"Create" a Video_TS folder?

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Level 3

686 points

"Create" a Video_TS folder?

I am trying to create a VIDEO_TS folder out of several episodes of a TV show. The total hours exceed a DVD (6 hours of episodes). With help here, I found out that Visual Hub can smush those hours to fit a DVD. It works, it's great. However, there are no menus and the DVD just starts playing the episodes. SoI thought maybe I could use something else that compresses to fit one DVD, like Toast, which says it can but it needs a VIDEO_TS folder to start with; same with DVD2oneX. They need VIDEO_TS folders. So, here I am in iDVD, and I have assembled my tv episodes with an intro, etc. But it refuses to Save As Disc Image or burn because "project exceeds maximum content duration." Duh. I know that but I thought perhaps I could get around it by not trying to burn to a actual DVD disc. Instead, just burn to anything so I can get a VIDEO_TS folder, which I can then re-encode/compress to fit on a DVD.
Any help, ideas? Thanks
noodlehead confoun.. d deD

MacPro (wow), Mac OS X (10.4.9), also 10.3.9 on G4desk and Powerbook G4

Posted on Apr 1, 2008 4:14 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Klaus1

Level 9

52,749 points

Apr 1, 2008 5:38 PM in response to Noodle-head

Much easier than you think!

Save the project as a Disk Image, open that and drag the TS folders to the desktop.

Drag the VIDEO_TS folder to Toast, set this to 'compress to fit', click burn - job done!

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Answer 2

Noodle-head Author

Level 3

686 points

Apr 2, 2008 3:06 PM in response to Klaus1

Klaus1
Great help in the past. Great help now. But the problem is NOT solved.
Here is the key issue as I wrote it in my original post: ...but it refuses to Save As Disc Image or burn because "project exceeds maximum content duration." So, you see, I do understand your suggestion, but I’m getting blocked from “saving the project as a Disc Image.”
Here is what I thought would be my solution: In iDVD, I went to Project>Project Info. There I realized I could change the DVD Type to Double-Layer, thereby tricking iDVD into allowing 140 minutes on one Disk Image. Otherwise it just won’t allow it. It worked, in that it let me “Save as Disc Image.” All good, except that the quality is significantly degraded.
So, I am still searching for an answer.
noodle- -head grrum... PY

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Answer 3

Klaus1

Level 9

52,749 points

Apr 2, 2008 3:21 PM in response to Noodle-head

the quality is significantly degraded

With 6 hours of video, what do you expect!

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Answer 4

Noodle-head Author

Level 3

686 points

Apr 3, 2008 8:26 AM in response to Klaus1

Well, yes, but not entirely. When I did this using just Visual Hub, and set it to Author DVD, then burned that to a disc, the quality was very good. Remarkable really, considering it was 6 hours of video. The problem with using Visual Hub is that I could not figure a way to include some kind of menu. It does separate the 6 tv shows into chapters, and you can jump to them, but for anyone who doesn't know what's there, they won't know till they get there.
That's when I tried taking the finished Visual Hub .iso file (which contains a VIDEO_TS AND AUDIO_TS folder) then create a menu for the 6 shows and burn it all in either iDVD or Toast.
Hence, the current problem ("project exceeds maximum content duration.") Keep in mind, all I added to what Visual Hub produced was a bare bones menu, using a modified theme from iDVD.
I got around the "exceeds max..." problem by doing what I said before - I lied to iDVD and said it was dual layer disc. And it worked, but the quality does not compare to the Visual Hub 6 hour disc.
I'm writing all this in the hopes that anyone might jump in with a suggestion.
nÔÔdle- -hëad myst-e-fied

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Answer 5

ThomasG

Level 5

6,745 points

Apr 4, 2008 8:50 PM in response to Noodle-head

You can extract the MPEGs from the DVD created using VISUAL HUB in Toast and burn a new DVD using Toast's menu. Here's how: Open Toast and choose the DVD video setting in the Video window. Insert the DVD and choose DVD with the top button of the Toast Media Browser. If the DVD has six different titles then just drag whatever appears in the browser window to the Video window. Toast will extract six different MPEG titles. If the DVD has only one title with six chapters then you need to use the button beneath "DVD" in the browser to access the chapters. Then drag each of the chapters to the Video window and Toast will extract them as individual titles.

Now set up the menu the way you want. Next, click the More button to access the custom encoder settings window. Here you want to choose "Never" re-encode.

When you click the burn button Toast should start multiplexing (not encoding) the video and burn you new DVD with menus.

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Answer 6

Apr 5, 2008 9:59 PM in response to Noodle-head

I'm having the exact same issue; I'm trying to fit 10 hours of video on a dual layer dvd. I exported my 20 gig file into iDVD, made the chapters, saved as disc image, and then received the error that the file was too large to burn to a dual layer dvd. I really don't want to split it into multiple dvds, so I figure the only option is to go back into imovie, export it was an mpeg with the best quality that I can use and still have it fit on a 7.7 gig disc, put that file into a new imovie project, redo chapter markers, then export to iDVD.

I'm not sure if that's what you wanted to hear, but hopefully that gives you some ideas of a work around.

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Answer 7

ThomasG

Level 5

6,745 points

Apr 6, 2008 8:31 AM in response to Shane-o-mac

iDVD has an absolute minimum encoding bit rate that determines the absolute maximum length of video it can fit on a single- or dual-layer DVD. Also, iDVD only uses uncompressed PCM audio which takes up a lot of disc space. Ten hours of just the audio will take up about 3/4ths of the space on a dual-layer disc leaving a very tiny amount of room for the video. iDVD simply cannot put more content on a DVD then it tells you it can.

It is possible to put 10 hours of video on a dual-layer video DVD but not with iDVD. You need to use an MPEG 2 encoder where you can set the bit rate yourself and encode the audio tracks to either AC-3 or MPEG audio. I believe ffmpegX is popular for this as is MPEG2 Works. It then needs to be authored into a VIDEO_TS folder which Toast can do as part of burning a video DVD.

What I believe you should do instead is consider creating DivX DVDs and play them on a DivX-equipped DVD player. Or get an AppleTV or LaCie LaCinema or something that can play video from a hard drive or from your Mac so you don't have to squeeze so much onto a disc.

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Answer 8

Noodle-head Author

Level 3

686 points

Apr 7, 2008 4:26 PM in response to ThomasG

ThomasG
Very helpful and very interesting. I had no idea Toast had such options - using it's Media Browser. As soon as I tried accessing a burned disc (initially put together using Visual Hub, then burned with Toast) I saw how the individual titles and chapters can be seen and accessed. I'm right now in the middle of trying this. I wanted to get a quick thanks out for now. I will post more on how this turns out, along with some questions if you're willing to keep giving.
One thing I have discovered is, where you suggested “click the burn button,” I was stumped only because I still had the source Disc in. Not sure if I could remove it to insert a blank - without losing the source files Toast might need to burn - I elected instead to leave it in and instead of Burn, I choose File>Burn As Disc Image. So far so good.
Many thanks. (But not done with this yet)
noodle- -head ...de... LighT...ed

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Answer 9

Jun 17, 2008 12:02 PM in response to ThomasG

greetings and thank you for this very informative reply. it has got me almost all of the way there. the last bit i am looking to do is include subtitles in the final toast output. the subs are in the two video_ts folders that i am combining but they are not a viewing option in the final output. any idea would be greatly appreciated.

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Answer 10

Jun 17, 2008 10:06 PM in response to ThomasG

another note: while i got the video_ts compilation to work in toast, when i followed your advice in the above post and extracted the mpegs from the dvd that toast created... there was no sound. any ideas? thanks in advance.

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Answer 11

ThomasG

Level 5

6,745 points

Jun 18, 2008 8:17 AM in response to ninja smurf

Some of your recent questions are beyond my expertise. However, a lack of audio usually can be corrected by going to perian.org and downloading and installing the appropriate version of the perian codec for QuickTime. You will need to have Toast re-do the project after installing perian.

Did you decide to make a DivX disc or a regular video DVD?

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