dvd ripping

[wes_adams]

soooo... i've never really had a computer before with a dvd burner... i'm wanting to rip dvd's to a portable harddrive i have to take with me to the desert in a couple of months, though i'm not completely sure how.
what programs do i need to do that? i need something to remove codecs on dvds first right? anyone got some tips? or should i just be googling this?