Can I define the video used in a chapter motion menu?

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 5:12 pm

Does anyone know if there is a way to create a DVD Menu where I can define what part of the video should be used for the "Motion Menu" preview of each chapter? I have some animated text at the beginning of my chapters, but I don't want that text to be the motion menu for the DVD chapters.

In the "Chapter" section of sjj1805's great tutorial, there's a comment that says "When you right-click a chapter thumbnail in Edit mode then you are only really presented with the option to 'Hide Object' or not. But if you double-click the chapter thumbnail a new window pops up that presents you with a preview of your chapter clip and a jog bar that allows you to set a start-from position in the clip, and effectively allows you to alter the image of the chapter thumbnail. When previewed, the chapter thumbnail shows the start-from image that was set, but still starts from the actual beginning of the clip when played."

I'm using VS11+ and, unfortunately, right mouse clicking or double clicking a chapter does nothing

Thanks,
Rich

Post by **lancecarr** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 5:57 pm

You are double clicking on the thumbnail right?

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 6:29 pm

Yes. I click "Add/Edit Chapter..." and I see my chapter thumbnails, but double-clicking does nothing.

Rich

Post by **lancecarr** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 6:36 pm

Well in the words of the average office computer guy....it shouldn't do that!
I don't have any idea as to why that would happen however many of the chapter creation/editing glitches reported recently have been resolved by the user updating DirectX with the latest version if you are on XP. I think the most recent is November but ut still carries the 9.0c tag. I guess you could try that. Otherwise hopefully someone more knowledgeable than me (not much of an ask really) will come on to help you.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:02 pm

This is how I do it in VS11+. With the burning module open, I insert my video in the burning timeline. The first frame of the video appears in the big screen. I drag the jog slider below the preview screen to the point I want my thumbnail to show. Then I go back down to the timeline and right click. The command 'Change Thumbnail' is now active (inactive before). Click that, and the image shown in the icon on the timeline should now change to match that of the preview screen. And when you click Next, then the image showing in your chosen template's thumbnail will also match your changed start point for display.

etech6355 · Post by **etech6355** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:07 pm

Correct me if I'm mistaken but assigning thumbnails yes. I don't think you can define the starting point of the motion menus can you? They are on the chapter I-Frames.

Post by **Ken Berry** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:19 pm

The method I just described designates not just the initial image shown in the menu thumbnail, but the starting point for its display of the video in motion.

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:23 pm

Ken,

This works fine for the main menu (off the main burning timeline), but I can't get it to work on the chapters (on the add/edit chapter screen). I'm trying to do the same thing for the chapters.

Thanks,
Rich

Post by **Ken Berry** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:33 pm

Sorry, I misread your original post. But it doesn't make sense to change the opening scene of the chapter menus. The very point of chapters is to mark specific places in your overall video where you want to jump to. So the programmers logic of course would be to show the image/video starting at that exact spot so that WYSIWYG!!!

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:53 pm

Well, it makes sense to me and I'm sure others... I have a bunch of text at the start of some chapters. I don't want this text to be the preview on the menu (it looks stupid), I want a different part of the chapter instead.

You can do this easily in Premiere Elements and, according to the comment in sjj1805's tutorial, it can be done in VS. Maybe that's wrong.

Rich

Post by **Ken Berry** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 11:09 pm

Well, so much for my logic!

I just did exactly as Steve suggested in the link in your original post, and it performs exactly as described. Double (left) clicking on the *chapter* thumbnail brought up the little preview screen with slider -- though in my case at least, this took a few seconds before the screen appeared. Dragging the slider to a new spot, changed the starting point of the chapter menu thumbnail.

But this only seems to work with the Thumbnail menus...

Sorry about that.

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 12:17 am

Arrrggg.... This is so frustrating... I've tried over and over, with different settings and projects, but still no dice. It doesn't make sense that everything in the program would work except for this. Are you using VS11+?

Rich

Post by **Ken Berry** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 12:23 am

Using VS11+ as recently updated with both patch and Power Pack, making it VS11.5+. Currently, for test purposes, have it installed on two computers, one with Vista Home Premium, then other with XP Pro SP2. Work as described on both computers.

Have you done as Lance suggested and updated your DirectX to the very latest patch dated November 2007. It will not change the version of DirectX from 9.0c, but will add various fixes to the existing DirectX -- one or more of which seem to fix this problem with menus in VS11. (In fact, that patch also updates DirectX 10.0 if you are using Vista.)

richlux · Post by **richlux** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 5:05 am

I just updated my DirectX, but I still don't get anything when I double click the chapter thumbnails

Rich

etech6355 · Post by **etech6355** » Tue Nov 20, 2007 5:25 am

Yes. I click "Add/Edit Chapter..." and I see my chapter thumbnails, but double-clicking does nothing.

Not in the add/edit chapters screen. After you add the chapters return back to the timeline & on into the menu creation screens..
Proceed into the menu selection stages (the next button).
Then when you pullup the chapters menu double click on the thumbnail and change the starting point of the motion menu.
This is where you make the custom menu, move/resize them, assign text, motion menu starting points and all.

I hope this is it, works on my setup, but I cannot do it in the Add/Edit Chapters Module. It's done in the menu selection/creation module.