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Free DVD Menu authoring software, is there such a thing?

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Carol Haynes:
I have started playing with this Renegade - it looks really powerful - but it isn't exactly intuitive to use.

I have a number of DVD-VR discs I have recorded from TV. It allows me to add the VR files to the Assetts area but I can't work out how to get it to import the file as separate tracks. The VRO file simply gets imported as a single file with no chapter or track marks. Any idea how to import VRO files properly?

Trouble is the help file doesn't really mention VRO format in any detail, and the only reason I knew the software could do this was from a one line statement on the website.

Carol Haynes:
Oo errr ...

I have to say I am not particularly impressed.

It is tremendously complicated software and the manual is useless.

I have just used it to demux a movie and ended up apparently with 1:22 of video and 2:29 of audio !!! How that can happen I am really not sure. Despite that I burned a DVD of the project and it seems to work, except the audio lags about 2 seconds. There appears to be a tool which allows you to set an Audio Delay figure, but there doesn't seem to be anyway of determining exactly what the delay should be - and given that the preview windows refuses to play back with any sound it is only possible to guess by buring discs and seeing if it works.

Am I missing something with this or is it meant to be this confusing?

At first glance the Pro versions seems to be able to do everything anyone could ever want with DVD Authoring but for me life is too short to try and learn this package!

By the way if anyone likes it the company will do a 50% academic discount (follow the email link on the website and ask for instructions). Not sure if this is only applies to the Pro version, but then that brings the Pro version down to the price of the Standard version so if you are going to buy it and have student/academic status you may as well get the Pro edition.

mouser:
ive tried dvd lab pro and been very happy with it - this may be one of those programs that suits the way your brain works or not.

Carol Haynes:
That's what I thought and why I didn't just rubbish it. It doesn't seem to gel with my brain though and it would be a lot easier if the manual was better written. At the very least it would be useful if the manual listed error messages and what to do to fix things.

I suppose my needs are a bit odd in this area.

My JVC DVD Recorder produces DVD-VR (VRO) files (even after the disc is finalised) and if I use LP record mode the video size is SVCD picture format. Consequently a lot of software won't author new discs without recoding the video to a DVD standard format.

I want to be able to transfer them to a standard DVD VOB based format and add a menu. As it stands I have Ulead's DVD MovieMaker 3 which will simply copy my exisiting programs (complete with track and chapter marks) without recoding to DVD (ie. it lets me keep the SVCD picture format which works fine) but won't add a menu.

I have TMPGEnc MPEG Xpress 3.0 and TSUNAMI DVD Author Pro 1.5, but the Author package won't use non-DVD standard video and insists they be recoded. That isn't a problem except that it takes anything up to 24 hours per disc to recode them !! I really don't want to have my computer permanently running recoding tasks in the background 24/7/365 !!

DVDLab Pro seemed the obvious solution to me because it allows me to use VRO files without being strict on video format, and I can add a menu. Trouble is that whilst output seems to compile without error from the VOB file Nero says that it can't reallocate the files when it comes to burning the DVD. Add to that audio delays in the processing, and an inability to listent to AC3 or DTS sound in DVDLab preview (apparently it is to keep the price down by avoiding costly licenses from Dolby Labs) and the package becomes increasing difficult to use, at least in my circumstances ...

Anyone got any other ideas for a solution to my problem?

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