Making a DVD

[LeAnne]

I have recently started making the slide shows & movies w/the Windows Movie
Maker. I have so enjoyed it.

I do have a question & hopefully I can ask the question right.

I have the slide shows & movies saved as a .wmv file so I can watch them on
my computer with Windows Media Player. I want to put them on a DVD to give
as gifts @ Christmas, but I want the people to be able to watch them on their
TV.

I do not have a DVD burner on my computer. I have a CD-RW drive & a DVD
drive. I can watch DVDs on my computer, but can't burn them.

I know family & friends with DVD burners on their computers. Would it be
better to put the ?wmv file on a CD & then take it to someone's computer and
burn DVD or should I just try to add DVD burner to my computer. What will it
take to add a DVD burner to my computer?

Am I wanting to do the impossible or is it fairly simple. I need something
easy to understand.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[Saga]

It is not too difficult to add a DVD RW drive to your computer. Have a look here:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=8346809&type=product&id=1176506511289

This drive connects to the USB 2.0 port. As you can see in the description, it includes
the necessary software so that can get started right away. The cost is $110USD (plus
tax). This is not the most economic option. You can get other drives that can cost $50-80USD
(or more). The difference is that the drive listed above is external. You do not need to
open your computer or know anything about its insides. You just follow the installation
instructions and connect it to the USB 2.0 port. The only caveat is that your PC needs to
have a USB 2 port, not just any old USB port. Older computers had the USB 1.1 port.
USB 2.0 is faster and may be required by this drive.

If you prefer the less costly option then you will need to open your computer and see
what kind of cable is used to connect to your existing drive and buy an internal DVD burner
that uses the same kind of cable. You could add the DVD burner or replace the existing
CDRW drive that you have now, depending on the space insde your PC and the cable
arrangement. This is not a dificult endeavor, but it does require you to learn something new.
There are plenty of instructions on the Internet or even perhaps on You Tube. Go to Google
or You Tube and search using the frase install DVD drive.

Good luck!
Saga

PS

God Bless The U.S.A.

Yes, agreed! Right now the US really needs to be blessed
--

 

[John Inzer]

I have recently started making the slide shows & movies w/the Windows
Movie Maker. I have so enjoyed it.

I do have a question & hopefully I can ask the question right.

I have the slide shows & movies saved as a .wmv file so I can watch
them on my computer with Windows Media Player. I want to put them on
a DVD to give as gifts @ Christmas, but I want the people to be able
to watch them on their TV.

I do not have a DVD burner on my computer. I have a CD-RW drive & a
DVD drive. I can watch DVDs on my computer, but can't burn them.

I know family & friends with DVD burners on their computers. Would
it be better to put the ?wmv file on a CD & then take it to someone's
computer and burn DVD or should I just try to add DVD burner to my
computer. What will it take to add a DVD burner to my computer?

Am I wanting to do the impossible or is it fairly simple. I need
something easy to understand.

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

=================================
Using your CD Burner...you could create a
VCD (Video CD) that should play on most
free standing DVD players. You will need
software that can create a VCD using a
..wmv video file.

(scroll further down for DVD info)

The following software is not free but you could
use the 15 day trial version to create your VCD.

WinDVD Creator 3
http://tinyurl.com/6xb6za
or...
http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite/us/en/Product/1208530086263#tabview=tab4

Steps to create a simple VCD.

No guarantees but the following steps work for me.

Download and install the WinDVD Creator software.

Open WinDVD Creator

On the opening screen...choose...Start New Project...

On the main screen...double left click the right pane
to open the 'Import Media Files' window.

Browse to and select the .wmv Video Clip you wish to
burn on the VCD.

Drag the clip to the timeline at the bottom of the screen.

Insert a blank CD in your burner.

Left click the 'Make Movie' button.

On the first screen...left click the Arrow (next)

On the next screen...Choose...Format - VCD

Be sure TV System is NTSC.

Left click the Burn button.

Wait until the VCD is created.

Or...maybe a DVD burner would be your best bet
and also you would need DVD Authoring software.

DVD Info...

Here's some info on free DVD Authoring software:

DVD Flick
http://www.dvdflick.net/

Be sure to read the Guide:
http://www.dvdflick.net/guide.php

If you have problems downloading DVD Flick...
try the following direct link:

http://tinyurl.com/6gt7p2
or...
http://voxel.dl.sourceforge.net/sourceforge/dvdflick/dvdflick_setup_1.3.0.4.exe

Save the file to a folder on your hard drive and
install from there.

Tutorials:

DVD Flick Tutorial
http://beginwithsoftware.com/videoguides/dvd-flick-guide.html

Burn Any PC Video Format into DVD
http://www.freevideoworkshop.com/dvdflicktutorial.htm

To create a basic Video DVD that should play in a free
standing DVD player...try the following...

Good luck.

First...read the DVD Flick Guide to familiarize yourself
with the program.

Open DVD Flick and insert a blank DVD in your burner.

If your computer's Autoplay window opens....just close it.

Click the Project Settings button and go to...Video /
Target format...residents of USA...choose...NTSC /
Accept.

Left click the Add title button and browse to your
Movie Clips and select the ones you want on the DVD.

You can arrange them by selecting one and then use
the Move Up and Move Down buttons.

Left click the Create DVD button / OK / Yes / Yes.

Wait while the DVD is created.

When the text "Finished Successfully" appears you
may close DVD Flick. Now you can eject your DVD
and play it in your DVD player.

At some point you may wish to purchase more
advanced software like Nero, Roxio, Ulead, etc...but
at least this is a start.

--

John Inzer MS-MVP
Digital Media Experience

Notice
This is not tech support
I am a volunteer

Solutions that work for
me may not work for you

Proceed at your own risk