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| What a DVD disk is... | ||
| It looks like a CD, but can hold 7 to 28 times as much information. Hollywood and an industrial consortium defined the DVD as a way to distribute extremely high quality, full-screen, full-motion video, with better-than-CD quality stereo audio, surround sound, and a host of other features. The idea was to bridge the gap between videos on your TV and your personal computer. | ||
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| DVD disks can be manufactured in any of these data storage configurations: | ||
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| All DVD drives can read each of the four disc types. Currently, double-sided discs need to be manually removed from the drive and turned over to access the other side. Although there are 3" (8 cm) disks that are equivalent to a (audio) CD single, to obtain the data storage shown above, we are talking about the standard 5" (12 cm) disks, which look just like an audio CD. | ||
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| The sale of DVD players and DVD disks containing Hollywood movies is growing faster than both the VHS videotape and audio CD did shortly after their introduction. All new computers will have DVD drives (instead of CDROM drives) which can also play CDs. This DVD capability on personal computers and in boardroom video viewing areas provides a significant opportunity to sell, promote, and train using DVD technology. | ||
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| What it Can Do... | ||
| DVD disks are classified into what are referred to as “books” by the DVD consortium, according to the predominant type of data that will be put on them: | ||
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It is possible to put computer and other data files onto what is referred to as a hybrid DVD Video disk. This additional information would only be readable if the DVD is inserted into a computer DVD drive, however. As far as a set-top DVD player was concerned, the files wouldn’t exist. Technology is on the horizon which will allow this data to be accessed on your TV as well. Of primary interest here is Book B, the DVD Video disk, and its DVD-5 configuration. This DVD disk provides features and capabilities for sales, marketing, and training presentations unmatched by any other medium conceived so far. The DVD-5 disk configuration can provide up to 133 minutes of better-than-broadcast, full-screen, full-motion video, stereo sound, and a host of other features such as: |
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| Compatibility Issues | ||
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One of the dirty little secrets of the DVD industry is the current (global industry) problem with disk and DVD player compatibility. The problem is that both the DVD disk and player technologies are constantly changing, and they are almost always "out of sync" with one another. This is almost never* an issue with replicated (manufactured) disks, like you buy in your favorite video store, and like we can provide you when you need quantities greater than 100 disks. When you need, say, only 20 for your sales people to use on their laptops or leave-behinds for their clients, the most logical way to get them made is have a master disk duplicated onto recordable DVD-R blank disks. That's when this problem rears its ugly head. Because there are literally hundreds of makes and models of DVD players and computer DVD disk drives, and numerous brands of blank DVD-R disks available, there are thousands of possible disk-player combinations. A large number of those combinations will match up an older player with a newer disk type. When that happens, the disk doesn't play in the player or drive. When it's your new product presentation that you mailed your best potential customer, you have a problem. Fortunately, the solution is simple. Spend the money to have 100 disks manufactured (replicated), even if you only need 20. Yes, it will cost you more; however, what is that cost in relation to that prospect throwing your duplicated disk away, unviewed? The DVD Foundry will provide duplicated disks copied to DVD-R blanks if you want them. We will insist on making several test disks to verify compatibility with your target player(s), and to lessen the problem, we use the most compatible brand of DVD-R disk available (76% - yes that means that close to a quarter of the players out there will not be able to play them; but this is the best that the DVD industry, and therefore The DVD Foundry, can do.) *Our personal experience is that in two instances, we HAVE seen commercially manufactured disks with Hollywood films on them that, when inserted into certain older DVD players, cause a "C 13:00" error to be displayed, and the disk won't play. |
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| The DVD Player | ||
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The DVD Consortium not only specified the DVD disk itself and its physical file structure, they also included the functionality of the DVD player. Regardless of whether the DVD player is a set-top box or is simulated on the computer screen, all DVD players must have a specific set of controls on the Remote Control (which is the only interface to a DVD player). All Remote Controls have similar functions and buttons for Play, Stop, Pause, Next Program, Previous Program, Title Menu, Root Menu, Up, Down, Left, Right, Enter, and Return. In addition, all remotes must have a numeric keypad for number entry; this keypad may be hidden behind an access panel on the remote. The fact that all DVD players have the same buttons which function in the same way means that the level of interactivity (i.e., conditional branching) available goes far beyond anything previously available. At a certain point in a video, by pressing a button programmed to respond at that point in the video, the viewer can determine to what branch of a video the player will go next, allowing that viewer to have a completely different experience from another. Knowing that the buttons and functions operate in a predictable way allows the DVD production/authoring creative professional to build the required interactivity into the DVD project. |
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| Typical Scenarios | ||
| Let’s look at a couple of typical scenarios. The first describes how your existing assets such as a corporate, promotional, or training videotape would be used to build a DVD disk. The second describes how you could combine both existing videotape and other sales materials to build a DVD disk. | ||
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| Using Existing Assets | ||
| Let’s say you have an existing corporate video that is fairly typical - it starts with a logo “flyby” segment, then it has a short introduction by the CEO, then takes the viewer on a facility tour, followed by a product demo. Of course, you’d still want the logo flyby to play first, which can be set to happen automatically when the disk is inserted in the player or disk drive. There are then three logical sections here, so you might have three menu items to allow instant access to any one of them. The menu items could incorporate high quality still images with text overlaid on them, or could be a looped video clip with text. Within the facility tour and product demo sections, you may want to identify subsections to allow random access to specific areas within the tour or specific product demonstrations or sections within a demonstration. All of these options can be implemented when the DVD is authored. | ||
| Adding New Assets | ||
| Let’s say you have the same videotape as the scenario above, but you want to make some additions. Sales has a great PowerPoint® presentation they use all the time. You’ve expanded (or would like to expand) into foreign markets, and would really like to be able to make your presentation in your prospective customer’s native language. No problem. The PowerPoint presentation can be used to generate a set of still images that integrate into the overall presentation, with some of the video segments being controlled by menu items in the presentation slides. With the ability to display up to 32 independent tracks of subtitles, explanatory text can be added in up to 32 languages. With the ability to instantaneously switch among up to nine CD-quality audio channels, you can add voiceover narrations in that many languages. | ||
| The Power of DVD On a CDROM! | ||
| One of the most powerful options available is to take advantage of everything DVD technology has to offer high quality video and sound, random access, multiple languages, subtitles, etc., but distribute the DVD content on a standard CDROM. You are limited to 10-15 minutes of video given the 650-700MB storage capacity of a CDROM; however, the ability to play the DVD-on-CDROM on every CDROM drive in existence makes it a very compelling alternative while the number of DVD ROM drives are still catching up. Think about that factory tour or product demo you've always wanted to do maximum quality, maximum "playability." | ||
| To understand what is required for content to be supplied for a DVD authoring project, please go to the next section, Supplying Content. | ||
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| Home | About the Foundry | Contact Us | Why DVD? | Why Digital Video? | Supplying Content | Production Process | Replication & Packaging | Cost Estimate | Quote | Discount Coupon | ||
| The DVD Foundry is a business unit of OEM Marketing Incorporated. Trademarks are the property of their respective owners. ©Copyright 2000-, OEM Marketing Inc. |
