your menu will look like later on and how easily you can jump from one set of slideshows to the next. 7. Go to the Internet and look for some nice, free, music loops. Feed it to the software. 8. Author menu(s). You can create your own or use the ready made templates. 9. Simulate/create output. That's it. Since you're new to TAW4, for part (6), may I suggest you just keep 1 tack = 1 slideshow = 1 pic folder for simplicity? Just try less than 10 folders and see. Use only 1 transition type per slideshow (boring, I know). Quickly go author it to disk, menus and all, and play it back. See how it turns out and then start getting creative in how you want to rearrange things. There are some nice menu templates for birthdays, etc. You can download more menu templates and see if you can make use of any newer ones. Get your menus right first - you want to be able to jump from one batch to another easily with just your remote, then go play with your transitions. I usually ask the software to chose random transitions for me - too many to chose from. I'm sure you can get all these done within the 14-day evaluation period. LOL! Have fun!
I'm a big fan of TMPGenc, myself, and recommend it often, but another option you might want to try is one that is often touted on this site - DVD Flick. I've never used it, myself, but a quick Google search told me that it will work on Vista. You say you've already made the slideshow videos. If they're already DVD-ready, Flick can create a DVD image, with a decent menu, without re-encoding. If they're another file-type, then Flick will have to re-encode. Either way, it has decent menu options (from what I've read). You can download it from this site, here: http://www.afterdawn.com/software/video_software/dvd_tools/dvd_flick.cfm and find a guide to using it, here: http://forums.afterdawn.com/thread_view.cfm/552742
Hello and thanks to both of you for your help. Yes, the videos are already DVD coded, ready to go and only need a menu. The program I use for making the videos has the Ken Burns effect, so the 'slide show' comes out much more like a video. It has the capability of putting it all together with a stunning menu, but my computer can't handle it. Since it was a downloaded purchase, I would have to pay for another program to switch it to my laptop (which has ten times the RAM) I have downloaded and used DVD Flick, but unfortunately, it won't open the VTS_.VOB files. I have found another program that can do it, CyberlinkDVD, but it has been messing up on the volume on the larger segments. (The entire video is 3.8 gigs) Cyberlink says that it is probably Nero that is causing the problem. I still cannot remove Nero from the Vista machine. I've tried their Cleaning Tool, too, but no success. So, again, thanks for your time. I guess I'll just have to fight with Ahead to get Nero 7 cleared out.
Aahhh... I didn't know that Flick doesn't handle VOBs, directly. I do believe, though, that it handles DVD-compliant MPGs without re-encoding. Sometimes it's possible to simply rename the extension from *.VOB to *.MPG, but that doesn't always work. There is a simple little program that will quickly transform the VOB(s) into a single MPG. It's called VOB2MPG. Here's the homepage: http://www.softpedia.com/get/Multimedia/Video/Encoders-Converter-DIVX-Related/VOB2MPG.shtml Again, I haven't used Flick but I do remember reading several threads, here, that suggest it as a good program. Some of those comments also mention how it's possible to add DVD-compliant MPGs to the project without re-encoding. That's why I suggested it. Perhaps Attar or one of the other gurus will pop in and set us straight on this subject.
Okay, another "pseudo-guide" for TAW4 if you already have VOBs. LOL! Or any DVD compliant MPEG source files. 1. Start a new DVD project 2. Source->Source Wizard->From a DVD... 3. Verify that TAW4 has detected your source correctly (usually so). Verify that it'll use "Smart Rendering" for the job - blue icon. 4. Load as many as you want, multiple VOBs per track or 1 track per VOB or a mixture of both. Repeat 3. 5. Click "Menu". Do your stuff, use templates, etc. 6. Simulate/Output. Done. In order for TAW4's "Smart Rendering" (ie, no re-encoding) to work, make sure that your DVD project's color system matches your source's. Ie, start an NTSC DVD project if your source is NTSC. Start a PAL DVD project if your source is in PAL format. NTSC = 720 x 480 x 29.97fps PAL = 720 x 576 x 25fps Note: to pull out your video and audio tracks from a complete VOB, you can "demultiplex" it and feed the audio & video tracks manually to authoring softwares that do not read VOBs directly. TAW4's "Utility" button will bring up the "demultiplex" screen. But only for single VOB file per title set (VTS). If the title set spans multiple VOBs, proggies like "IfoEdit" will do the same for you. I can continue to "plug" for TAW4 'cos it's doing work for me right now in the background. Got 25 episodes to author for friends & neighbors. LOL!
Thanks, both of you. XEQtor, it doesn't make much sense for me to download a trial version if it more than likely won't work with Nero on my Vista machine. I'm afraid my only hope is to get Nero outta there and then I can use Cyberlink which I already have. Thanks though.. and I'm sure that company appreciates your plugs!!
Karel9: Thanx. Like I said, I was using TAW4 at that time and so can easily call it up to check on what you wanted to do. I've done what you wanted to do many times before but was a bit rusty. How do you think I can show you those "exact" commands to call up? LOL! Sadly, I have no calls from the company thanking me for them "plugs". LOL! You think they'd bother? I'd like to say that I'm very familiar with basic TDA2/3/TAW4 functions after using it for many years now. Add to this is that I've just completed abt 50 authoring tasks for friends and neighbors this past month, and have "taught" a neighbor how to use it just last week. So, all the infomation is still fresh on my mind. Mind you, I'm not insisting you migrate from Ahead to TAW4. My logic is that, for what you want to do - which I think is not too difficult - with your background, trying to rush a DVD out on time for the kids, and not getting much help from Ahead/Nero so far, 10 minutes spent downloading the trial and installing, then, simply (read: blindly) follow what I've written so far (and then uninstalling it after that), you might get your "project" out on time, while waiting for a solution to your problem. Sort of a wham-bang, thank-you ma'am kinda logic. LOL! When you've gotten things into VOB format (it's just a container to me, I've seen worse), Nero becomes optional. FYI, I left Nero when it was version 6. But I still use it to print my DVDs tho. Previously, I use it just for burning. Today, I use "another" external encoder to get my things into MPEG-2, TDA3/TAW4 strictly for the authoring/menu part, and then, a "burning software" (FOC) to burn it. Nero will still do it since TAW4 can output an ISO or a VIDEO_TS. My Nero 7 & 8 are still in their wrappers on the table. Remember, all we want here is to get your DVD menu stuffs done (so as not to disappoint the kids), no re-encoding, no extra stuffs, and then wait for a proper resolution from Ahead. I hope you guys dont see this as another "plug" for TAW4. As you can see, I dont even bothered to use TAW4's built-in MPEG-2 encoder and their Dolby Digital 5.1 audio encoder. I can vouch that they're really "good" and "fast". Idiot-proof too. But, sorry, I've got "badder" MPEG-2 and Dolby Digital 5.1 encoders than what TAW4 can deliver. At least for my "funny" needs. LOL! Have a nice day!
I'm confused. What does "7 year-old workhorse XP machine can't handle it" actually mean? Does it crash? Encoded to what, and made by what, and what size are these 'months'.
