New tool aids DVD production
Authoring software permits developers to keep track of the various pieces of video, music, and graphical information and organize them more easily.
Pioneer says that its DVDesigner is a software tool which permits developers to keep track of the various pieces of video, music, and graphical information and organize them more easily for use in the interactive format.
The company says that the software has the ability to output data in a file format ready for use in Pioneer's DVD manufacturing facility in Carson, California, and other production plants, reducing the amount of time needed to get titles to store shelves.
The news comes as major movie studios, including Warner Home Video, MGM Home Entertainment, New Line Home Video, and HBO Home Video, have increased their commitment to the format. The companies recently said they would release hundreds of film titles in the DVD format to retail outlets over the next three months. Until now, there has been limited availability of titles, which has in turn limited sales of DVD video players.
Both DVD video and DVD-ROM (which are used in PCs) allow playback of titles only, while recordable DVD such as DVD-RAM will provide both playback and recording. DVDs let users play full-length movies with subtitles in different languages, add parental ratings, and provide control over viewing angles. DVDs, which can currently hold about 4.7GB of data, also offer backward compatibility with current CD-ROM titles.