How can you copy videos onto CD?
 

Hello!

What hardware/software equipment is needed in order to copy video onto CD? Can you simply connect your VCR to your computer or is more involved in it? Addtionally, does it matter whether the video source is NTSC or PAL?

7 7 7 7

7777 - methinks ya need a critter known as a "video capture device".

I have one - which is a free standing tower like thing, about six inches tall - feed it with audio and/or video signals from whatever source I feel like (camcorder/video recorder/dvd player/casette player/record turntable - anything that you want to connect).

It grabs the signal, stuffs it on the hard drive and then opens an editing package.

My particular beast is made by a company called Dazzle . It works a treat.

Some of the video boards - the "daughter board" that your computer monitor plugs directly into - have video out (for watching the output on a tv instead of a computer monitor), some also have video in - which will do the same as my Dazzle beastie.

"Video Capture" is the phrase for the search!!

7777

As GW says you'll need some way of capturing the video in the first place. Video is very bitrate intensive. I.e. you need lots and lots of room to get half-decent quality. Your normal boring CDR can take upto 700MBs, which, at full quality video, would be about 20 minutes worth. You could make a VideoCD or SuperVideoCD, a format which has reduced quality, but is still watchable, and you can get about an hour on a single sided CDr at VCD quality. Depends on what your gonna put on CD. i myself have a DVD writer which can put something like 3 hours of high quality video onto a DVD. Cracking stuff.

#7777

Have a look at www.vcdhelp.com which will answer your every question on the subject.

The video capture page is at http://www.vcdhelp.com/capture.htm but if you're not sure about what to do, work your way through the newbie and FAQ sections.

The site is an excellent introduction to all things VCD / DVD and also contains links to popular / easy to use freeware you might need.

RT

Thanks ppruners!

(Sorry for the late reply - I had a lot of work in the last couple of days ...) :rolleyes:

If you want to play your videos as a VCD on a VCD player then go ahead with VCD format, but you'll get a much better quality and a smaller file too by compressing to DivX and then putting it onto CD. The downside being that you will only be able to view the divx on your PC.

www.divx.com