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Hi, I'm new to the whole DVD-creation process. I am currently a medical student, and am working on a dvd of medical techniques. Everything with the software is going great, except when I get to the menu creation. Here's what I need to have happen:

Title menu (menus #1) with 3 sub-menus (menus #2)

These submenus (menus #2) each have 5 or 6 submenus from them (menus #3)

These submenus (menus #3) each have 5 or 6 submenues from them (menus #4)

These submenus (menus #4) then lead to about a dozen or so individual movie clips.

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For instance:

"DVD menu" pops-up, one clicks "Treatment Region".
"Treatment Region" menu comes-up.
From that menu, click on "Ankle & Foot".
"Ankle & Foot" menu comes-up.
From that menu, click on "Ankle & Foot - Page 2".
"Ankle & Foot - Page 2" menu comes-up.
Click on "Fibular Head Motion".
Fibular Head Motion video clip plays and returns to "Ankle & Foot - Page 2 menu".
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Here is what I'm finding that I can't get past: I get into the DVD movie making process, and select the title menu, then add clips to get a sub-menu, but I can't get it to go to a 3rd layer of menus.

I spoke with the customer support, and they couldn't help me; instead, they suggested that I leave a post on this forum. I could really use some help on this one.

Thanks in advance!!!

~Don

Please view:
Authoring a DVD

Thanks for the prompt reply

I went to your link and read through the process.

So let me know if I'm understanding this correctly...

I would have to first make the submenus (menus #4) with clips, then save as a DVD. Once I have done that with other sub menus that are on the same level (#4s), then I would create a new DVD project and import those modified DVDs (menu #4's) and save that project as essentially a menu #3. This would continue with the 3's, then 2's, until the final DVD is finished with the title screen. Am I seeing this right?

It just seems that, if I'm looking at this correctly, is there it is a lot of extra work, going backwards. If there needs to be a change on the #4 menu, it would take a lot of re-do work to go back and correct it.

Here's another question: Some of the #4-menus would have the same clips... is there a way to link to the same clip so that I wouldn't be wasting duplicate space?

I guess that I'm looking at the process and it just seems like other software like DVD Architect seem to do this much easier. Of course, I could be just be looking at this incorrectly

Thanks again for your help with this.

~Don

Video Studio is primarily an editing program, with some authoring facilities included. Moreover, it is a consumer level product. The process you are talking about is a relatively complex authoring one. DVD Architect may be able to do it easier, simply because that is a specialised authoring program... and (relatively) expensive...

dpyle

The work flow you describe above sounds rather confusing It is nowhere near as complex as you describe.

let us suppose you have 3 separate videos and you are going to place them all onto one single DVD. With all 3 videos you decide to create chapter points so that users can quickly jump to a specific point in that individual video.

To make things simple, we will assume that you have completed all your editing and rendered each video to a DVD compliant MPEG2 format.
So to begin with we have 3 MPEG files, for simplicity called
Video1.mpg
Video2.mpg
Video3.mpg

Step 1.
Open VideoStudio. Now immediately save your empty VideoStudio project giving it a meaningful name. We will call this one 'My Video'

Step 2.
Goto the share tab and select Create disc. This opens up the DVD authoring module.

Step 3.
Add your 3 Video files to the project.

Step 4.
Select the first video thumbnail and then click the Add/Edit chapter button.
Create chapter points either manually or using the Auto Add chapters facility. Video1 now has chapter points.
repeat this process with the second video and then again with the third video. All 3 videos now have Chapter points.
Make sure that the 'Create menu' option is ticked.

Step 5.
Press the [next] button to go to the page where you select/design your DVD Page(s)

The first page is your main menu.
Select a suitable menu from the various templates that are available and modify it as you desire. You can add background sounds, alter the background, move the thumbnails about, alter the text and so on.

when you are happy with the main menu it is time to move onto the chapter menus.

Step 6.
Below the preview screen is a drop down box. Currently it reads
[Main menu] selecting the drop down box will reveal the names of your videos (only those that contain chapters will be listed)

Select Video1
Now you are dealing with a chapter menu. Again select from the available templates something suitable for This chapter menu. make any required alterations - just as you did with the main menu. If you have more chapter points than there are thumbnails on your selected menu template, You will also see that the next/previous buttons are active and so you can move through the pages for that particular chapter menu.

Now repeat the process for video 2 - select it with the drop down box below the preview screen.

Finish off by repeating the process with video3.

Step 7.
It is a good idea to preview your DVD Menu structure using the preview button (It resembles a remote control)

Step 8.
Press the [Next] button to enter the burning screen.

If at any time you have to stop working on your DVD Menu, select the [Close] button. Ignore the misleading message that states it is saving the project. Once you have returned to the [Share] tab - manually save the project. By doing this you can close VideoStudio. The next time you open VideoStudio and open that project you will find that by entering the authoring stage again, your DVD with all of the menus etc are intact just as you left them.

Wow what a great description ! That has answered a question for me before I asked it! Thanks sjj!!!
Peta

SJJ, than you very much for a very thorough explanation.

I am having difficulty to understand step 6. I understand that every different video creates a different thumbnail on the main menu. I am OK with this.

Say for instance I have 2 menu buttons (thumbnails) on the main menu which should open sub-menus, how do I do that? I have tried to add chapters on these 2 video files that are suppose to open the sub-menus, but still I can not get this right.

Can VS so this and can I view some tutorials on exactly this? (I understand on how to make the menu and edit the thumbnails, but how do I make them clickable to open another menu, sub-menu if you want to?)

Thank you for help me.

Deon

Please view:
Authoring a DVD.

More specifically view this screen shot

and note the item I have marked "D"

Dear SJJ.

Thank you very much again for your reply. I have read many if not all of the explanations here and still could not figure out the sub-menus.

I eventually got it right a couple of minutes ago.
Here is what I did wrong and did right:

* I could clearly follow all of the explanations about how to make menus. I eventually clicked that I need to have different video files for each of my main menu items.
* In my project2 (video file 2) I added the chapter points and saved it as a video file.
* I then started to make a disk (as per very good instructions) and opened the 3 files: video1, video2 and video3.
* To my huge disappointment video2 only had 1 (one) Chapter Counts and I know that I myself added at least 4 chapter points. I could not figure this out.
* I could also not preview each video file individually and had to download DirectX and install it.
* Restarted and again a Chapter Count of 1. I again confirmed the chapter points.
* Again chose to make disk and opened the 3 files.
* Selected video2 and manually added chapters.
* Tested with much anticipation and it WORKED!!!
* I am relieved and decided not to ask my money back for VS.

In conclusion:
* People (newbies) need to make sure they have ActiveX installed.
* I like the fact that sub-menus can have their own menu layout and theme.
* Are chapter points (when editing) and chapter counts (before burning) the same or completely different?
* If different, what are chapter points supposed to do?

Thank you again for continued support to newbies like me. I hope that in good time I will also be able to contribute a little to this forum.

Regards,
Deon
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