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tiffer17 · Jan 9, 2003, 05:26 PM

Does anyone know if iDVD has support for external DVD burners? I can't find anything on Apple's website that confurms it either way. The reason I ask is because i am stuck with an older iMac w/o superdrive and I would really like to make my own DVD's.

If anyone knows, I would greatly appreciate it!

Chris Early

ism · Jan 9, 2003, 06:08 PM

It doesn't

At the moment the most promising thing is Sizzle and possibly a software/hardware combination called Capty DVD from Japan.

MickS · Jan 10, 2003, 04:43 AM

Apple's DVD software also needs a G4 to run. The MPEG-2 encoder makes heavy use of the Altivec and won't run on a non-G4 processor.

This is a bit of a shame as the Astarte M-Pack (on which it's based) did work on a G3.

Eug · Jan 10, 2003, 08:26 AM

Originally posted by MickS:
Apple's DVD software also needs a G4 to run. The MPEG-2 encoder makes heavy use of the Altivec and won't run on a non-G4 processor.

This is a bit of a shame as the Astarte M-Pack (on which it's based) did work on a G3.

Yeah but encoding on a G3 takes forever. You can use third party tools if you really want to, but the time is not worth it for most people. (Time meaning encoding time and time fiddling with the software.) Actually, good quality lower bit rate encoding on a G4 GHz TiBook takes a long long long time too.

I can't wait until we all have 4 GHz PowerPCs with Altivec 2 or whatever. Then maybe encoding won't be such a pain.

MickS · Jan 10, 2003, 09:25 AM

Originally posted by Eug:
Yeah but encoding on a G3 takes forever. You can use third party tools if you really want to, but the time is not worth it for most people. (Time meaning encoding time and time fiddling with the software.)

If it's going to take too long for me to bother waiting for it so leave it overnight, what's it matter if it takes 2 hours or 6 hours?

Also having a few G3 Mac's around (5 at last count) I'd be happy to pass off some of the processing to them. I'd have just like the option. Like the iDVD only working with Apple branded DVD burners this is a marketing decision rather than a technical one.

diamondsw · Jan 10, 2003, 11:03 AM

Originally posted by MickS:
If it's going to take too long for me to bother waiting for it so leave it overnight, what's it matter if it takes 2 hours or 6 hours?

Also having a few G3 Mac's around (5 at last count) I'd be happy to pass off some of the processing to them. I'd have just like the option. Like the iDVD only working with Apple branded DVD burners this is a marketing decision rather than a technical one.

Well, iDVD only working with Apple burners is a legal decision, not a marketing or technical one. MPEG2 licensing can get pretty restrictive.

bpaulsen · Jan 10, 2003, 12:58 PM

Originally posted by diamondsw:
Well, iDVD only working with Apple burners is a legal decision, not a marketing or technical one. MPEG2 licensing can get pretty restrictive.

Seems rather hard to believe since they sell a product that does work with external burners.

Surely we are talking about a cost of said licensing. My guess is that the $49 cost of iDVD is about what the licensing costs (especially since the other iApps are free)

ism · Jan 10, 2003, 01:08 PM

I think this may well be the benefit of something like Capty DVD (is it available in the western world yet?) which is a hardware based encoder, which is probably the way the go. It would extend the life of my G3 a bit further. I don't think Capty DVD is too expensive either compared to the cost of good software based encoders (BitVice)

Simon X · Jan 10, 2003, 01:21 PM

Well, if we send enough feedback there maybe a DVD Express in the near future.

The new iDVD looks sweet, but wouldn't mind the option of something more advance.

ism · Jan 10, 2003, 01:41 PM

Originally posted by Simon X:
Well, if we send enough feedback there maybe a DVD Express in the near future.

Fingers crossed

sandsl · Jan 10, 2003, 02:50 PM

Theres a patch for iDVD 2 that makes it work with External DVD burners. Anyone know of a patch that will make iDVD 3 work?

Oneota · Jan 10, 2003, 03:48 PM

Originally posted by sandsl:
Theres a patch for iDVD 2 that makes it work with External DVD burners. Anyone know of a patch that will make iDVD 3 work?

The patch you're thinking of was briefly distributed by OWC for their external DVD-R, but it only worked with their burners. It's useless for everyone else.

Of course, since no one's used the new iDVD, it's possible that the new version works with external burners and we just don't know it yet.

DeathMan · Jan 10, 2003, 08:41 PM

I just read like 3 posts on slashdot that said you'd be able to burn on externals now. I though, Really? I haven't heard anything on that, and it seems like they would mention it at least at the expo.

I guess you can't believe everything you read.

veryniceguy2002 · Jan 11, 2003, 02:44 AM

Originally posted by ism:
I think this may well be the benefit of something like Capty DVD (is it available in the western world yet?) which is a hardware based encoder, which is probably the way the go. It would extend the life of my G3 a bit further. I don't think Capty DVD is too expensive either compared to the cost of good software based encoders (BitVice)

Is there a website out there which has the details of Capty DVD, price, and where to get it?

MickS · Jan 11, 2003, 02:54 AM

Originally posted by DeathMan:
I just read like 3 posts on slashdot that said you'd be able to burn on externals now. I though, Really? I haven't heard anything on that, and it seems like they would mention it at least at the expo.

I guess you can't believe everything you read.

Especially on /.

DaedalusDX · Jan 11, 2003, 05:20 AM

Originally posted by MickS:
If it's going to take too long for me to bother waiting for it so leave it overnight, what's it matter if it takes 2 hours or 6 hours?

Also having a few G3 Mac's around (5 at last count) I'd be happy to pass off some of the processing to them. I'd have just like the option. Like the iDVD only working with Apple branded DVD burners this is a marketing decision rather than a technical one.

Hmm... lets get one thing straight... 2 or 6 hours of encoding on a G3 will get you a few minutes of MPEG2 for DVD video.... We're not talking about a difference on the order of a few hours here... we're talking DAYS.

I seem to remember, going a few years back to when Apple introduced iDVD 1.0, that the G4 dramatically improved encoding times... before, standard software encoders (the ones that would run on a G3) took 25 HOURS to encode 1 hour of video... the first G4 with a superdrive (733 digital audio) improved on that, taking merely 2 hours per 1 hour of video.

Nowadays with faster processors and dual processor action, iDVD encodes slightly faster than 1x play time...

But unless there has been a huge breakthrough in MPEG2 encoding on the G3 in the past few years, it will take forever (in terms of more than a DAY) to do an encode of reasonable length.