Customizing DVD Menu

[Jay]

Steve
I have reread your tutorial on customizing a DVD menu and I’m having a problem with one of the PE7 memories DVD templates. Load both the templates into photoshop (cs5) and I just changed a few of the pictures in the _mm (main menu) leaving the _sm section alone. I save them both with same name and save them into a new renamed folder. The _sm load fine into PE7 I see the scenes menu but no _ mm (main menu) shows up. What have I missed?
.. Any help appreciated
Jay
PS..Its been awhile.. How in the heck do change your change your password in the Forum area..I keep having same trouble getting in to post things.

[Steve Grisetti]

You should be able to change your password in the User Control Panel, along the top of the forum, Jay.

Meantime, it's hard to say what's going on with your menu templates without knowing more. Have you checked the obvious: Ensured that the names of the sm and mm file are identical?

On the other hand, if this were the case, the template wouldn't load at all.

What do you mean by "no _ mm (main menu) shows up"? Do you mean that the template shows up among the templates and that, when you load it into your project, the main menu page is blank?

Can you post a screen capture of your template loaded in the Disc Layout panel? Without knowing what symptoms you're describing, it's hard to say what the problem is.

[Jay]

Thanks Steve
Its been along time since we talked..
I can't send a screen shot..but the scene menu show up under the memories area but the Main menu does not. All other the templates work ok
I only changed 3 pictures in the Layer palette in PS for the preset templae and save it by the same name as the original template. Then made a new folder and
place the 2 Main and scene menus into it. Question? Do all of setting in the dvd template have to remain set. And what are the main setting
in the template that are not to be changed?
Jay

[Chuck Engels]

The only reason for it to not show up at all is the name, make sure the name is correct including the extension.

[Steve Grisetti]

I'm still not sure what you're saying when you say that the main menu does not show up. Where does it not show up?

When you view the template, do you see the scene menu but not the main menu? If so, the problem isn't with the file name. It's the way you have the file set up. But I can't say for sure unless I see what you're talking about.

Can you try to save a screen capture? To do this, press the Print Screen button on your keyboard and then past this (Ctrl+v) into a Photoshop Elements document and save it as a JPEG. You'll be able to post this JPEG to your reply on this forum.

If you get really stuck, write to me at steve at muvipix.

[Jay]

Steve
Thanks for helping with the menu problem. I had bad file/layer and I redid the whole thing. And now it works
New Subject: In Window 7 it has a DVD maker that has a lot of excellent Menu Styles.
Can the styles be incorporated into PE7 DVD folder or is the format wrong?
Jay

[Chuck Engels]

Are the menus in PSD format?

[Bob]

You can't use them with PrE 7, Jay. They aren't in a template format that PrE understands. Some of the basic elements like buttons and backgrounds could conceivably be used with an authoring program like DVD Architect Studio, but DVD Maker generates the effects and such dynamically in the program and that isn't transferable to another dvd authoring program.

[Jay]

Thanks Bob and Steve for the info
new subject: What is the max upload to this site for viewing?
I have a slide show that I would like to share with a few people.Its about 600Mb.
Do Both of you guys recommend DVD Architect Studio when creating a DVD menu. I know nothing about that program. And will have some of the effects that
DVD maker for window 7 has?
Jay

[Steve Grisetti]

In my opinion, DVD Architect Studio could run circles around Windows' DVD maker.

But check it out yourself. Just go to our product's page and type "DVD Architect" in the search box. The Basic Training tutorials will show you how easy it is to use.

[Bob]

DVD Architect Studio is an excellent DVD/Blu-Ray authoring program and does does run circles around the types of menus that DVD Maker and Premiere Elements can produce. You can literally control virtually every aspect of how the menus will look and behave. DVD Maker is very limited in the types of menus it can create and you have very little that you can control directly.

You have to understand that the effects that DVD Maker gives you when you select a Menu Style are video clips that DVD maker generates from an internal template and your source material. DVD Architect Studio is not going to provide those effects. However, you can create your own video clips in Premiere Elements and use those clips in DVD Architect Studio to create motion backgrounds every bit as interesting. It's a bit more hands-on and you need to understand how to use Premiere Elements, but you have full control of any effects you want to include that way.

[Jay]

Bob,Steve
Thanks, Steve, I will take a look at the tutorial on DVD Architect. I want to thank you for all you have done for Muvipix to make it better. I was one of the
old guys that first signed up when it first started and I have not been disappointed with all the help you and Chuck have given me over the years.
And, Bob, your knowledge for all the subject matter that people request just is just outstanding. If I might use a quote from the Butch and Sundance kid..
"Who are you guys" that know all this stuff.
Jay

[John 'twosheds' McDonald]

new subject: What is the max upload to this site for viewing? I have a slide show that I would like to share with a few people.Its about 600Mb. Jay

I think that the limit is 200Mb? But Ron will know for sure.

[Ron]

new subject: What is the max upload to this site for viewing?
I have a slide show that I would like to share with a few people.Its about 600Mb.
Do Both of you guys recommend DVD Architect Studio when creating a DVD menu. I know nothing about that program. And will have some of the effects that
DVD maker for window 7 has?
Jay

Did you mean 60MB? 600MB is a bit large for the internet, although this paradigm is changing rapidly I guess. Our current max upload is 60MB (we're not quite ready yet for [hi-def] prime time).

What format is your video? If it's hi-def, you may want to upload it to Facebook, Youtube or Vimeo, then simply embed it in a post. If it's not hi-def, then you may just need to convert/compress it for basic web delivery.

[George Tyndall]

Bob,Steve
Thanks, Steve, I will take a look at the tutorial on DVD Architect.

You can download a free trial version of DVD AS5 , however, I would strongly suggest that you also order Steve's book here on muvipix, and here is why: Although Sony has made a very admirable attempt, with its Show Me How menus, to get one up to speed quickly, Steve's book is ever so much better at clarifying how to do so.

Specifically, by the end of Chapter 2 (page 28) you will have already learned how to complete a DVD project with the software. The remainder of the book is about all the many other fabulous features.