Re: [VCDImager] VCD Chapters

[Herbert Valerio Riedel]

You've hit a known problem with hardware implementations...

first of all, the way you have designed the playlists won't work the way
you expect them to work...

On Sun, 22 Jul 2001, Andrea Gimignani wrote:

> Hi all! I've got a big mpeg file (PAL VCD compliant) to divide in
> chapters (like a DVD).

> I've created the attached XML, but it's not what I want.
...but it does what you have written :-)

> One issue is that with the XML attached, if I never use the next track
> button, at the end of the movie instead of stopping, it will play the
> second playlist...and then the third and so on.
that's just what playlists are defined to do...

from the IEC62107 spec:

[..]
A.2.1 Play List [Interpretation]

If the list is a PLay List, then, starting a t the beginning of the list
of Play Items, for each PLay Item in sequence do the following:

a) Play the Play Item. If a Trigger Bit is set in the currently playing
   sector, then pause the play for a time given by Auto Pause Wait Time
   and then resume play.

b) When the Play Item has played for a time given by PLaying Time, then
   stop play.

c) Wait for a time given by Play Item Wait Time.

d) When all Play Items are complete, proceed to interpret the List given
    by Next List Offset.
[..]

...well, and entry points are just what the name implies, points of entry
into the sequence item; thus it won't just play from one entry point to
the next defined one, but from the entry point till the end of sequence
item...

> Another issue is that if I'm in the first playlist at for example at 1800
> sec. and I skip to next, it will go to second playlist, and not to the
> nineth that is 1927.44
see above

> The division I made is Ok for a chapter selection menu, not fof
> playback only...
...

> There is a way to get chaptered movie just like DVDs?!?
...If you have a conforming (S)VCD player implementation, you would have
just to define one playlist referencing the whole sequence item;

quoting again the spec:

[..]
A.3.1 NEXT function

At Play List - Stop playing current sequence or terminate the current wait
state

If there are any following entry points in the PLay Item, start play from
next entry point, otherwise play any remaining Play Items on the PLay List
or else interpret the List given by Next List Offset.
[..]

but sadly, only a few DVD players honor it this way... (I've been
only reported that philips players do...)


but well, there are possible workarounds/hacks to emulate the next/prev
chapter functions... you'll have to abuse selection lists for that;
by taking advantage of the timeout target, you can keep the list from
jumping to the next target, like it would for playlists;
and you can define numbers for direct jumping to chapters by entering the
absolute number...

-- 
Herbert Valerio Riedel       /    Phone: (EUROPE) +43-1-58801-18840
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