[qanda]This thread is about the HP DVD1040i. Click here to see full specs[/qanda]I don’t believe Windows Media Player is configure to burn DVD’s so what I’d like to know is which program is the best or good to use to burn DVD’s that will play in a Sony stand alone player on my TV? Also, should I be using DVD-R or DVD+R. Is burning DVD’s for playing on a stand alone complicated or is there a program that will let me just click the buttons and go?
I’m new at this and have some old home movies my sister had put to disk and would like to copy them. So far they will play on my computer, but not on the stand alone.
Thanks. 
Do the original discs play in a standalone player? If so, you can just use a ImgBurn to create an image of the original disc and then burn the image onto another disc. If they don’t play in a standalone player, then let us know what format the video is currently in and we can make further suggestions.
As far as whether to use DVD+R or DVD-R, I prefer DVD+R because you can change the booktype to DVD-ROM.
Thanks AZImmortal. I’ll try that. The originals DO play in the stand alone and I saw the ImgBurn, but wasn’t sure what it was for and didn’t want to screw anything up so I didn’t use it. I was thinking it was for still pics only. I’ll try it tonight and let you know how it works out. It sounds like it may very well work.
Thanks again. 
I think [B]AZI[/B] forgot to mention not to buy cheep DVD. Good brand to start with is Verbatim, Sony, Taiyo Yuden.
Burn at speed, one step down or half than disc is rated for.
Thanks to you also, CDuncle. I’ll get a different brand next time. Right now I’m using HP Lightscribe 16X DVD-R.
Also, do the free versions of DVD compression software and decoding even work, or is this jus a way to infect computers?
I would burn HP at 8 or 12x max.
As for free encoders, they are OK, see this site.
http://www.videohelp.com/tools/sections/video-encoders
I use DVDRebuilder as compressor, there is free and payed version, Pro has good options to remove what you do not want, jet all the rest stay and use good encoders.
I’d say that by and large, the free software available for DVD and video copying rivals and/or surpasses most of the commercial software out there. I’m actually more wary of unknown paid software than free software, because many of the paid programs are scams. That’s not to say that there aren’t good commercial programs available, such as those with their own subforums here at CDFreaks.
And yes, make sure you burn with good quality DVDs. You may want to take a look at the Blank Media subforum to see what kind of quality others are getting with various media.
Is burning DVD’s to play in stand alone DVD player too complicated?
no just takes some getting used to like anything else.
I’m new at this and have some old home movies my sister had put to disk and would like to copy them.
ImgBurn in read mode then ImgBurn in write mode.
which program is the best or good to use to burn DVD’s that will play in a Sony stand alone player on my TV? … or is there a program that will let me just click the buttons and go?
my opinion:
ImgBurn is the Ultimate Burning Engine!
ease of use, try the 30 day trial of DVDFab Gold. www.dvdfab.com . just use main movie mode or full disc mode. i myself like to use main movie to preserve the original quality as much as possible.
features, try the 21 day trial of AnyDVD. www.slysoft.com . AnyDVD can be used with many dvd ripping or authoring programs. AnyDVD runs in the background, thus decrypting your dvd on-the-fly, allowing programs such as DVD Shrink, CloneDVD 2, ImgBurn, etc… to copy protected discs.
should I be using DVD-R or DVD+R.
with the latest players compatibility is no longer an issue. for sake of argument DVD+R is considered the better choice because of higher quality burns and the capability to bitset booktype DVD-ROM. [i use dvd-r because the brand/mids i like, the -r disc are slightly cheaper, but still producing good burns]
troy512,
Thanks for the advice. I just bought and downloaded a software package that seems to have solved ALL my problems. free2dvd, which includes DVDFab 5 and a bunch of other stuff, some of which I will rarely if ever use for a twenty dallar bill. It’s pretty slick. I was able to do 2 DVD’s last night of the old home movies. Now I can get rid of the 8mm film, the vhs tapes and send the movies to family for LOTS less tha what my sis paid to get them transferred to DVD. Thanks to all for all the help. 
free2dvd [B]INCLUDES[/B] DVDFab, among other software? Maybe fengtao can elaborate on this, but it sounds like a scam to me, taking the programs of others and repackaging and selling it as their own. I’m glad that you got it all working though. As for getting rid of your 8mm film and VHS tapes, I’d hold onto them if I were you, even if you have digital transfers now. You never know if in the future, you’ll want to re-capture them.
Point taken. It’s not like they take up lots of room. I probably have 50 or so reels in an apple box in the closet. I think you’re right. I’ll hang onto them.
Thanks
Maybe fengtao can elaborate on this, but it sounds like a scam to me, taking the programs of others and repackaging and selling it as their own.
From the fine print of Free2DVD website:
Free2DVD only provides links to the referenced software it does not produce it
[B]I would like to know how this works out.[/B]
Hard to read on the bottom of their website:
Free2DVD only provides links to the referenced software it does not produce it.
Scammers. IMO.
Edit: Jeff was faster. 
[QUOTE=jeff53404;2132975]From the fine print of Free2DVD website:
[B]I would like to know how this works out.[/B][/QUOTE]
So far it’s fine. They give you access to full software and lots of it. I’ll never use half of what they’ve got, but what I do need is there in spades and works pretty well. Great picture quality. I’ll let you know more later.
Maybe fengtao can elaborate on this, but it sounds like a scam to me, taking the programs of others and repackaging and selling it as their own.
[B]I would like to know how this works out. [/B]
So far it’s fine. They give you access to full software and lots of it.
J. Deere: I’m glad it’s working out but my bold faced statement was in reference to the Free2DVDs liberal use of other company’s licensed products. Intellectual and commercial property rights should be honored and protected.