Section 18.3. Uncover Your DVD Project File


18.3. Uncover Your DVD Project File

Behind the scenes, iDVD stores all the pieces of your project inside the .dvdproj "file" that you created when you first saved your work. However, the . dvdproj file isn't really a file, even though it looks like a single icon on your desktop. It's actually a package a disguised Mac OS X folderthat contains many subfolders and files. To peek inside, follow these steps:

  1. Quit iDVD.

    Never mess with your project files when iDVD is running.

  2. Control-click the project file. From the shortcut menu, choose Show Package Contents.

    If you have a two-button mouse, you can right-click instead. Either way, you've now opened that "file" into a folder window.

  3. Open the Contents Resources folder.

    You're in. Here are all the different files that make up your DVD. (See Figure 18-4 for an example.)

Figure 18-4. Your .dvdproj file stores all the movies, sounds, graphics, and data associated with your iDVD project in a series of hidden subfolders and files. This column-view shot shows the progression of folders within folders.


So what is all this stuff?

  • Your ProjectData file stores all the settings for your DVD project, in the form of a binary property list. It tells iDVD how to put together the menus , sound files, graphics, and other pieces that comprise your DVD.


    Tip: For a really interesting afternoon of insight, drag the ProjectData icon onto the icon of, say, TextEdit. Turns out ProjectData is just a humble text file, andas long as you're careful not to make or save any changesyou can pass an enlightening afternoon studying its contents to discover how it's structured.
  • iDVD stores compressed video filesthe ones that your audience will actually see on the DVD playerin the MPEG folder. If you really want to, you can play one of these files right on your Mac. To do so, copy it to the desktop, add an .m2v suffix to its file name , and watch it using a program that can play MPEG-2 files (like VLC, a free movie player from www.videolan.org/vlc).

  • If you're using an older theme, one whose buttons are represented as little pictures or videos , then a Thumbnails folder stores the tiny QuickTime videos that play on the buttons. Double-click one of them to play it in QuickTime Player right on your Mac.

iDVD doesn't fill the remaining folders until it actually burns the DVD. At that point, iDVD uses these folders to store intermediate files as it works. For example:

  • In the Menu folder, iDVD stores MPEG-2 (.m2v) files that represent the video loops used on your menu screens, complete with buttons, thumbnails, and so on.

  • As you could probably guess, the Slideshow folder stores all the digital pictures you've chosen for use in your slideshows, and the Audio folder contains all the sound files. (You could double-click one of the sound files to play it in QuickTime Player, if you really wanted to.)

  • The Overlay folder holds menu overlays (videos that animate buttons when your viewers highlight them) and motion overlays (animations that play on top of drop zonesthe Theater theme curtains or the Brush Strokes paint effect, for example).



iMovie HD & iDVD 5. The Missing Manual
iMovie HD & iDVD 5: The Missing Manual
ISBN: 0596100337
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2005
Pages: 209
Authors: David Pogue

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