I have a 4 hour film, with a menu, which I want to export to a DVD 'file' (as opposed to an actual disc) for playing on my Network Media Player.   In total, the Video_ts folder will probably be about 11Gb, too much even for a dual layer DVD-R, not that I am concerned with producing physical media.

 I used Export Type 'Disc' , Settings: Type 'DVD', Preset 'Best Quality''.   Target Size 'Unlimited'.

I select 'Create Image' and let the project render to my Data Drive.

 The 'DVD' will not play with video player software.

Upon examination of the Video_ts folder I can see that there are 13 VTS_01_x.VOB files where x is in the range 0 to 12.    According to wiki there can be up to 99 Video Title Sets with a maximum of 10 (0-9) VOB files each.   How have I ended up exceeding this limit?   ... and how would I go about creating a second Video Title Set, e.g. VTS_02_x.VOB for the last 3 VOBS?

I will probably try to export to .iso over the weekend and see how that turns out.   Alternatively, as a last resort, I may need to split the film in half and create 2 menus for two separate DVDs.

 

.... or have I missed something far more simple than this? 

 

 

 

  

 

Studio does what it is supposed to do. It burns the DVD and then finalises it so that it can be played on other disc players. The VOB files are up to 1 GB in size so that limits the number of VOB's to 5 on a single layer disc or 10 on a DL disc - but you are not making a DVD, are you. Once a disc is finalised, no other titles can be added.

More specialised burning software or a DVD recorder (recording TV programs for instance) will give an option for not finalising after a burn. Further titles can then be added to the disc. However, the disc cannot be played on another recorder or player until it has been finalised.

I don't have a media player so cannot replicate or test your problem.

Actually David, you could replicate it easily - by dropping a long series of film onto the timeline and then exporting using the same settings that I did, and not burning to disc.  It has always been my practice to 'create DVD image but not burn to disc'.  I usually use Imgburn to create my discs later once I have played the DVD using software on my PC (or media player).

 Under normal circumstances I would always work towards a DVD that could be eventually burned to either single or double layer physical media within the size constraints of that optical media, however as I have increasingly moved toward playing DVDs from software I used the 'unlimited' option in Studio when exporting.   I wanted to use the DVD format because I have a menu, which software, such as VLC or Cyberlink, lets you navigate.

The issue I have raised is 'why is Studio 16 creating  more VOBS within a Video Title Set than is permitted'?

 Reading the Directory and file structure paragraph from this advice seems to suggest that this should not happen.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVD-Video

 

 

The issue I have raised is 'why is Studio 16 creating  more VOBS within a Video Title Set than is permitted'?

Reading the Directory and file structure paragraph from this advice seems to suggest that this should not happen.

You appear to have found a bug in the "unlimited" creation. Studio can only create DVDs with one title set. VOBs are limited in size to 1GB. vobs within a title set are limited to 10. That's 10Gb. No physical disc can hold more than 9 Gb, so for disc creation you aren't ever going to find the limit.

Precisely, and why I never encountered this before.   I just didn't want to downgrade the video quality or split the movie into Disc 1 and Disc 2, so when I saw the 'unlimited' option I thought I would give it a go!

I'll see what .iso comes up with, or split the movie.

I only ever create discs now if someone needs a physical copy.   The results of my own projects play from hard drives.

Cheers 

Studio doesn't have an .iso option under Disc Export, and I suspect that Imgburn will struggle with the layer break (even if it can get round the excess number of vobs in the title set.

I'll create 2 projects! - Part 1 and Part 2 

Errata - to my previous comment.

... Studio does have a .iso format for Disc Export within the Advanced Settings in the 'Target' dropdown box.

 

I'll try that and report back. 

Exported to .iso in S16.

 

- .iso file (11.1Gb)

- plays on PC with VLC software and I can navigate around the chapters and menus using mouse, within the confines of the VLC program

- will not open in any of the media player programs I use (outside of the PC), so I can't put this on my NAS for streaming.

This is a separate issue, outside of Studio and I will investigate that problem elsewhere.

So, in respect to Studio 16, there appears to be a (minor) bug as Jeff has pointed out in the 'unlimited' option for file size whereby too many vobs are created in a Video Title Set. But as this only occurs when attempting to push Studio beyond what it rationally ought to be doing I will look towards a workaround of splitting the project into Disc 1 and Disc 2.

Maybe a future version of Studio will be able to create multiple Video Title Sets as more of us migrate to soft media and away from optical discs.

Sorry, thought you meant it would not play on your media box.

Made a DVD disc image of 4 hours 10 minutes as per screenshot.

Does not play in WMP but plays in Cyberlink Power DVD from the Video_TS folder. (I only have the free version).

 

Hi David,  

that's exactly my point - it won't play on my media box... you have actually replicated the bug! (16 vobs) in your folder.

I suggest if you tried to burn that video_ts folder using Studio or Imgburn, that the resulting disc would not play.

So far we have, for video_ts folder:

- cannot produce a playable disc because of too many vobs in Video Title Set

- cannot play in WMP

- cannot play 'soft' copy in my media player or using Media Player Classic Home Cinema software

- can play on PC using VLC (Videolan - free), with full navigation)

- can play with Cyberlink on PC (though I have limited success because my version is not Win8 compatible).  Are you getting full menu navigation to all chapters?*** 

- Studio will produce .iso version, but the only way I can play it is with VLC software on my PC.  Media player software 'cannot render'. 

 - Imgburn struggles with, (and objects to!) 'layer break' on total size exceeding the maximum permitted for a double layer DVDR.

 

Current outcome for me is to produce a Disc One and a Disc Two, and to split my existing menu across 2 projects. 

 

***As an aside I notice that you are on Windows 7.   I had to stop using my version of Cyberlink Media Suite 10 on my Win8.1 machine as there were widely reported problems which were not supported.  Support for Win 8 was only available from version 11.

I think the point here is the "DVD" is not an ideal format from home streaming anyway. Mpeg-2 is an inefficient codec and the file size limits are a problem - it was never designed for this purpose. However, there doesn't seem to be an alternative if you want menus. Maybe BluRay, which can be used with SD, but the media playing software is probaly just as picky, and there is only one free player AFAIK.

I've just bought a home cloud NAS, and I'll be interested to see what my Sony TV makes of the videos I put on it....

Henry, all computer media players will play a DVD disc inserted into the disc drive. What they do not do (in general) is play a disc image on a hard drive. What they must be directed to is a file (or possibly the TS folder) to initiate the playing of the image. If the TS folder does not work then the IFO file must be used.

All I did was dump 4 hours of video on the timeline and export so there were no menus. I did also try with a DL image and can navigate the menus using the arrow keys in Cyberlink. If I right click on an ordinary video file and 'open', WMP will play it. Otherwise I find WMP fairly useless. Of course which program opens a file depends on the extension defaults set. With my disc images, WMP opens the Video_TS folder but fails to play the video. The default for IFO is cyberlink and that will play the image. If Ciberlink is opened then the image can be selected and played from the title folder of the image. However, as I said, I do not have a media box but that also ought to be able to play from the title.

MPC and VLC are not currently installed so were not tried. From memory, they needed to play from the IFO file.

From November 2011 I have tried every version of W8 starting with the W8 Developer Preview. I had no trouble running programs, just got fed up with Metro and configuring W8 to run as a desktop computer should and returned to W7 each time. I did buy W8 Pro (including the Media Centre Pack) for £25 pre-release but that is on the desktop computer stored in the shed. I also tried the W8.1 preview but that was more trouble than it was worth. For the last 16 months I have been using a laptop with W7 as the OS of choice and that has not seen W8 (or 8.1)

HenryPorter:

...I just didn't want to downgrade the video quality or split the movie into Disc 1 and Disc 2

Out of curiosity, did you ever try exporting that 4-hour movie using the settings such that it would fit onto a DL disc in case the quality did prove to be acceptable? Also you would then have the fringe benefit of being able to burn a backup disc...

I guess your workaround for now would be to stick with "unlimited size" but drop the bit rate just a little so the image comes in at just under 10GB instead of 11GB (so only needs ten VOB files (0 to 9))?

Regards,
Richard

Thanks, I am going to try 'fit to size' out of curiosity.   Obviously the main reason for opening this thread was to raise the issue about the number of vobs in a Video Title Set when creating a DVD.   I didn't realise, until Jeff mentioned it, that Studio is limited to only one VTS.

I think we all now understand what is happening here and the limitations it might place on us and the workarounds available.    I do like using menus, and the ability to skip around long holiday videos (or 'Play All').

Just by way of (superfluous) background I'll briefly share here my general modus operandi.

I create a DVD image from Studio.  I test it on my PC from the harddrive.   If it is for someone else, and it works, I burn it to disc, make a cover, etc.   If it is for me I transfer across my home network, using filezilla, to my Dune HD Max.  The Dune is in another room under my main TV.  The Dune is a blu-ray player, but also has a slot for a removable hdd.   I have a 3Tb hdd in there at the moment.   The Dune remote control behaves in exactly the same way whether it is navigating around a physical optical DVD or blu-ray, or a 'virtual copy' on the hard-drive or a NAS.

The Dune will play mpeg, .iso, mkv, video_ts, 1080 50p from my hd cam, and others.

I have, for some time, disregarded the physical limitations of optical video storage because I can play my movies from the hdd in the Dune.

Last week I had some unrelated problems when transferring files using filezilla across my home network whereby failures frustratingly occurred towards the end of an 11Gb .iso transfer so I decided to create a video_ts folder from Studio and transfer its 1Gb contents individually.   This was how I encountered the fact that Studio had exceeded the permitted maximum number of vobs.... and the DVD was unplayable.

I use zappiti media software to create screen icons, covers and backgrounds for each of my movies.  This displays all of my movies as an attractive collage on my TV screen.  I could, if I wanted, dispense with DVD menus and create individual covers for each movie chapter, i.e. create short movies and let zappiti control access to each part of a movie, but I would then lose the option to 'Play All'.

Sorry if this constitutes 'too much information', but I thought it might be interesting to others whose shelves are full of DVD discs and are looking to store their creations on hdd in a NAS or media player.