DVD-ROM ContentAdding Computer Files on a DVD


DVD is a flexible medium for creating and sharing interactive presentations, but the possibilities aren't limited to what you can view on a television. Thanks to the nature of the DVD disc, you can also include files on a DVD that people can access using their computers. This feature is known as DVD-ROM.

DVD-ROM is essentially the equivalent of CD-ROM. ROM stands for read-only memory , which means that you can put data on the disc that can be read by a person with the appropriate drive in his computer. The most typical use for CD-ROM is the discs you use to install software on your computer. Software manufacturers haven't completely switched over to DVD-ROM discs yet, but DVD-ROM drives are becoming much more common in computers, so it's just a matter of time before DVD-ROM drives and discs become as popular as CD-ROMs.

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Software that currently comes on several CDs could fit on a single DVD. If you installed iLife to run iDVD, that software is delivered on a DVD-ROM.


With Hollywood DVDs, the typical use of the DVD-ROM possibilities of DVD is WebDVD, which is sometimes referred to as Web-connected DVD . For example, you might have inserted a rented or purchased DVD in your computer and looked at special features of the DVD that are available only when looking at the disc through the computer. This could include things such as the opportunity to look at the screenplay of the movie, or games and other programs that aren't possible to view on a DVD player (see Figure 20.6).

Figure 20.6. Example of DVD-ROM content, from the DVD that comes with the Macworld DVD Studio Pro Bible. The disc features the VIDEO_TS folder that contains the standard encoded video for a DVD player, as well as the DVD-ROM content, a series of folders including tutorial files, a PDF version of the book, and so on.

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The great thing about DVD is that you can put your video on the DVD and someone can view it on his DVD player connected to a television, but you can also put data files that he can access on his computer. It could be that you want to include Web links, documentation, pictures, or any other kind of computer file.

For example, when you make your DVD, you start by creating an iMovie. Then, in iDVD, you can also use the slideshow feature to add pictures that can be viewed on the television. But let's say you want to pass a number of digital pictures along as files so that your colleagues can use the pictures on their Web pages. You might ask yourself, "Do I have to burn them on a CD?" With the DVD-ROM feature in iDVD, you can put the pictures right on the disc.

Or, let's say you have a number of stories or a screenplay that you've written in a word processing program such as AppleWorks or Microsoft Word. Now, if you want to, you could include the files on the DVD disc. So, you could make a DVD with the video that can be watched on the television, and if the recipient wants to, she could put the DVD in her computer and look at the original screenplay by opening the file as she would with any other kind of disc she inserts in her computer.

DVD-ROM content isn't anything that you have to doit's just a great thing to have the flexibility to add computer files to your DVD.

  • Consideration Number One Does the person have a DVD-ROM drive? Many computers these days have DVD-ROM drives, but not all of them. If the person you want to share files with doesn't have a DVD-ROM drive, you might be better off using your SuperDrive to burn them a CD.

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    The purpose of DVD-ROM feature in iDVD is to add extra material to video DVDs. It isn't recommended as a way to back up your data files. Instead, use the Burn Disc option available in the Finder's File menu to burn a data DVD.


  • Consideration Number Two Is the person on Mac or Windows? If you're burning files to a DVD and you want a person on Windows to be able to use them, be sure to include the appropriate file extensions on the end of your files.

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Microsoft Windows relies on the file extension in order to recognize which application will be needed to open a file. For example, JPEG files need a .jpg at the end in order for a Windows machine to launch a program capable of displaying JPEGs. These days many Mac programs automatically put on a file extension, but you'll want to be sure to use them if sending your DVD to Windows users.


Task: Adding Computer Files to a DVD

You can easily add computer files to your DVD using iDVD.

  1. Launch iDVD and open your project (see Figure 20.7).

    Figure 20.7. The main iDVD window.

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  2. Click the Customize button in the lower-left corner of the iDVD window.

  3. Click the Status tab, which will initially give you a running report of how any background encoding is progressing. (This is the automatic encoding of video that's being done while you're working on your project) (see Figure 20.8).

    Figure 20.8. The Status tab of the tray in iDVD.

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  4. Click the Status pop-up menu and switch from Encoder Status to DVD-ROM Contents as shown in Figure 20.9.

    Figure 20.9. Add DVD-ROM filesand view what's been addedin the DVD-ROM Contents window.

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  5. Drag files and folders into the DVD-ROM Contents area. In Figure 20.10, a number of digital pictures and a QuickTime movie have been added. iDVD also may add a file called .DS_Store , which you can ignore.

    Figure 20.10. Dragging files from the hard drive into the DVD-ROM Contents area in iDVD adds them to the disc.

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As you drag large media files in as DVD-ROM content, remember to keep an eye on the size of your project. (Conveniently, this information appears at the top of the Status tab.)


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Technically speaking, the .DS Store file is created by the Finder. Per Apple: " Each directory in the filesystem can contain a hidden object, ".DS_Store" containing data which includes a list of files stored there. This object is created when a local user views a given directory using the Finder. " The .DS_Store file isn't necessary for burning.


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iDVD doesn't move the files you add as DVD-ROM content, or make duplicates of them. Instead, it creates a reference to the file on your system. If you delete a file or move a file after you've added it to the DVD-ROM list, its name will appear in red to tell you something's wrong. If you try to burn the disc anyway, a "File not found" error message will appear.


To delete a file from the DVD-ROM Contents list, select it and press Delete.



Sams Teach Yourself Mac OS X Digital Media. All In One
Sams Teach Yourself Mac OS X Digital Media All In One
ISBN: 0672325322
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 349

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