dvd

It had been years since I actually bought a DVD or a Blu-ray copy of a movie. But over Christmas, I bought one. I really wanted those extra features that a physical disk provides. Why not get a Blu-ray with a digital copy, I thought, and have the best of both worlds?

Why not turned out to be because redeeming digital copies is a nightmare. Are you getting a copy for iTunes? Or for Amazon? Or whatever on earth UltraViolet is supposed to be, something that finally crashed into my awareness as a new Blu-ray owner?

The film in … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which I answer Mac-related questions e-mailed in by our readers.

This week, readers wrote in with questions about managing DVD collections in a central networked library, a missing or malfunctioning "purge" command in OS X, and options for archiving photos from an iPhoto library. I welcome views from readers, so if you have any suggestions or alternative approaches to these problems, please post them in the comments!

Question: Managing DVD collections in a central networked library MacFixIt reader "brunnerr" asks:

Xilisoft DVD Creator 7 is the latest iteration of this popular Mac OS DVD burning app. It is available from the App Store as well as numerous download sites. The full version of Xilisoft DVD Creator 7 costs $39.99 and installs easily.

Xilisoft DVD Creator 7 lets you create your own video DVDs complete with basic video editing, special effects, titles, and DVD menus. With support for most video formats (including AVI, MPEG, WMV, DivX and others), Xilisoft DVD Creator 7 can handle your video files from almost any video camera or operating system. Creating a DVD starts with … Read more

It's been a fun series of freebies this week! Free seasons of TV shows (now expired, alas), free movies from Vudu, a free membership to ShopRunner -- and today, to top it all off, some free software.

Before I tell you about it, I'm going to ask that you please read the instructions as I've outlined them below, as these giveaways always seem to trip up some readers. There's nothing complicated here, but if you don't pay attention, you'll end up e-mailing me about what a fake or scam or screw-up this is.

So. … Read more

Redbox Instant -- Verizon's stab at a video-streaming service to compete with Netflix -- was rolled out into private beta today. For the first time, users can sign up for the service and see what it has to offer.

The service will give new users, who sign up to try it in beta, unlimited streaming and four DVD credits for free for one month, according to the Web site. Once the month-long trial ends, the service will cost $8 per month.

Redbox Instant is a joint venture announced in February between Verizon and Coinstar -- the company that owns … Read more

Your computer's screen might not be the best way to watch your favorite shows, movies, and videos. If you're looking to save money by not buying an HDMI cable, this software won't be much help to you. If you are willing to spend the cash to download AoA DVD Creator, you'll have a powerful but slightly outdated software package that will help you convert your video files into DVDs.

DVD-burning programs have outworn their welcome for some, but this software takes it to a new level. The blank, gray layout looks like something out of the '… Read more

A great-sounding recording will sound its best only when it's properly mastered to LP, SACD, DVD-Audio, or a high-resolution file. Those formats will reveal the full glory of the music in ways that lower-resolution formats like MP3 or analog cassette always miss. But if you didn't have access to the high-resolution file to compare it with, a great recording will still sound pretty terrific as an AAC, M4A, or 320kbps MP3 file, because the recording's innate quality would shine through. On the other hand, a heavily compressed, processed and crude recording will always sound heavily compressed, processed … Read more

You're a budding or aspiring filmmaker. You wrapped up all your shots and you're ready for post-production and distribution. Or you're an avid videographer or adventurer with a million video clips of family gatherings begging to be showcased on a TV. Cyberlink PowerProducer offers a video-production program for these folks and anyone looking to create DVDs or Blu-ray Discs.

Cyberlink PowerProducer is a user-friendly suite that lets users create and burn movie discs, complete with high-quality menu templates and Blu-ray support. The suite doesn't offer much as a real movie editor, per se -- you won'… Read more

It looks like the rumor mill was a little off this time -- Verizon's Redbox Instant won't be launching this month, as was previously speculated but rather in 2013. However, its public beta should be good to go within the next few weeks.

Verizon chairman and CEO Lowell McAdam announced today at an investor conference that after public beta testing the commercial launch of the video streaming and DVD rental service should kick off either at the end of 2013's first quarter or the beginning of the second quarter, according to The Hollywood Reporter.