Travel Technology - Ripping DVDs to laptop HD?

I have a Dell 300M ultra-lightweight laptop that has an external DVD drive. I'm tired of dragging that extra drive around and would prefer to rip a couple of DVDs to the HD in my laptop so I can play them on the plane without having to drag the external DVD drive along for the trip.

Does anyone have a good suggestion on how to best do this? What software would I need to rip it? And should I compress it while I am at it, and is there a specific CODEC to use for a better compression? Thanks...

http://www.download.com/Dvdtox-DVD-Ripper-SE/3000-2140_4-10330679.html?tag=lst-0-3

Dvdtox DVD Ripper SE is a tool for backing up your DVD movies. With Dvdtox DVD Ripper SE you are able to convert DVDs to VCD (MPEG-1), SVCD (MPEG-2), AVI, and DivX (MPEG-4) formats. Features include batch file conversion, individual files for chapters, a quick setting panel, built-in bitrate calculator, and automatic computer shutdown. Version 1.3.35 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.

Another easy-to-use software: DVD Decrypter

http://www.doom9.org/Soft21/Rippers/SetupDVDDecrypter_3.5.1.0.exe

See, I must be missing something.... I am able to rip the disk to my HD (tried a couple of different tools), which basically gives me a copy of the directory structure of the DVD. But how the heck do I play it then?!?!?!

See, I must be missing something.... I am able to rip the disk to my HD (tried a couple of different tools), which basically gives me a copy of the directory structure of the DVD. But how the heck do I play it then?!?!?!

Why, you play a virtual dvd on a virtual dvd drive, of course. :)

http://www.daemon-tolls.cc Free

You want to save the dvd as an ISO though, not a a bunch of vobs

Another easy-to-use software: DVD Decrypter

http://www.doom9.org/Soft21/Rippers/SetupDVDDecrypter_3.5.1.0.exe

Two thumbs up here for DVD Decrypter!

See, I must be missing something.... I am able to rip the disk to my HD (tried a couple of different tools), which basically gives me a copy of the directory structure of the DVD. But how the heck do I play it then?!?!?!
Your DVD player software must support the ability to play from a file location as well as from your DVD drive. The version of PowerDVD that came with my laptop doesn't, but WinDVD and Nero ShowTime do.

Another tool is Alcohol 120%. Rip the DVD's to the hard drive, and then you can mount the images with Alcohol so your laptop plays them just as if they were in the drive.

This tool works for about everything from DVD's to games to software. Beats carrying around all those CDs/DVDs.

Another easy-to-use software: DVD Decrypter

http://www.doom9.org/Soft21/Rippers/SetupDVDDecrypter_3.5.1.0.exe

Great package. Works well. Make sure you select main movie before decrypting.

You can play the VOB or IFO files (catalog of the VOB files) using WinDVD or any DVD playback app. That's what they do from the disc.

A very versatile media player albeit a bit geeky/techy is VLC which can play just about any video format ever invented. Interface sucks but hey it's free!

Please bear in mind that using something like DVD decryptor may put you in breach of the dreaded digital millenium copyright act and upcoming European copyright laws. The MPAA has not yet gone after individuals who use such software but this will very likely change.

Why, you play a virtual dvd on a virtual dvd drive, of course. :)

http://www.daemon-tolls.cc Free

You want to save the dvd as an ISO though, not a a bunch of vobs

I assume you meant http://www.deamon-tools.cc :)

Thanks.

I assume you meant http://www.deamon-tools.cc :)

Thanks.

Uh, yeah. :) Thanks!

Uh, yeah. :) Thanks!

Did you get this to work? All I got was a placeholder.

www.riphelp.com is a great website to help you get freebee programs and instructions.

I use dvddecrypter to copy DVD to HD, autogk to compress using xvid codec and media player classic and ffdshow to play. Browse www.doom9.org.

You can compress DVDs to 700mb or 1400mb without any real loss of quality that you'll notice on a notebook.

It appears that DVD Decrypter may not be being updated, supported, etc. per note at www.doom9.org. Links no longer work either. Also, riphelp.com doesn't appear to have been updated recently.

Any additional recommendations for ripping DVDs to laptop?

It appears that DVD Decrypter may not be being updated, supported, etc. per note at www.doom9.org. Links no longer work either. Also, riphelp.com doesn't appear to have been updated recently.

Any additional recommendations for ripping DVDs to laptop?
DVD Shrink works very well -- it's what I use with most DVDs.

It appears that DVD Decrypter may not be being updated, supported, etc. per note at www.doom9.org. Links no longer work either. Also, riphelp.com doesn't appear to have been updated recently.

Any additional recommendations for ripping DVDs to laptop?

Even though it's no longer being updated, DVD Decrypter is still the gold standard, IMHO. I just wish the guy who got scared into stopping development had released his source to the Open Source community before he pulled the plug, but I guess the bigco that was threatening him scared him pretty good.

Even though it's no longer being updated, DVD Decrypter is still the gold standard, IMHO. I just wish the guy who got scared into stopping development had released his source to the Open Source community before he pulled the plug, but I guess the bigco that was threatening him scared him pretty good.

The last version released was 3.5.4.0, I believe.

To the previous poster, you should be able to search for "DVDDecrypter 3.5.4.0" on the net and find mirrors with copies of the binaries. I don't recall where I found mine, but there were at least half dozen web sites with it a few weeks ago (I downloaded a few and md5'd them all to make sure they were identical).

Okay, here's a questions for all you techies.

I have a Fujitsu B series notebook that does not have a DVD drive. From reading here about ripping DVDs and storing them on you hard drive, is it possible, if I install the DVD viewing software can I watch stripped and compressed DVDs on this machine? After all, I will be watching it from the hard drive and not a DVD player.

My desktop has a DVD burner if I rip and shrink a DVD on that machine and copy it over to the notebook, would that work?

Thanks!

Okay, here's a questions for all you techies.

I have a Fujitsu B series notebook that does not have a DVD drive. From reading here about ripping DVDs and storing them on you hard drive, is it possible, if I install the DVD viewing software can I watch stripped and compressed DVDs on this machine? After all, I will be watching it from the hard drive and not a DVD player.

My desktop has a DVD burner if I rip and shrink a DVD on that machine and copy it over to the notebook, would that work?

Thanks!

I have a sub-notebook/ultra-portable (DVD in the dock at work) that I do as you suggest.

Prior to a trip I'll rip a few DVD's on my home PC and then copy
them over to the laptop (wired ethernet ... waiting for three movies to copy at 802.11b speeds is impossible). I don't bother compressing them, as I don't plan on keeping them longer than it takes to watch them (though I wouldn't search for free disk space so much if I did compress them).

Please bear in mind that using something like DVD decryptor may put you in breach of the dreaded digital millenium copyright act and upcoming European copyright laws. The MPAA has not yet gone after individuals who use such software but this will very likely change.


so using this software is most certainly putting the user in violation, or violating the MPAA or whatever. The law they have supporting them now, is that any action, software, workaround anything that CIRCUMVENTS the macrovision encryption is illegal. Making backups is not yet termed illegal, but if one has to crack the encryption, ala dvddecrypter, or DVDXCOPY123 for example, then the action, plus then the backup is illegal.

But, while the MPAA can go after a company such as DVDXCOPY, or the software programmer who made DVDdecrypter, (which is now offline) I don't really know how they would go after an end user, unless they uploaded files to a file sharing service, or found such copies of copied DVD's and somehow could trace a fingerprint back to a specific user/owner. Even then, I think the case would be weak at best.

But, with DVD's as cheap as they are these days, this all may be moot.

YMMV

If your computer's hard drive is limited, get a USB2.0 (don't bother with USB1.1, it's too slow) or Firewire external pocket drive. They're so cheap nowadays, something like $1.00-$1.50/GB. A 60GB pocket drive that costs less than $100 (after rebates) can store almost 10 complete DVDs - special features and all!

I have a sub-notebook/ultra-portable (DVD in the dock at work) that I do as you suggest.

Prior to a trip I'll rip a few DVD's on my home PC and then copy
them over to the laptop (wired ethernet ... waiting for three movies to copy at 802.11b speeds is impossible). I don't bother compressing them, as I don't plan on keeping them longer than it takes to watch them (though I wouldn't search for free disk space so much if I did compress them).

Terrific! Just what I wanted to hear. What program do you use to watch them?

Thanks!

so using this software is most certainly putting the user in violation, or violating the MPAA or whatever. The law they have supporting them now, is that any action, software, workaround anything that CIRCUMVENTS the macrovision encryption is illegal. Making backups is not yet termed illegal, but if one has to crack the encryption, ala dvddecrypter, or DVDXCOPY123 for example, then the action, plus then the backup is illegal.

But, while the MPAA can go after a company such as DVDXCOPY, or the software programmer who made DVDdecrypter, (which is now offline) I don't really know how they would go after an end user, unless they uploaded files to a file sharing service, or found such copies of copied DVD's and somehow could trace a fingerprint back to a specific user/owner. Even then, I think the case would be weak at best.

But, with DVD's as cheap as they are these days, this all may be moot.

YMMV


Assuming you are doing this for personal use only, how in the world is the MPAA going to find out?

Terrific! Just what I wanted to hear. What program do you use to watch them?

Thanks!

For that, you need Daemon Tools (http://www.daemon-tools.cc/dtcc/portal/download.php) which creates a virtual dvd player for you to insert your virtual dvd into. Also free.

Assuming you are doing this for personal use only, how in the world is the MPAA going to find out?


you are so right winkydink,

exactly as I posited one post above.
:-)

For that, you need Daemon Tools (http://www.daemon-tools.cc/dtcc/portal/download.php) which creates a virtual dvd player for you to insert your virtual dvd into. Also free.

Thank you very much. Just to clarify this is for my own personal use also. :D

you are so right winkydink,

exactly as I posited one post above.
:-)

yeah, but you use all dem big words. :D

a dvd recorder fits in great here too. thumb through tv guide, record what i don't have time to watch at home, rip to subnotebook for trip. saves battery compared with watching directly off dvd drive.

i often bring the dvd drive, so i don't have to rip everything in advance, just what i'm going to watch on plane etc.

DVD Shrink works very well -- it's what I use with most DVDs.
Agreed! But, alas, it's not being updated anymore either! Still readily available, though... as is DVDCryptor at most mirrors.

ratdvd.dk is a cool option

I hope that someone here can be of help to me,,,,,as I read this thread with interest and then proceeded to download DVDdecrypter as suggested..

After installing the decrypter, I then followed the instructions and tried to install a DVD onto my hard drive, which was "apparently" successful. However, when I choose "DVD from folder" out of my WinDVD program, I am totally unable to "find" the DVD on the HD....

Hence, I can't view it.....Can someone let me know what I did wrong, or how to "find" the file on my hard drive....

Thanks in advance for your help and consideration!!
Best wishes, Dave

I hope that someone here can be of help to me,,,,,as I read this thread with interest and then proceeded to download DVDdecrypter as suggested..

After installing the decrypter, I then followed the instructions and tried to install a DVD onto my hard drive, which was "apparently" successful. However, when I choose "DVD from folder" out of my WinDVD program, I am totally unable to "find" the DVD on the HD....

Hence, I can't view it.....Can someone let me know what I did wrong, or how to "find" the file on my hard drive....

Thanks in advance for your help and consideration!!
Best wishes, Dave

Save it as an ISO file, and use the Daemon Tools mentioned above to "mount" the ISO image on the virtual DVD player it creates. WinDVD then treats it like a normal dvd player.

If you have a Mac, you can use Handbrake. If you have OS X 10.4, use the new H.264 codec.

Save it as an ISO file, and use the Daemon Tools mentioned above to "mount" the ISO image on the virtual DVD player it creates. WinDVD then treats it like a normal dvd player.

Many thanks for the help on this one!! I was able to find the "virtual DVD", and downloaded the Daemon Tools, so I should be good to go....One question remains, however,,,,,

Does DVDdecrypter give me the "option" to save the file as an ISO, or do I need to do that in another step....Not certain how to do what you are suggesting...Tho I'm sure its correct!! :)

Thanks in advance and Best wishes, Dave

Yes, it gives you that option. I don't have it in front of me, but check your menu options and tabs and it's in there.

I avoid much of this stuff by going to one of the movie download websites. I have a DVD in my laptop, but I like to use the bay for an extra battery.

Well, thanks for the help on this one.....I can: 1) use DVDdecrypter to load the DVD on my HD, and have downloaded both DaemonTools (sic?), and DVD Shrink 3.2.
What I can't seem to do is: " both" shrink the DVD AND make it available for WinDVD to read.....

I suppose that its just I'm technology challenged, but if anyone has a "quick" answer to my issues, it would be great......I would like to: 1) "shrink" my DVD, 2) install it on my HD, and then 3) use WinDVD to watch it from a compressed state.

I can do most of these steps independent of one another, but can't seem to do "all" of them in one swell foop...

Best wishes, Dave

Many thanks for the help on this one!! I was able to find the "virtual DVD", and downloaded the Daemon Tools, so I should be good to go....One question remains, however,,,,,

Does DVDdecrypter give me the "option" to save the file as an ISO, or do I need to do that in another step....Not certain how to do what you are suggesting...Tho I'm sure its correct!! :)

Thanks in advance and Best wishes, Dave

From the menu, Mode/ISO/Read

My thanks to everyone for their help on this!! I finally was able to integrate DVDdecrypter, DVDShrink 3.2, and WIN Dvd!! One thing tho,,,,,the tutorials available thru DVDShrink say to save the file output from the first rip as a "file" rather than an ISO.....This seems to have worked for me....
Best wishes, Dave

Been following this thread with much hope for better entertainment on my loooong UA flights :D I have bumbled through some of this but have not used dvd shrink- how much disk space does this save (eg what is the compression)?

A few observations here. Most users will probably just need #1 and #2 below.

1) Deamon Tools creates a "virtual" DVD drive that can read an ISO file as if the disk was in a real drive. All your applications can see this and treat it as a "normal" drive with a disk inserted. A wonderful side effect of this is ANY ISO file can be loaded this way (as can a number of other formats like bin/cue, img, etc). Imagine you have an application that likes a CD (or DVD) of clip-art loaded. You can save the image to your HD and "mount" it when you need it without needing the physical drive or media, just enough HD space to store the image. Great when using CD learning games with small children by the way!

2) DVD Decrypter will decrypt and store a video DVD into an ISO format on the hard drive. You can then use #1 to "mount" it, and use your favorite software to play it just as if you had put the actual media in.

3) DVD Shrink takes a DVD image (in our case, an ISO seems best) and can compress it down by lowering quality or removing things (like extra sound tracks, previews, etc). It has several output options, but the easiest is to just create a NEW ISO file of the shrunk version. If you have enough HD space, you really don't need this since you'll just dump the copy after you've seen it. DVD Shrink is primarily meant for people to shrink dual-layer DVD's to fit single-layer DVD+-R media for "backup" purposes. Enough said on that. DVD Shrink can take a very long time to run depending on your CPU speed, but if you're tight on HD space, it might do the trick.

A few other observations for #1. Many other software apps will read CD's and make ISO's of them. Even Roxio's EZCD Creator will make an ISO (in the copier application). I use this to take kids educational CD's and store the ISO's on the HD. Then you can use the Deamon Tools package (and a helper app also found on the same site) to auto mount the CD when the desktop icon for the game is clicked on. Now I'm no longer replacing CD's with a zillion scratches on them, or making sacrificial backup copies, or cleaning off fingerprints, or hunting for disks stuck in the couch ...... :D

Been following this thread with much hope for better entertainment on my loooong UA flights :D I have bumbled through some of this but have not used dvd shrink- how much disk space does this save (eg what is the compression)?
Size reduction depends upon how much you are willing to reduce the quality. Typically you can cut video size by about 30% without noticing it too much, especially on a screen the size of a laptop! Your bigscreen HDTV might be a different matter. The other big area is that fact you only need to take the movie. Scrap the menus, promos, "extras", languages, subtitles, etc and you can easily reduce the size by 50% in many of todays titles with lots of "bonus" features. On audio, you probably don't need 5.1 if you are listening with your headset, so you can just save the stereo track.

Oh, a note someone else asked about the tutorials. They were written some time ago before DVD Shrink had the ability to read an ISO file directly. With this ability, I use ISO's exclusively. Look in the File menu for Open ISO (or something similar, I don't have it loaded here). It's also not being developed anymore since it's basically completely stable and full featured, and with dual-layer (DL) writers available, it's obsolete other than for price of media for those backing up their privately owned collection ;)

Or as I stated earlier check out ratdvd, which is a much newer, elegant and better quality overall solution.

I've downloaded ratdvd but am not quite sure how to use it. I tried playing a dvd that I have loaded to my hard disk with dvd decrypter, but this didn't work. Is there a "ratdvd for dummies" thread somewhere?

A few observations here. Most users will probably just need #1 and #2 below.

1) Deamon Tools creates a "virtual" DVD drive that can read an ISO file as if the disk was in a real drive. All your applications can see this and treat it as a "normal" drive with a disk inserted. A wonderful side effect of this is ANY ISO file can be loaded this way (as can a number of other formats like bin/cue, img, etc). Imagine you have an application that likes a CD (or DVD) of clip-art loaded. You can save the image to your HD and "mount" it when you need it without needing the physical drive or media, just enough HD space to store the image. Great when using CD learning games with small children by the way!

2) DVD Decrypter will decrypt and store a video DVD into an ISO format on the hard drive. You can then use #1 to "mount" it, and use your favorite software to play it just as if you had put the actual media in.

3) DVD Shrink takes a DVD image (in our case, an ISO seems best) and can compress it down by lowering quality or removing things (like extra sound tracks, previews, etc). It has several output options, but the easiest is to just create a NEW ISO file of the shrunk version. If you have enough HD space, you really don't need this since you'll just dump the copy after you've seen it. DVD Shrink is primarily meant for people to shrink dual-layer DVD's to fit single-layer DVD+-R media for "backup" purposes. Enough said on that. DVD Shrink can take a very long time to run depending on your CPU speed, but if you're tight on HD space, it might do the trick.

A few other observations for #1. Many other software apps will read CD's and make ISO's of them. Even Roxio's EZCD Creator will make an ISO (in the copier application). I use this to take kids educational CD's and store the ISO's on the HD. Then you can use the Deamon Tools package (and a helper app also found on the same site) to auto mount the CD when the desktop icon for the game is clicked on. Now I'm no longer replacing CD's with a zillion scratches on them, or making sacrificial backup copies, or cleaning off fingerprints, or hunting for disks stuck in the couch ...... :D

Now this is interesting. For #1, does that mean that I can load my game CD and other application CDs using Deamon tools that require the CDs to be inserted before the program can run? Therefore, no need to lug my dvd/cd player around anymore?

Now this is interesting. For #1, does that mean that I can load my game CD and other application CDs using Deamon tools that require the CDs to be inserted before the program can run? Therefore, no need to lug my dvd/cd player around anymore?
Yes... as long as you have first ripped an ISO image of them to your HD.

I've downloaded ratdvd but am not quite sure how to use it. I tried playing a dvd that I have loaded to my hard disk with dvd decrypter, but this didn't work. Is there a "ratdvd for dummies" thread somewhere?
RatDVD is not a player -- it's a ripper/formatter/compressor. You use it to rip a DVD to your HD -- which you already did using DVD Cryptor.

If you want to rip using RatDVD, you can play the RatDVD-format movie from your HD using one of these software players: http://www.ratdvd.dk/play.htm

Also, read the FAQ, as it won't work with encrypted DVDs.

Now this is interesting. For #1, does that mean that I can load my game CD and other application CDs using Deamon tools that require the CDs to be inserted before the program can run? Therefore, no need to lug my dvd/cd player around anymore?

It doesn't handle every copy protection in existence, but as a general answer, yes.

Now this is interesting. For #1, does that mean that I can load my game CD and other application CDs using Deamon tools that require the CDs to be inserted before the program can run? Therefore, no need to lug my dvd/cd player around anymore?
As others have noted, it doesn't work for all copy protection systems, and for some copy protected CD's you need to create the backup files in a special way. The online info for deamon tools has more on those.

For most (small) kids CD's, this isn't an issue. The majority are not protected. This can also be a big bonus for the frequent traveler who uses applications with big database CD/DVD's which don't have a program option to load everything to the modern BIG hard drive. Plus, they are MUCH faster than using the CD media.

The thread was about ripping, hence why I cited ratdvd. It is pretty easy to get around any encryption problems and it is one of the most elegant solutions out there.

For games on CD (not DVD), what is a good software to burn an ISO image?

I have a sub-notebook/ultra-portable (DVD in the dock at work) that I do as you suggest.

Prior to a trip I'll rip a few DVD's on my home PC and then copy
them over to the laptop (wired ethernet ... waiting for three movies to copy at 802.11b speeds is impossible). I don't bother compressing them, as I don't plan on keeping them longer than it takes to watch them (though I wouldn't search for free disk space so much if I did compress them).


Same here, but I will go a little further. I use DVDDecrypter and DVDShrink to rip and reauthor the DVD to my laptop. The DVDshrink will let me take out all those extra features videos, menus, extra foreign language audio tracks, Director's comments, previews/commercials, and those damn sticky FBI warnings so that I end up with a much smaller/lite version of the original. Most of my movies are from 4-4.7gb max in size. I also carry my 30GB iPod which I use to store add't movies and plug/play it on my laptop via firewire.
When you rip the DVD be carefull not to mess up the IFO and BUP files because they contain control information that is required by PowerDVD or other players to view the movie properly. PowerDVD will not allow you to view individual VOB files by themselves, but there is a freeware pgm that I use just to view only the vobs.

extra food for thought

For games on CD (not DVD), what is a good software to burn an ISO image?

cloneCD or alochol120%

For games on CD (not DVD), what is a good software to burn an ISO image?

Also DVD Decrypter using Mode -> ISO -> R/W

Thanks! I used alcohol120 and it works great!

For games on CD (not DVD), what is a good software to burn an ISO image?

I've had good luck with Virtual CD. It both rips and handles the images. Note that it can also mount the ISO's although I have had some trouble with that.