DVD speed

[andreadebiase]

hi, i here is a dumb question: I would like to know which is the difference between a 8X, 10X and 12X DVD. I know that the X reflects the speed but which one exactly? the time to access the drive at the beginning or the time to access each frame of the movie thus resulting in a sort of slow motion movie!!!!! (I hardly doubt is the latter since no one would want to see a slow motion movie. It is obvious that i never looked at a movie on a 8X and compared to a 12X; this is why i am asking you folks).
thanks

[hiredgoonz]

The different speeds only come into play when you're using software which is on a dvd (the faster the drive, the faster it can access the info and install software or utilize info on the dvd)

You won't notice any difference playing dvd movies...unless you have an extremely slow computer you shouldn't have to see any slow-mo movies

[Paleo Pete]

I'm not sure about DVD, but CD ROM was originally designed for audio purposes, then later adapted to computer use. 1X is the speed required for reliable audio performance, the multiples are for computers. 2X is twice the speed of audio, etc. As long as it's 2X or higher, you won't see any difference in playback, it still only needs to read at 1X.

------------------
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines!
Note: Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

Computer Information Links (http://www.geocities.com/paleopete/)

[pextor]

Originally posted by hiredgoonz:
The different speeds only come into play when you're using software which is on a dvd (the faster the drive, the faster it can access the info and install software or utilize info on the dvd)

You won't notice any difference playing dvd movies...unless you have an extremely slow computer you shouldn't have to see any slow-mo movies

[pextor]

What is the minimum speed for the processor to play back full screen DVD?

Charles


Originally posted by hiredgoonz:
The different speeds only come into play when you're using software which is on a dvd (the faster the drive, the faster it can access the info and install software or utilize info on the dvd)

You won't notice any difference playing dvd movies...unless you have an extremely slow computer you shouldn't have to see any slow-mo movies

[Paleo Pete]

I'm not positive, but I think if the CPU is capabler of playing DVD the issue relating to full screen would be memory and video memory. To produce full screen video you would have to have plenty video memory to reproduce the image and plenty RAM which is often shared by the video card. I doubt if CPU speed would have a major effect, as long as it is capable of running the software for the DVD player. With a slow CPU you might get slow motion, but for full screen I think memory would be the major issue.

------------------
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines!
Note: Please post your questions on the forums, not in my email.

Computer Information Links (http://www.geocities.com/paleopete/)

[hiredgoonz]

The cpu speed you need depends on whther you're using software or hardware decoding...dvds use the mpeg2 format, which needs to be decoded for playback. Just as a background: to play dvd movies on your computer you need a dvd drive, dvd software, and a decoder (some dvd software also has a software decoder built in, but some doesn't)

There are two ways to do this, hardware decoding (an actual pci card, although some video cards, like the ati all in wonder, do mpeg2 decoding in addition to their normal video card duties) and software decoding...

For software decoding and full-screen playback I would say a minimum requirement would be a P2 350 with 64 mb of RAM and at least an 8mb video card (also, before you start the dvd, your screen should be set to 800x600 16 bit color, if you're close to that minimum, or you'll get "out of memory" errors)...for hardware decoding you could get away with less on the cpu speed...

Check the requirements on the software dvd player to see if you have them...if you don't, you can pick up an mpeg2 decoder card for around $50...

Also, bear in mind that the AMD K6-2 processors don't have the same muscle for the megahertz as Pentium 2s...the P2 350 I mention would equate to a K6 400 or even 450 for this particular application...