DVD Menu Creation

[IMC]

I am looking for a good program that can create DVD Menus & burn them to disc.

Any Ideas?

[RJ]

There are plenty out there.

Take a look at the Ulead products (MovieFactory, DVDWorkshop), there should also be a trial to download.

RJ

[reboot]

DVDLab get's my vote. Far more fuctional than the limited Ulead DVD Workshop and TMPGEnc DVD Author. Far more stable and functional than Sonic's low-end stuff.
It also includes a basic aspi burner if needed, or just use Nero, etc.

[Kov-Ice]

I actually just typed this into another thread, but...

Pinnacle Studio does that, but it's one buggy piece of software. While it looks pretty on the shelf, I'd avoid the headache purchasing it would cause.

[TwoRails]

Very nice tip, reboot. I just checked them out and they look very impressive. I was wanting to upgrade and was thinking about the new DVDit! v5, but DVDLab might change my mind

[SonicVanguard]

DVDLab is as good as some of the top of the like products available. We were using Spruce Technologies DVDMaestro in the studio, but the renewal licence was too much for what authoring we do (we primarily do post production before the final authoring). So we looked at DVDLab - for under $100 you get more functionality than most anything on the market. It's a great product.

Dave.

[Kov-Ice]

Is DVDLab strictly for menus and rendering a project that's been created elsewhere?

[reboot]

DVDLAb is for everything to do with authoring/ripping/compiling/burning DVD, except encoding the mpeg.
It will accept AC3 and .wav audio.
It will transcode it to 48khz if necessary.
It will accept nonstandard video streams (VCD, SVCD, Anamorphic).
It will accept .vob, and even string multiple .vob's together if needed (great to reauthor and then shrink for dvdr, with no need to rip to the hard drive!).
It has literally thousands of options for menus and backgrounds with the built in FXGen.
It will do motion menus and transitions between objects.
It will compile the project and save on the hard drive.
It will burn (using a basic aspi burning engine) if you want.
I could go on and on.
The Pro version will accept multiple IFO's and audio streams.
Get a 30 day demo at www.mediachance.com
By far the most powerful authoring tool around, for $100 you can't go wrong.
The main coder for the app is the mod at their forums, so if you have a question or problem, you'll get an answer from the guy who wrote the program.

[Kov-Ice]

But it wouldn't replace my piece of junk Pinnacle completely? I'd have to capture DV, then edit and compile with DVDLab? Is there any benefit to getting the $200 PRO version really? How would Adobe Premier stack up in this equation?
Have I asked enough questions in a row, yet?

[RJ]

Premiere is a video editing application, just like Pinnacle Studio, just more stable and more powerful. You can capture and edit your video with Premiere. You can also encode to MPEG-2 but I'd use another encoder for that.
As far as I know with Premiere 6.5 and newer you can also author the DVD, but I'm not sure about that.

DVDLab ist a DVD authoring program. You can't capture and edit, but you can author.

RJ

[reboot]

Premiere is THE editing app. Yes, you can use it to cap too. I prefer to capture in Mainconcept, to mpeg2, all in one step, then author in DVDLab.
Eliminate all the conversions/transcoding etc.
DVDLab Pro allows for more flexibility in authoring, multiple vts, etc., not really something most people would need/want.

[TwoRails]

IMC, thanks for posting this thread!

Reboot, that is one fantastic program!!! DVDLab is everything I've ever wanted. I've spent too much $$ on other programs trying to find what DVDLab has. Like a word processor, I've only touched on maybe 1 - 2% of what it can do and I'm happy already Can't wait to learn more and do some fun stuff with it.

TwoRails

[reboot]

Start playing with the GFX button

[TwoRails]

Just found it! That's PFS !! (Pretty Fun Stuff )

[Hi Ho]

I have used the trial version of Ulead Video Studio 8 many times and it has been completely stable and it is pretty powerfull and costs less ($99 vs $699) and is easier to use than Adobe Premier. I have downloaded the "Adobe Tryout" for Premier and I couldn't figure anything out.

[SonicVanguard]

Premiere is a true non-linear video editor. ULead's product is a toy is comparison. Now to be fair, most people don't need what Premiere can do - nestable timelines (Premiere Pro), unlimited audio and video tracks, full integration with After Effects, Photoshop, Illustrator and Audition, and so on. It's a professional package that is reasonably priced.

At the studio we just updated everything - went from Steinberg audio over to ProTools|HD (save for WaveLab), new equipment throughout. The ProTools installers (ProTools is owned by the makers of Avid) suggested I should also upgrade to an Avid suite for video. Why? I asked him to show me one thing Avid Composer can do that Premiere Pro can't do. He couldn't. Premiere Pro is just that good. So to even compare it to a ULead product is comparing a Hummer H2 to a Suzuki Samuri. It's not fair.

Dave.

[Hi Ho]

I wasn't comparing it in terms of features, functionality, or capability. I know Premier will do wonders more than any Ulead product. I was suggesting Ulead because it is sufficient for the average home user, more user friendly, and cheaper. If you don't need all the capability, and as you said, most people don't. I say Ulead Video Studio 8 is a good package.