Keeps bringing me back to the menu...

[maxsideburn]

Ok, I know I've set everything up ok. I imported my files, then set up certain buttons in my menus to play episodes (of my cable access tv show). I set them to play whichever video files the episode consists of then at the bottom of the playlist it has the name of the menu associated with these buttons, obviously to return to the menu after playing the files.

Well what I get when I burn the disc and play it in a DVD player is this, if I click on a certain episode's button the episode begins to play, but when it reaches the end of the first video file in that episode it simply goes back to the menu instead of playing the next file in the playlist. Now if I manually hit the skip chapter button before the file finishes playing it goes on to the next file, but if I let it play until the file ends it goes back to the menu.

What am I doing wrong? I thought the point of a playlist was for it to play ALL files in the playlist then return to the menu, not play one file (unless the skip chapter button is pressed) then return to the menu.

[DVDDoug]

It sounds like you're doing everything right... Just make sure that each playlist is linked to the correct button. (Each buttton needs it's own playlist.)

I'm at work, so I' not 100% sure of the procedure... In the menu screen, click on a button. Then click the playlist radio-button to bring-up the associated playlist.

[GeorgeW]

Can you list the steps you take to create your DVD? I've heard of a similar issue, but can't duplicate it on my machine.

Are all your episodes a single video, or does one video contain multiple episodes?

When you create the playlist, what order are the assets in the playlist?

If you can list step-by-step details, that could help...

Thanks,
George

[maxsideburn]

each segment is a seperate MPEG file. Each episode consists of about 10 segments or so. I create my button then drag and drop the list of items I want played when I click the button onto the button.

Like I said it works fine, you pop the DVD in, first play video plays, menu works fine, you start playing an episode, it's all fine. But when the episode ends or you hit the menu button (anything that bring you back to the menu) it will start doing this problem. You click on a button for an episode and it plays only the first item in the playlist then goes back to the menu.

[DiscCoasterPro]

If each segment was a chapter, then that behavior wouldn't be correct, but with each segment being a seperate clip, I think you need to have the playlist show the next clip rather than the menu at the bottom, then the last segment will show the menu.

If I understood correctly

[GeorgeW]

Does the problem only happen if you hit the next button during playback?

Is the following link similar to your problem?

Play All Button Returns to Menu

Regards,
George

[jemprod]

I think the "playlist" he is referring to is the "title list" across the bottom of the screen. I have the same problem. I had vs 1.3 and right clicking on the titles or clips in the title list was "play next clip" or "jump to menu". With vs 2, now they have the playlist for each button which messes things up if you have several clips in the title list that should play one after the other. I tried to delete the Menu listing in the playlist and you can't. The ONLY option seems to be click a link on the menu, watch the video associated with it and end up back at the menu. I tried "play all clips" in several places and all it does is jump back to the beginning wherever you are. There really needs to be an option somewhere to jump to the menu or play the next clip in the title list so the video keeps playing until menu is selected on the remote or the video is done.

[GeorgeW]

I think the "playlist" he is referring to is the "title list" across the bottom of the screen. I have the same problem. I had vs 1.3 and right clicking on the titles or clips in the title list was "play next clip" or "jump to menu". With vs 2, now they have the playlist for each button which messes things up if you have several clips in the title list that should play one after the other. I tried to delete the Menu listing in the playlist and you can't. The ONLY option seems to be click a link on the menu, watch the video associated with it and end up back at the menu. I tried "play all clips" in several places and all it does is jump back to the beginning wherever you are. There really needs to be an option somewhere to jump to the menu or play the next clip in the title list so the video keeps playing until menu is selected on the remote or the video is done.

That is what the Playlist option is designed to do -- play each Title that is within the Playlist. There's a difference between "Title" (separate video asset), and "Chapter" (a sort of jump-to mark within a Title). Adding Chapters to a Playlist might not give you the results you are looking for. But if you are adding Titles to the Playlist, then it should play one Title, then play the next Title, etc... (within the Playlist).

Hitting the NEXT button on the remote control can introduce a break in the background coding/programming logic to continue playing the Titles in the Playlist. To resolve that issue, you could add a dummy chapter mark at the very end of each Title (so when you hit NEXT on the remote control, it jumps to that dummy chapter mark, but then continues with the background logic/programming to continue playing the Titles within the Playlist).

Regards,
George

[jemprod]

George,
Thanks for the input, but I have two questions.

1) Why can't the video just play straight thru (like a VHS tape) if that is what is the viewer wants to do. 1.3 would allow that. Why does the viewer have to use the remote to jump to the next title? Some want to just set back and watch the video.

2) You mention the dummy chapter. I don't know exactly what that is (or how to do it). I can make chapters all day in my dance recital videos (but that's one long clip (live switched) and this job is several short clips that I don't want to reedit into one long one (which I wouldn't have to do if I used 1.3). I would like to try this, but it sounds like you still have to use the remote Next button to continue playing the video.

I think if Ulead would add back into 2.0 the function of right clicking the title in the titles line and offering the option to "play next title" (like they had in 1.3) the whole thing would be solved. I think the playlist option is fine but not everbody wants to play with menus all the time and 2.0 makes you do just that.

Thanks for your help with this. Ulead doesn't seem to understand my concern, but said that they would mention it to the powers that be. I like DVD Workshop, but they seem to want to tie everything to the menu. The option to just sit back and enjoy the video was taken out and I think should be put back in. A patch to do this would really be great.

I'm using 2.0 because it does PAL videos and this project is for our local Lions Youth Exchange (I was recruited to do the web work and video)

Thanks again.
Ed

[GeorgeW]

Hi Ed,

You can certainly make a button play all your Titles consecutively (without needing to hit the NEXT button). Just add all your Titles to a "PLAYALL" button (in the playlist function). When you use that button, it should play all the Titles that are in its playlist.

Once you get this to work, you will see that it is better than version 1.x (where you had to specify what to do next). Say you have 3 clips

Title-1
Title-2
Title-3

Create a menu, add a button and add all three Titles to its playlist. Using that menu button should then play the Titles in the order they appear in the playlist (you could add them as Title-2, Title-1, Title-3, and that is the order they will playback).

Regards,
George

[jemprod]

George,
I guess that's it. Use the Playall button or work one's way thru the menu. There's no in-between (Jump to title 3 and play the rest of the way thru to title xx).

I guess I'm a detail person and I want to specify what to do next with each title. (I was an engineer in my previous life). I just downloaded the trial for Adobe's Encore 2.0 and it has a function to link titles together. I may just use DVD Workshop for my recital stuff (or anything with one clip) and Encore for clip work. I also have Pinnacle Edition 5.5 but I can't get it's DVD editor to work at all (and they won't talk to you unless you have 7.0). Plus all the forums say that the DVDs made with 5.5 don't play on many players.

Maybe it's just me, but I first thought that any video (movies, etc.) was a "title". Why are these software companies callling video clips (no matter how long) titles? Panasonic does it with their DVD recorders as well. The finished video should be a "title". Just wondering.

Thanks,
Ed

[DiscCoasterPro]

Couldn't you bring the seperate mpegs into a video editor and render them as all one and then use it to create whatever sequences you wanted?

[GeorgeW]

George,
I guess that's it. Use the Playall button or work one's way thru the menu. There's no in-between (Jump to title 3 and play the rest of the way thru to title xx).

Grab a Title (or Chapter) and drag it to the menu. Then modify that menu button by adding the remaining Titles to the Playlist for that button. This should allow you to jump to the specific Title/Chapter, and continue playing all the way through Title XX (as defined in its playlist).

Regards,
George

[jemprod]

George,
I tried that. It's a workaround, but not a very efficient one. I shouldn't have to grab all the titles following a button (15 of them) and add to each button so that any button clicked will play thru to the end.

DiscCoasterPro,
Yes, I could have edited the clips into one video and used it in Workshop, but this was for my local Lions group and is basically being done pro bono (I'm not getting paid). I probably should have done it that way and not spent all this time trying to work around this problem in WS 2. I just figured I could link the titles the way I did in 1.3 and be done with it. (I still think that's the best answer).

Now I have a new issue. The job calls for making 20 copies (the video is on 3 disks - we shot a lot of footage and I still took a lot out) in NTSC and 10 copies in PAL and 5 copies in Secam. I did create a PLAYALL button as George suggested so the DVD would play all the way thru. I'm using it to grab the video in PAL (thru my Panasonic AG-W1 converter) to remake the DVDs is both PAL and Secam. My 13" monitor plays the video in black and white (which is normal, it's an NTSC monitor). I thought maybe the video would come on the preview window in color, ect the way NTSC video does. No such luck. Do I need a PAL video card and monitor to make these DVDs appear correct in the preview window? The video is there, but it's b/w and flips a little.

This whole job is certainly a learning experience!!

Thanks,
ED

[NorduNord]

Hi,

I've been reading this post with the greatest of interest, because you see, I seem to be having exactly the reverse problem: At the end of the playlist, it doesn't go back to the menu, it just loops back and keeps starting over !

GeorgeW wrote:

Create a menu, add a button and add all three Titles to its playlist. Using that menu button should then play the Titles in the order they appear in the playlist (you could add them as Title-2, Title-1, Title-3, and that is the order they will playback).

Interesting.

If I can explain my situation:

I have 2 titles (one in 4:3 and one in 16:9), 2 buttons on my menu page with these 2 choices. Each title has 9 chapters which I have put in the 2 disticnt playlists.

When I hit the first button, everything is fine.
BUT at the end I would think that I would fall back on the menu page. Well, it dosen't, it goes back to the beginning and starts the 4:3 version again.
When I hit the second button, everything is fine.
BUT at the end, it doesn't go to the menu; it goes back to chapter two, and plays back !!!

I am stumped.

NOTE: GeorgesW, when you say you put titles in your playlist, are you refering to the one piece of original video ? If I do this how will the chapters work out ? Will it follow the title if they are not in the playlist ?
Am I understanding you right ?

Any suggestions ?

P.S. I have done this before (one year ago) ; I just can't remember HOW I did !