DVD Burning

DVD burning has become a popular thing in the last several years. At one time, many of the components needed to burn DVD media were sold separately from computers, resulting in the need to purchase expensive accessories to complete the process. Recently, however, many computer manufacturers have begun making DVD burners standard on new models.

Not only are DVD burners common on computers these days, but the burning software needed to create the DVD is now usually pre-installed on new computers. The software is easy to follow and allows the user to begin creating DVD media immediately. It is important, however, to have a little knowledge of DVD formats before beginning the burning process, to avoid potential problems and wasted discs.

Many people are aware that media bought in, for example, Europe is not able to be played in the United States. When VHS was the popular format, some discovered the hard way the difference between regional formats. The United States uses a format called NTSC, but there is a wide range of formats used throughout the world, making playback in an incompatible machine impossible. DVD media also differs by format, but it adds in another component: region coding. When the DVD became available, the world was split into regions. There are eight different regions for which the DVD can be coded. This coding, in addition to regional formats, have made it impossible for a DVD obtained in one part of the world to be played in a DVD player in another part, without the aid of a multi-format player.

In order to get around the issue of region coding, many people have turned to DVD decrypters. These programs take a DVD and compress it into a disc that takes up half the room. During the process, the disc is stripped of its region coding. The legality of using DVD decrypters is highly disputed, however; so it would be best to do thorough research before using any decrypter program, even one whose authors claim it is legal.