Guide

Apr 27 2009

iDVD/DVD Burning FAQs

Brought to you by: James



((Update: Updated to reflect changes introduced by iDVD v5 and v6. This FAQ is now obsolete and will not be updated beyond this point.))



Ken Tidwell has a very informative Unofficial/ad-hoc iDVD FAQ & Troubleshooting Guide.



DVD-R(RW)s and DVD+R(RW)s only have one layer. Many commercial DVDs have dual-layer technology which allows twice the amount of data on one disk. (Burnable dual-layer DVDs can now be purchased from your favorite blank media retailer.)



DVD+R(RW)s have a longer shelf-life while DVD-R(RW)s are more compatible with house-hold DVD players.



iDVD versions prior to v5 are only capable of burning to internal Apple Superdrives.



iDVD requires its movie files to be any QuickTime-supported media file.



iDVD (v1-v3) can only burn 60 minutes to a DVD-R, or 90 minutes if you’re willing to sacrifice quality. (iDVD will ask to sacrifice quality for a 90 minute DVD when you choose to burn a project that is 60-90 minutes in length.) iDVD v4 (iLife ’04) can burn up to 2 hours on a single-layer DVD-R (sacrificing quality).



Toast 6 will burn to any DVD-R(RW) or DVD+R(RW) drive with any QuickTime-supported media file, and can burn “over 60 minutes” to a disk with optimal quality at 60 minutes or less (quality slowly decreases over 60 minutes). See Create a Quick and Simple DVD for details.



Apple’s DVD Studio Pro is a full, professional DVD authoring suite. Among several, more powerful features, DVD Studio Pro supports burning to several DVD-R(RW) and DVD+R(RW) burners and allows you to change compression settings, which enables you to choose the correct balance between video/audio quality and the amount of video on the disk.

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Apr 27 2009

Emergency Repairs

applejack Emergency Repairs

Are you seeing some strange behavior on your Mac? Is your Mac not getting past the boot phase? Is it difficult to get to Disk First Aid? Have you lost your OS X install disk (shame on you!)? Then you had better hope you have AppleJack installed.

AppleJack is the Swiss-Army Knife of emergency Mac repairs. When trouble’s a-brewin’ and you can’t get to your favorite Disk Utility, just boot into Single User Mode (boot while holding command-s) and enter “applejack” (without the quotes). With AppleJack, you will be able to repair your disks, repair permissions, cleanup cache files, validate preference files, and remove swap files, technically without having to boot your computer. Remember, you need to have AppleJack installed BEFORE you have any serious problems with your Mac. Also, if you follow MacMerc’s guide to routine maintenance, you should never need to use AppleJack. Though, it’s still nice to have around, just in case.

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Apr 27 2009

Packing your Travel Pod

Your iPod is a vital travel companion. I know you grimace for the brief moments the luggage scanner parts you from your digital companion. The thought of surviving a flight without an iPod is scary.

But are you making the most of your iPod while traveling? Must-have accessories open possibilities, and a properly loaded iPod can be your guide as well as entertainer.

Keeping Connected on the Road

There are millions of accessories out there to hook your iPod up to your car’s stereo – which you are welcome to use on the road. But who says the music has to end when you get to the hotel (or grandma’s house)? Take along your AV cables to plug in to your hotel TV, or use a pod-powered FM adapter like this one from Griffin Technology to listen through your clock radio.

Power is a priority when you are away from your charging dock. Check out this inexpensive universal charger set or even this ultra-long-lasting external battery that will get you through 4 days without a charge.

And finally, hitting the road means taking pictures. Don’t wait till you get home to preview and back-up your snaps. Send them right to your iPod with Apple’s Camera Connector.

Travel Pod Reloaded

Before you leave you’ll want to update your contacts and calendar. If you don’t already sync your calendar, take advantage of this feature to track travel plans. Include confirmation numbers in your calendar details.

Of course I wouldn’t waste your time on things this obvious if I didn’t have something better for you. Since iPod Directions seems to be on the blink, you’ll be happy to know there are more ways to quickly get web info – like flight itinerary, driving directions and hotel info – onto your iPod.

If you have a video iPod and the latest firmware, your iPod can now display images in your notes folder. This means you can add jpg’s directly to your pod with no conversion and no messing with your existing synced photos. Add in a little Automator magic and with two actions you can take a web page’s text and images right to your iPod.

web to note Packing your Travel Pod

Check out Automator’s Safari actions to grab the text and download the images. There’s also an iTunes action that will turn the text into an iPod note. Video iPods with firmware 1.2 will display the jpg’s alongside notes. If found that smaller images tend to work better.

Don’t forget that Disk Mode turns your iPod into a huge portable drive. Pack it up with anything you might need on the road – presentations or your Black Friday shopping list. Avoid putting sensitive data on your iPod in case it gets stolen.

Properly prepared, there’s no reason to slow up the security line with your MacBook. Give your Mac a break and make your iPod your new travel companion.

Brian

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