I appreciate a variable bitrate is essential for full disk mode and constant for movies over 2.5 hours but would I be correct in assuming constant would be advantageous for any length of movie, ie. shorter movies around 90 mins in length?
I tend not to use full disk copy unless the original is around 5/5.5gb, so most of my encoding is just the movie only.
I'm guessing such a short movie only would be under 4.3gb anyway, right?
Thanks,
Will Hay

I'll admit I'm just befuddled with recent choices (and I very much doubt we're alone in this).
One would think that for movie-only of a flik less than 4.3 Gb to start with that Constant or Variable methods would be a moot point. [I'd like that confirmed(?)]
As for movies (again, I have a movie-only preference...) that are greater than about 6 Gb., one would think Constant the way to go (more so if even larger and/or having less 'action' scenes).
But deciding which for movies between 4.3 and 6 Gb--does one favor Variable for movies with lots of scene changes/action/water?
If developers were a bit more forthcoming about 'intents and methodology', methinks we wouldn't have so much 'head scratching', ...not that I want them to tip-their-hand to competitors.

I can't really guess at this point what one-clicker can produce (on _average_) the best movie-only duplicates. I am inclined to think it's currently D2O--_if_ used properly. But I need better guidelines for Constant/Variable. Cost of a program(s) is meaningless compared to investments of time/media...but Quality is a very slippery target to assess and/or implement for average users. We need more info and pointers from those who design the tools, and really understand the mechanics of the code and the intents behind it's updates.

i think with the encoding speed of DVD2one there's plenty of time for a decent trial and error.

There's not a real way of saying use this method for that type of movie. Afterll the endquality depends on several diferent parameters for every single movie.

At least it was clairified elsewhere that the 1.2.0 Variable is superior to the 1.1.3 Variable--so that is 'put to bed'.
In reading, it seems that the Constant (for shorter and/or 'action' flics) was primarily intented to ease the "pulsating effect" many viewers report. Personally, though I've a critical eye and high-end equipment, I never much found that noticable. So I'm leaning towards Variable for all but perhaps really long and boring films!

Loggy -

Could you please point me in the direction to where you found the info that the 1.2 variable is superior to the 1.13 variable engine.

Many thanks,

Face

[Below from McCall-a mod here...in "Best quality choice..."]

"Hmm. I don't know about 'keep the old DVD2One'
As far as I'm aware, the variable mode of the current version (1.2) is the old engine - with a rather more accurate size guestimation routine.
-P
By the way, it's not the variables that the studios use! It's the variations in your viewing setup and personal expectations that play the major role in influencing your perception of whether the output is good, bad or indifferent."

hmmm... I don't know about you, but I don't read that 1.20 is SUPERIOR to 1.1.3... it seems exactly the same except that it predicts the final size more accurately...

Yep...
exactly the same...except

Superior is as Superior does...

[actually, in a variable engine, better 'guestimation' may indicate advanced prediction for when/where to compensate for higher-bitrate scenes--yielding a better encode]
or, maybe I don't know what I don't know?
I'm _guestimating_ that 1.2 variable is superior...

I'm not sure if you can look at this as a "Short" "long" issue, it's not really minutes of the movie it's the size. It's the bit rate the movie originally was recorded at. I've seen some 90 min movies come in at 5.5 to 6.5 GB and some Under 4 GB. I think you have to take it that face value. Make a decision but one based on the particular disk.

I agree it's no simple formula like short/long. I assume 1.2 better than 1.1.3 quality in either mode (and it looks good!). But publishers whim/content is varied. Movies with waves/fire/'action' _should' be larger, but may be shoved in with multi-ver or lots of extras. Long films may or not be multi-disk. Some shorter films with little 'action' are huge and well encoded, while others are the opposite.
What I've been trying to divine is the 'mechanics' of a Var v. Con approach so a choice can be made in advance after thinking through/browsing/running some kind of utility on a flic.
Maybe the difference is as impossible to predict or slight as mods seem to indicate? Or maybe the Constant-mode was just an approach to eliminate the pulsating thing some setups seem to exaggerate, but has intrinsic drawbacks in many applications/film-types? Time will tell, I guess. In meantime, guestions like these of developers seem to be just making them defensive (don't know why--we in here are their fan-club...).