What all is involved in copying a DVD?

[Andvari]

I got a DVD burner, but so far all I've done with it is burn data discs to empty off some of my HD. I want to actually copy one of my DVDs to see how well it does.

So let's say I want to copy my Spiderman DVD. I could use DVD Shrink to copy it onto my computer, correct? Then I could burn it using Nero I guess, but would the menus and special features and stuff be on there? How does it all work? Or will I need other programs to handle menus and such?

 

[BlueWeasel]

DVD Shrink Guides

You could still use Shrink to backup the entire DVD, including menus and extras. But most DVDs are too big to fit on a single DVD-R/+R, and most people remove the menus and extras to save space and minimize compression.

If you want to keep everything and have little or no compression, use the guide that shows how to backup to 2 DVD discs.

DVD Shrink will output in *.ISO format (image file) and this can be burned using Nero or DVD Decrypter.

 

[Andvari]

Wait what? DVD's are too big to fit on DVD+/- R's? What's the point of burnable DVD media then? What a ripoff. CDs fit on CDRs, should be the same for DVDs. The technology industry is stupid, why do I love it so?

Oh, and thanks.

EDIT: Oh, wait, is it because of double layer discs? That's why I bought the NEC dual layer burner. Now only to wait for dual layer burnable media to come out...

 

[BlueWeasel]

Originally posted by: Andvari
EDIT: Oh, wait, is it because of double layer discs? That's why I bought the NEC dual layer burner. Now only to wait for dual layer burnable media to come out...

Ahhh, your good to go then. I just assumed you had a single layer burner. But for now, since most DVDs are double layer, then you've got to use compresssion and remove menus/extras if you're looking to put it on a single disc.

 

[Hadsus]

I burned my first DVD a couple of weeks ago using DVD Shrink and Nero. Had to pull off the extras but I still needed to compress to 70% of original size. I was surprised, though, at the quality. I've got a big screen television (HD, though, of course, that doesn't impact DVDs) and a progressive scan DVD player. There was a slight softening of detail but the overall quality was excellent. You wouldn't know it was a copy.

 

[Lonyo]

Look here