Downloading Movies

[tich'77]

usenet is probably the "safest" means to obtain files, but of course, everything you are downloading is perfectly legitimate ;-)

Giganews and easynews are two of the better know newsgroup (usenet) providers. Another is newshosting, which is only $14/month for unlimited access, ie download as much as you want - or ISP allows! 45 day+ retention, too.

Ok, once you have your .avi or .mpg film, how do you convert it to DVD? Two options.

1. A "1 click" solution, such as those mentioned in earlier replies.
Pros: one click (well, kinda, a few clicks in reality, such as what to convert, where to save it to, and what to call it), but all in all, a straightforwards solutions. Fast - generally under an hour on anything faster than a P4 processor.
Cons: The resultant film quality is "ok", ie acceptable for 90% of people. But it isnt the best by a long way. Menus - either none, or a simple static type screen with a default layout and garish colours with a single "play" option. Chapters - none, or at best every xy mins (and possibly a naff chapter menu).

2. DIY video -> DVD conversion. This takes longer, can be as simple or as fiddly as one wants, but the results can be worth it. You convert the avi using a dedicated encoder (such as Mainconcept, CCE, Procoder, TMPGEnc) with full control over the image size, quality, bit-rate. Can process the video, enhancing/correcting colour, hue, saturation, de-noise, etc. Can convert audio to lpcm, stereo, DD, AC3, DTS, etc. The output video is then authored into a dvd, again with full control over the menu(s), chapter points, chapter menus, etc. (DVD-Lab, Sony Vegas) And this si just scrtahcing the surface. A "reasonable" guide for complete newbies is "Pilgrims guide to DVD Authoring"... its a few years old now but suffices for a gentle "how do I start".
Cons: Takes much, much longer. Encoding .avi/mpg to dvd mpeg can take anything from 20mins/hour to hours/hour, depending on PC spec, and the encoding options specified. takes some time to learn what to do. DVD Authoring packages are not all created equal! (albeit worthwhile learning)


3 (but I said 2 options!) - a sort of halfway house between 1 and 2. There are some programs that do all the steps of option 2, under one roof. It converts video with some control over bit-rate and quality, does DVD authoring with basic menuing and chapter pointing.

backing up your valuable dvd collection. You really nly have two choices.
1. - "One click" solution is DVD Shrink. Its ok, although there are disks it will not work on due to protection, and some titles are too big for Shrink to fit onto a DVD5 disk. Its very much trial and error as to which - if any - "Deep scan" mode (max Sharp or max smooth) is best. But a handy tool.

2. DVD Rebuilder. Superb software. Usewith DVD Decrypter and RipItForMe to copy DVD contents to hard disk. Then run DVD-Rebuilder to create a superb DVD5 version. DVD-Rb needs some extra software - the encoders (it supports the leading video encoders such as CCE, Procoder, HC Encoder QEnc, and AutoEnc). the beauty of DVD-Rb is that you can change the bit rate (compression) factor with much greater granularity than Shrink, so maximising the disk space (ie bit-rate, and hence quality) for the main film, and using a lower bit-rate (and quality) for stuff you dont watch, such as extras, menus, cut-scenes, etc. Its also very straightforwards to use.
Con: takes longer to produce the output. Some learning required.

Which to use? I always use DVD-Decrypter and RipIt4me to produce the "source". Then make a decision whether to backup to DVD9 - a perfect backup - or compress to DVD5.

In general, if a disk (main film) needs up to 10-20% compression (ie Shrink will compress to 80%), stick with Shrink if it can do it. Its quicker, and the results are comparable. If it needs >20% compression, I tend to use DVD-Rebuilder. Either way, I burn to an iso disk image, mount that with Daemon Tools and view it on the PC first. If it looks fine, I burn to disk. If not, I try it with the other method; there are always exceptions to rules-of-thumb.

Apologies for the long first post!

[lincsat]

Originally Posted by cauliflower69

Yeah paypal all the way

Also i think they do a 2 year service for like 160 ish euro afaik.

What d/l speeds you getting lincsat about 2.2 - 2.5 mbps ?

Up to 18Mbps or around 2.4MBps. I've heard from some News-hosts that they limit access when paid with Paypal, no smut

[siempreatope]

I share my files with moorhunt and goes very well

[CreaturesINC]

Here goes my first post.. :-).

Have been using Usenext also for quite some time, however I recently discovered WarezBB and evolutionized forums. Almost everything is on ********** and downloading from ********** for me is far quicker than from Usenext.
As a consequence of the this speed, I have am no longer averse to getting hold of the odd 1080p or 720p movie.