Video Formats for DVDs

[DarkTXKnight]

So I have a dilemma of too many choices and not enough time to figure out what I should do, so I thought Id poll the community for some help. I have a big DVD collection that we use regularly, but Ive been thinking of converting to file formats in order to stream to different devices. Ive got a WHS back end, with 2 XBOX 360s and 2 Windows 7 Media PCs scattered throught the house. I also have an XBMC mahcine in the garage for some light entertainment. The xboxes drive 720 and 1080p plasma displays respectively.

I see so many ways to rip a video, but I dont know why Id choose one over the other or if id even notice. I have thought about ripping the files to ISO and mounting, but that may take up a ton of space. I have been wondering what is the best of the compressed format + containers that is easy pplayed through all of the systems listed. Id also like to know what is the most reliable way to rip the DVDs in a semi automatic fashing ( just stick in dvd and rip the movie )
I really need some help in this.

 

[Rio Rebel]

I only use .iso files. It is much faster to rip and store, no loss of quality from the original dvd, and you have the convenience of quickly creating a dvd of the movie if necessary. With the widespread support of .iso playback now, it is a must in my opinion.

If you have a lot more free time than I do, or if you can't afford the hard drive space (despite how cheap you can get a 2 tb drive now), you might go another direction. For me and my needs, it's a no brainer. Rip it straight to .iso, and move on.

 

[DarkTXKnight]

RIO,

what are you using to rip the DVDs to ISO?

what system are you using to play everything back? If its easier to deal with, then I can always add more disk I just want to make sure that I can play eveything through the xbox extenders connected to the media centers and housed on WHS.

 

[Rio Rebel]

Imageburn to create the .iso and decrypt the DVD. Creates the .iso from the disk, and can be used to create the DVD from the .iso

http://www.imgburn.com/

I use AnyDVD from Slysoft for movies with nasty copy protection.

I play them back with Windows Media Center, with Media Browser. To do this, I have to use Daemontools Lite (also free) which can be set in Media Browser to mount the iso when it is selected.

You can also use Boxee, or XBMC to play the movies back. without having to have Daemontools.

 

[abaez]

I use ISO as well for DVD's, but I use DVDShrink to make an iso of just the movie and no other extras.

Saves anywhere from 1-4 gigs per disc, which can add up if you have alot.

Also - if you have AnyDVD, you don't need imgburn as it has it's own feature to create an ISO.

 

[DarkTXKnight]

RIO - your combination is close to what i think wuold work for this stuff. i have been reading on using media browser and was just getting ready to set things up. are you using an extender by chance? i was curious how well this works with the xbox 360?
Also im wanting to store all those hard earned isos on my whs server... where are you putting yours?

 

[0roo0roo]

how many times do you have to watch the same movie?

 

[Rio Rebel]

My original setup worked well (before I had to move my office to the basement and screw up my networking).

I had a main computer on the main floor, serving movies off a 2tb drive. It served 3 locations - the main floor tv with an Asus O!play that plays iso files like a dream, my daughter's upstairs computer, and an htpc in the basement theater room. All of this worked well over an N network.

My grand plan was to create an htpc in the theater room with tons of space that would serve as both player and server. It plays beautifully with Windows Media Center and Media Browser, but my wireless network isn't flawless. I had to put my router inside a cabinet under my main floor tv, and I get signal dropoff at times. I'm still solving that one. But eventually, I'll have all my movies on my htpc/media server.

If I had it to do over again, I'd focus on strengthening my network (maybe run cat 6 cables, but it gets expensive in a finished house) and just keep all my big drives and movie files on my main computer.

 

[Modelworks]

how many times do you have to watch the same movie?

This is a good point.
Putting the entire collection on a server would be nice but I just can't justify all the work. My collection isn't all that large, but someone like my brother who has an entire bedroom dedicated to shelving that is his collection of DVD would be insane to rip. There has to be 1000+ dvd.

The other thing to consider is after you rip those DVD you better have a solid backup plan or a hard drive failure and you have to do it all over again

If I had to choose a format though, it would be iso with extra content removed.

 

[DarkTXKnight]

well we dont watch all the movies repeatedly but some we do. Id like the collection on the screen so that when we are bored with cable\hulu and have movie nightws we can browse the collection just like netflix. also a lot of these are childrens movies too that i want stored in one place.

Yes I already have a backup plan in place between extra HDD and a dat drive with a bunch of tapes

 

[jtvang125]

Ripping to ISOs will be the quickest and easiest route. There are some free programs out there that will rip a dvd to avi or mkv with one click but it's still going to be about 2-3 hrs for each dvd to be encoded compared to 10-15 minutes for an ISO rip.

 

[0roo0roo]

This is a good point.
Putting the entire collection on a server would be nice but I just can't justify all the work. My collection isn't all that large, but someone like my brother who has an entire bedroom dedicated to shelving that is his collection of DVD would be insane to rip. There has to be 1000+ dvd.

The other thing to consider is after you rip those DVD you better have a solid backup plan or a hard drive failure and you have to do it all over again

If I had to choose a format though, it would be iso with extra content removed.

yea its the kinda thing you'd do if you were rich, and could hire some flunky to do it for you for kicks.
otherwise its simply pointless.
backing up an obsolete format is just ...stupid. like someone trying to preserve their vhs collection
any film worth rewatching in the future, deserves the couple bucks of rental to get it at maximum quality on bluray atleast.

i mean really, dvd is so worthless. just imagine trying to sell dvds on ebay.
you'd have to sell them by the box load at cut rate prices to get anyone nto bite.

 

[Auric]

I liquidated my DVD collection by the end of 2001. My average price was only a few buckaroos (certainly less than $5) thanks to foolhardy bidness schemes in the late 1990's. At that time, DVDs could fetch a premium for being "out of print" or "Superbit". lol. Anyhoo, I just decided I did not want to own what amounted to a bunch of packaging and on top of that soon to be made obsolete by the ramping up of HD.

Nowadays, it's something of toss-up whether to bother with a media server for commonly available movies 'cause while it is more convenient (or seemingly) it can easily take more effort to maintain than even the hated fiddling with discs and waiting minutes at a time for a flick to actually start.

 

[scootermaster]

I'm also curious if Xbox can play ISO files.

 

[Rio Rebel]

I'm also curious if Xbox can play ISO files.

The XBOX can play XBOX Media Center (XBMC), which plays ISO natively. I'm not as familiar with the XBOX 360, but it's my understanding that it can act as a WIndows Media Center Extender, in which case you could use Media Browser with Daemon Tools (or Virtual CD from Slysoft) and you're good to go.