VCR-HOWTO - Using your GNU/Linux computer as a VCR

4. Alternate Recorder - Creating VCD's for playback on DVD/VCD Players

4.1 Introduction to VCD Creation

I must thank Alexander Oelzant for creating this portion of the VCR-HOWTO. His original version is located at: README.bttv2mpeg.

After recording shows on my computer for a while, I realized it was much nicer to watch the shows on my full-sized television set than to watch them on my computer monitor. There are two options for doing this: 1) Purchase a video card with TV-OUT and run a cable to my television. or 2) Create a VCD and play it in my DVD Player. Since CD-R and CD-RW media is really cheap I decided to go this route.

This section could theoretically be done in a different HOWTO because it uses a different method for recording/converting than the other sections of the VCR-HOWTO use. This is primarily because I haven't figured out how to create VCD compatible mpeg's using vcr. If your goal is to create VCD's, use this section of the HOWTO. If you don't care about VCD's, completely ignore this section of the howto because these procedures require MUCH MORE disk space than using vcr to record for playing under linux.

4.2 Required Hardware for VCD Creation and Playing

1)A linux supported CD writer.
2)A bttv compatible TV Tuner Card (WinTV is one good example)
3)A VCD player or DVD Player

4.3 Required Software for VCD Creation

This is one method for creating VCD's under linux. If you have a better method, please let me know. The following list of software contains the versions I found to work well for me under Red Hat 7.1.

1)NuppelVideo 0.52a (nuvrec must be setuid root)
2)exportvideo 7e-pre4  (must be this version or later)
3)mjpegtools 1.4.1 (installed rpm found on rpmfind.net)
4)toolame 02h
5)mplex 1.1
6)vcdimager 0.6.2 (installed rpm found on rpmfind.net)
7)cdrdao 1.1.4 (rpm from redhat 7.1)

4.4 Procedure for creating a VCD

1)nuvrec -t _NUM_m _filename_
_NUM_m = size.  E.g. 30m = 30 minutes.
2)nuvplay -e _filename_.nuv | toolame -b 224 -m s /dev/stdin _filename_.mp2
3)exportvideo _filename_.nuv "|mpeg2enc -o _filename_.m1v"_
4)mplex -f 1 -s 2324 -p 1 -o _filename_.mpg _filename_.m1v _filename_.mp2_
5)vcdimager -l "Movie Title" -c _filename_.cue -b _filename_.bin _filename_.mpg_
6)cdrdao write --device _your_device_ _filename_.cue_
7)Eject the cd-r, stick it in the vcd player, press play and enjoy._
8)File Sizes From each step for 30 minutes of data._

Bytes       Filename      Created from step?  Can Delete after Step?
=====================================================================
1391756119  finefilm.nuv  1) nuvrec           2) toolame and 3) mpeg2enc
50401280    finefilm.mp2  2) toolame          4) mplex
259097824   finefilm.m1v  3) mpeg2enc         4) mplex
313793452   finefilm.mpg  4) mplex            5) vcdimager
120         finefilm.cue  5) vcdimager        6) cdrdao
318808896   finefilm.bin  5) vcdimager        6) cdrdao
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Total approx 2.3g for 30 minutes of sample data.
If you delete previous files after the appropriate steps, max used space
for 30 minutes of data was 1.7gb.