Hi all,

After looking over part of the site, I've yet to disover any step-by-step instructions of how to take an NTSC VHS tape and convert it to a VCD. Can some one help me with this?

I'm in China right now, but will be going home to Florida for 5 weeks in a couple of weeks. I'll be doing the conversion on my dad's computer, which is a Win98, 300+Mhz, Pentium 2, with mega RAM and HD space, plus a video capture card (sorry, don't know what kind) and CD-writer (again, I don't know which kind). He's already got the VCR hooked up to the computer (so I can watch the Jacksonville Jaguars' games!).

What I need to know is, when I record the video onto the computer, what program do I need to use, and what format do I need to save it in? Is it possible to convert to MPEG straight from the VCR? After saving it as AVI, or whatever, which FREE program do I need to convert it to VCD-MPEG? After converting it to MPEG, which program do I need to use to create the VCD?

The main thing I'll be doing is copying some of my friend's speaking videos to VCD so that he can sell them from his site (www.raycomfort.com), but I may also record a couple of movies to bring back with me to China (not a smart idea!) for private use.

Thanks for your help, Stephen

-- Stephen (stephen@smithworks.org), January 06, 2000

Answers

The capture card on your dad's machine most likely came with 'capture' software. You need to know what card he has. It's possible that the card already captures directly to mpeg1, VCD compliant format, in which case you just need CDR software and a CD Burner. Chances are he has Adaptec's EZ CD creator which already has the capability to create a VCD. A simple wizard is already built into the software. If the card doesn't capture directly to mpeg1, VCD compliant format, you'll need to purchase mpeg encoding software to convert the captured avi file to mpeg1. Basically, you need to provide more specifics on your dad's machine before anyone can give you a knowledgable response.

As far as software's concerned, legally, there isn't any 'free' encoding software available. The demo version's either restrict your encoding time, or put an annoying stamp on the finished product.

-- Robert(Slide)Snider (rsnider1@san.rr.com), January 06, 2000.

Thanks, Robert, for your help. Once I get home, I'll check to see what he has, then post another message here.

Thanks again, Stephen

-- Stephen (stephen@smithworks.org), January 06, 2000.

I emailed Dad, and this was his reply:

Hewlett Packard CD writer 4020i Video Capture card: US Robotic with Asymetrix DVP Video Capture card. Will capture streams or individual frames. Have two software packages to write to CD. One is the HP software that came with the CD writer. The other is Adaptec Easy CD Create, version 3.0(055).

What else would I need, based on this info?

Thanks

-- Stephen (stephen@smithworks.org), January 06, 2000.

I'm not familiar with the card. Does it capture directly to MPEG1, VCD compliant format? If not, you'll need to purchase MPEG encoding software. That should be it.

-- Robert(Slide)Snider (rsnider1@san.rr.com), January 08, 2000.

I'm not sure, and I doubt that Dad would know, or even bother looking at this time. I'll just wait til I get home, then check things out for myself.

Thanks for your help, though.

Stephen

-- Stephen (stephen@smithworks.org), January 09, 2000.