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MKV to DVD or VCD or wtf? Is it still that hard to burn a dvd these days?

G

glen

Lifer
So, as I understand it, mkv is a "container" file extention.So, does that mean there is a native video file format underneath it, such as avi?

Here is the problem. I have a basic Dell PC, with some sort of Roxio Creator software which came pre-installed. It seems like it will do some sort of auto detect and conversion. I have a file in mkv, and I want to either burn a DVD or VCD.Piece of cake, right? No, it doesn't detect the MKV file as a video format. No problem, I can read their tech support and check to see if it is supported. It sure is! They make multiple references to supporting it. So, wtf? As far as I can tell, this Roxio is a confusing POS. Surely there is something free out there that is better. Can I work around this by simply renaming the MKV file to its native format, and then hope Roxio recognizes it? It is 2012 and it seems to me we ought to be able to drag and drop to burn discs from almost any format to almost any format.
 
MKV really is just a container. Think of it like a drinking glass. You can put water or milk or soda or coffee or tea or wine or just about anything else inside that glass.

You need to find out the actual video format of the video inside the MKV container. That will determine which programs you can use to convert and burn it to DVD.
 
So, how do you see what type of file it is? Can you right click it or does it take 3rd party software? Once that is done, can you just change the file extension from mkv to avi, or whatever it actually is?
 
Mediainfo is a great program that will tell you all kinds of info about your file(s). Just Google it, it's free.

.mkv, .avi, .mp4, .mpg, .m2ts, .m4v, .mpeg, .vob are all different container types. You can put just about anything inside a container. Some containers require specific contents. It's basically a crap shoot till you demux it or analyze it. .mkv files usually have an .h264 video stream with an .ac3, .aac or .dts audio file. There maybe .srt or other subtitle streams, too.

DVDs use the .vob file typ with an MPEG-2 video stream and an .ac3 or .dts audio stream. Any DVD conversion software will have to change those streams and remux into a .vob file type.

Roxio is good for taking basic video files and putting them in DVD format, but for conversion it isn't the best software for this. I prefer DVDFlick. It's free and seems to have better codec (stream) support than a lot of others.
 
glen said:
For my parents.
I can burn a show for them, and they can play it on the TV.
Click to expand...

That's... a lot of work with little gain that needs to constantly be repeated anytime you want to show them a video.

Better solution? Buy them a Roku 2 with a USB port, stick the mkv file onto a USB thumbstick, and play the video directly. $79 is clearly worth saving your time on other, more productive things.

DVDs are just so.... 2004. I'd avoid them unless it's a wedding video or something else on that calibur (where basically someone ELSE is doing all of that disc mastering).
 
Kind of agree with these last two posts.... If you can teach them to try something new. Older folks don't adapt to new technology very well. If you can get them to forfeit the DVD experience, then I'd suggest a WD Live for better codec support than a Roku, or their TV may support that already if it's relatively new. At any rate, if it's not something archivable, a couple of 4GB flash drives will be easy to swap out for different shows.
 
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Can your parents use a computer?
If yes, just build them a cheap HTPC.

They're going to have the same Windows interface they're used to, and they can see it on their (presumably) large-screen TV.
Install VLC on their machine, and they can watch any video file they want (I've only encountered ONE single instance of VLC being unable to play something encoded with an exotic codec, in over 5 years of using it)...

Easier in the long run than having to learn yet another interface (be it Roku, WDTV or anything else), and much more compatible with everything that's out there. Plus, it'll be much more customizable.
 
Wait a minute now, building a cheap computer is gonna take more time and cost more money in burning 1 DVD.
 
Blu-ray is another option. It can cost less than a dedicated media player, and sometimes (but not always) is more user friendly. Most new Blu-ray players play MKV just fine now, and my elderly mother-in-law seemed to have no problem using my Blu-ray player once I showed her how to do it.

Plus it has a DVD and Blu-ray player built-in. 🙂 Familiarity helps.
 
glen said:
Wait a minute now, building a cheap computer is gonna take more time and cost more money in burning 1 DVD.
Click to expand...

If the DVD is a one-time job, yes. If not, it's much better in the long-run. I mentioned that in my reply.

Since we're on an enthusiast forum, I'd assume most of us here know how to build a computer in a couple of hours (and we also have the spare parts around the house).... And if you're not going to give them 720p/1080p files, any CPU/GPU/RAM combination from the last eight years or so will be more than adequate.
 
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Let's say I want to give some friends a copy of TopGear.
Easiest way is hand them a DVD.
DVDFLICKS was teh best!
 
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