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DVD Copy Plus may be the best DVD ripper

DVD Copy Plus may be the best DVD ripper available. It contains the software you need to copy your own DVD Video. DVD Copy Plus comes with detailed, easy to follow, step-by-step instructions so you can copy your own DVD Video using its interactive DVD Copy software and your CD-R. The best DVD ripper package should be easy to use and this software meets that test.

In order to copy VHS tapes with DVD Copy Plus you will need a video card with a Video In port for a camcorder or VCR and the software necessary to capture the video.

DVD Copy Plus allows you to choose what audio and video features you want to incorporate into your new backup DVD, including such features as screen size formats such as wide screen and letterbox.

If you're one of the many people who prefer to watch your DVD movie with subtitles, DVD Copy Plus gives you the option to choose any language available on the original DVD. In addition, special features such as movie trailers and bonus tracks can be included when you create your custom collection. A package that qualifies as the best DVD ripper should have these features.

All DVD rippers (even the best DVD ripper) rip content (decode) from a DVD then encode the content and burn it to a DVD. This is the basic technique used to copy DVDs or CDs. .

DVD Copy Plus encodes (compresses) video the same way audio files are encoded in the MP3 format. The result is the same. Instead of slightly degraded but acceptable sound quality, you get slightly degraded but acceptable video quality.

When you copy DVDs to CDs there is image loss but it's imperceptible to most viewers. After the content is stored on your hard drive DVD Copy Plus decodes that MPEG-2 content, then encodes it at a smaller level of compression, MPEG-1, so it fits on a CD. The image is still very good and you can view the content on your computer or DVD player.

Most DVD copies can be played on a standard DVD Player, provided the DVD Player supports Video CD (VCD). VCD stands for "Video Compact Disc". Basically, it's a CD that can hold 650 or 700mb of audio and video data. In short, this means it is similar to a DVD, in that it is digital and can contain video data.

Most DVD Players manufactured within the last two years, support the standard Video CD format. The picture quality is good. VCD quality is much better than VHS, but not exactly the same as DVD. Few can even tell the difference, while most can't. The audio portion is recorded in true digital stereo and you will retain the same aspect ratio of a DVD.

The best DVD ripper should be compatible with Windows 95/98/ME/NT/XP and 2000 and this package does. DVD Copy Plus will NOT run on Windows 3.1.At a minimum, you will need the following items in addition to DVD Copy Plus:

- A DVD-ROM Player installed in a computer

- A CDR (CD Recordable) installed in a computer

- Blank CD-R's (for recording)

- You need to be running Windows 95/98/ME/NT/XP or 2000

- 4-8 GB of Free Hard Disk Space

Even the best DVD ripper has to deal with the video length problem. The number of CD-Rs required depends upon the length of the DVD video, and whether or not you plan to play the CD in a conventional DVD Player using Video CD technology.

If you want to store the movie in a compressed MPEG or DIVX format and replay the movie on your computer, or computer to the TV, then one CD can be sufficient with specific compression technologies. But if you want to store the format in VCD and play it on your console DVD player, then two CD's will typically be required to hold a full feature length DVD (2 - 2 1/2 hours). You can store (depending on the CD-R) up to 80 minutes of video on one CD-R in VCD format.

The time required for decoding will vary depending upon the speed of your computer and the level of detail in the DVD. Your computer will be processing many gigabytes of data and when you consider the amount of data involved, the time required for the process is actually quite minimal.

Faster computers can typically decode a 2 hour movie in less than four hours. Slower computers will take longer. However, the process does not require your constant attention as you can begin the process before you go to bed or while you're at work. For the average computer, running a Pentium III 850 MHZ with 128MB of Ram, you can expect the entire process to take between 4-6 hours for an average two hour movie.

DVD Copy Plus offers a full, 30 day, unconditional money back guarantee on their shipped product (No Refunds on Download Version). They also have free live technical support. For me that makes this a candidate for being the best DVD ripper.

Major Quirks: Unless you have a fairly new PC the processing time can be extensive. Even the best DVD ripper will require most of your PC's resources. It's somewhat inconvenient to have to decide which way you're going to copy DVDs--for viewing on your PC (1 CD) or on your console DVD player (2 or more CDs).

Conclusion: DVD Copy Plus is made by same company that brought us DVD X Copy. They are genuinely concerned about their customers and offer a money back guarantee on their shipped product. DVD Copy Plus provides the same basic functionality as the other conversion utilities and would be a logical choice when purchasing this type of software. This software may well be the best DVD ripper available today.

There are however other quality rippers available. Check out the other articles on this site to see which one suits your needs.


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