I've been a busy bee
...but sadly, not with game relate stuff.
I have made libavcodec my bitch!
So libavcodec's 2 pass variable bit rate (VBR) mpeg2 encoding didn't do a very good job at predicting how high a bit-rate my fade-in and fade-out transitions needed. Look at this blocky mess I ended up with mid fade-in:
Luckily, with only 38 minutes of footage to go on this DVD, I didn't really care about using VBR to save space. I re-encoded at the highest quality possible at a constant bit rate and ended up with this (complete with unintended tool-tip!):
Much better! As a double-bonus, it even has a slightly smaller file size than the VBR version. Here's how the frame looks at the quality with which it came off the camera (plus the fade-in effect) for comparison:
I've also been busy helping people squash bugs! My bug reports: let me show you them. This one is mine as well, though I forgot to log-in for it.
One bug however -a hardware or driver related one- has eluded me. It's pretty bizarre. At first, I thought that maybe the new version of ImgBurn did something to mess with how it worked with Windows' scheduler, so I posted over at their support forums. It turns out that something's messing up how my computer talks to my optical drive, because I had the same problem using the mkisofs.exe that DVDStyler calls for disc burning and image making.
So here's what's up (and it's not DMA, people!): after my computer's been on for a while, burning (and reading?) from my optical drive is ridiculously slow because the program controlling the drive isn't getting the CPU cycles it needs. However, if I click, drag, and constantly move around a window (any window!), the process controlling the burning will get it's CPU time and I'll burn and read at the breakneck speeds I'm used to.
Possible culprits include nVidia's serial ATA controller drivers, the services Folding at Home installed on my computer (I've only had this problem after my computers been Folding for some time), or any number of other things I haven't thought of yet.
If you have any ideas, please leave a comment! Thanks!
*EDIT* This and this make me think that I should actually start in the bios.
*EDIT 2* The bios was a bust, so now nVidia's disk drivers are gone. Wish me luck!
I have made libavcodec my bitch!
So libavcodec's 2 pass variable bit rate (VBR) mpeg2 encoding didn't do a very good job at predicting how high a bit-rate my fade-in and fade-out transitions needed. Look at this blocky mess I ended up with mid fade-in:
Luckily, with only 38 minutes of footage to go on this DVD, I didn't really care about using VBR to save space. I re-encoded at the highest quality possible at a constant bit rate and ended up with this (complete with unintended tool-tip!):
Much better! As a double-bonus, it even has a slightly smaller file size than the VBR version. Here's how the frame looks at the quality with which it came off the camera (plus the fade-in effect) for comparison:
I've also been busy helping people squash bugs! My bug reports: let me show you them. This one is mine as well, though I forgot to log-in for it.
One bug however -a hardware or driver related one- has eluded me. It's pretty bizarre. At first, I thought that maybe the new version of ImgBurn did something to mess with how it worked with Windows' scheduler, so I posted over at their support forums. It turns out that something's messing up how my computer talks to my optical drive, because I had the same problem using the mkisofs.exe that DVDStyler calls for disc burning and image making.
So here's what's up (and it's not DMA, people!): after my computer's been on for a while, burning (and reading?) from my optical drive is ridiculously slow because the program controlling the drive isn't getting the CPU cycles it needs. However, if I click, drag, and constantly move around a window (any window!), the process controlling the burning will get it's CPU time and I'll burn and read at the breakneck speeds I'm used to.
Possible culprits include nVidia's serial ATA controller drivers, the services Folding at Home installed on my computer (I've only had this problem after my computers been Folding for some time), or any number of other things I haven't thought of yet.
If you have any ideas, please leave a comment! Thanks!
*EDIT* This and this make me think that I should actually start in the bios.
*EDIT 2* The bios was a bust, so now nVidia's disk drivers are gone. Wish me luck!