Newby problems with Videostudeo 9 SE

[ebsmith1]

I can't do a couple of things. Can anyone tell me if it is because I am using an OEM SE DVD version? Or is this product a brain dead dud!

I have imported MPG files made with ADS DVDExpress.

I would like to 1) place chapter marks where I want them. Help for adding/editing chapters shows a screen with preview of video on left and a menu system for adding / removing chapters and thumbnails on the right.
The help states "This feature is only available when the Create menus option is selected"
My version has no chapter editing or Create Menus option at all. I've tried all possible menus and preferences.

2) I want to import 2 or more mpg files to create one DVD, I would hope to make them Title 1 & 2 etc. I can't find any way to make / edit a menu to show Titles and chapters to allow the DVD watcher select which Title and all the chapters

3) I tried using Movie Maker Wizard and ended up with a very stupid Christmas motive. No other options available My videos have notheing to do with Christmas

So far I have found this product pretty much worthless.

Thanks for any help, Ed

[Ken Berry]

SE versions are all limited in some way compared to the full version. But not limited so as not to be able to create menus. Yours apparently is VS9 SE DVD which clearly indicates it can burn a DVD. So...

Menus and chapters are only created in the burning stage. So you have edited your mpeg-2 titles and are ready to burn them. It is probably best at this stage to close any project you have and start a new one with a clean timeline, but you don't insert anything in it. You then go to Share > Create Disc > DVD. A new screen -- the burning module -- will appear.

Up in the top left of that screen there are several icons, the first of which is for inserting video. Browse to where your mpeg-2 files are and insert them in the order you want them on the DVD. They will now be Title 1, Title 2 etc, though in the menu creation phase, you can give them more meaningful names.

On that same first page of the burning module, there are also boxes to check for Create Menu and Add/Edit Chapters. Select both. And move on to the next page.

In building your chapters, you can choose between either using scene changes or else a fixed time for each chapter. A sub-menu will be created with an icon for each chapter. But the main menu page will only show icons for the main Titles. You will also have more choices than the silly Christmas one for the menu background, the number of Titles you can have on one menu page, background music etc. Once you are satisfied, the next page allows you to preview what you have created.

The final page is the actual burning instructions, where you can burn a disc or create a disc image ISO file or DVD folders (Video_TS) which you can burn on another program if you wish.

[DVDDoug]

If you don't have a User Manual, you can download it. The User Manual is for the full-retail version, but it will be easier to use than the help files.

You may also want to check-out the tutorials here in the forums an on the Ulead main site.

This is complicated shtuff and most people need to spend a couple of weekends figuring out how to capture, edit, and author a DVD with their particular hardware/software tools.

[ebsmith1]

It wasn't at all intuitive to go to Share > Create Disc > DVD in order to establish chapters and menus. I thought that should all be accomplished before trying to Create a dsic

Thanks for setting me on the track
Ed

[sjj1805]

There is a further tutorial here:
Authoring a DVD