What program should I use to make multiple copies of a double layer dvd?

[musicman123]

I'm sure this title raises questions in the forum of someone going willy nilly all over their dvd collection and making copies like crazy, but this is not quite what i'm getting at, so let's read on, shall we?...

I'm a music director and I just finished a 2+ hour dvd in Final Cut Pro and DVD Studio Pro of our Christmas Program. The content just barely did not fit on a single layer disc, but I really couldn't cut anymore out of the project, so this disc came out at 5.3 GB, and dual layer media was the only option that I was aware of. So, as I posted in the hardware forum, in making multiple copies of this disc on my lovely little Mac Mini, the external hard drive encounters a crippling error and I can't burn anymore.

So, here's the question... I have 8 or so copies finished, and I'm pretty sure that there has to be a program out there somewhere that I can use to make a perfect copy of this DVD including menu and chapter selection. Making multiple copies out of DVD studio pro takes forever, and isn't an option anymore until I have my disk fixed, so anyone have any ideas? Thanks for the help!

 

[timswim78]

Assuming that you are working on a Mac, you can rip the DVD to your hard disk with a program like Mac the ripper and then burn it with Toast or any other burner that supports dual layer.

If you want to use a Windows machine, rip the DVD with DVD Decrtyptor. You can then use a variety of programs such as Nero or Roxio to burn the dual layer disk. Alternatively, you can compress the disc onto a single layer DVD with DVD Shrink. I doubt that you would notice any loss in quality.

 

[musicman123]

Thanks for the input Tim. I'm using a Mac Mini 1.42, but I also have a (cough) Dell Dimension. I tried copying the whole thing in Toast and I ended up just making a $4 coaster with my blank dual layer disk. I don't have any experience with Mac the Ripper, but i'll look into it.

I'll have to do some research into DVD shrink also. If there is really not a noticable quality loss, this might be a great answer. I don't need to shave much off of a 5.3 GB file to get it on to a single layer disk. Thanks!

 

[timswim78]

Thanks for the input Tim. I'm using a Mac Mini 1.42, but I also have a (cough) Dell Dimension. I tried copying the whole thing in Toast and I ended up just making a $4 coaster with my blank dual layer disk. I don't have any experience with Mac the Ripper, but i'll look into it.

I'll have to do some research into DVD shrink also. If there is really not a noticable quality loss, this might be a great answer. I don't need to shave much off of a 5.3 GB file to get it on to a single layer disk. Thanks!

DVD shrink on your dell is probably the best bet. I really doubt that you will notice any quality loss. I routinely shrink DVD's to 60% of their original size and cannot notice any difference on a 35" monitor.

Regardless of what others around here may say, there is no shame in owning a PC. I have both a Mac and Windows machine at work and at home.