DVD not showing up correctly on desktop

I have a friend who is having this problem and I tried to help last night:

DVDs that are authored in DVDSP or iDVD will show up on the desktop as DVDs with the round DVD icon w/DVD logo on the icon. DVDs that are recorded on a set top Sony DVD recorder show up as a folder with a red minus sign on the bottom.

We both have the same kind of computers, same version system software, etc.

What we're trying to do with the DVD is open it up in MPEG Streamclip, so we can extract the M2V and AC3 files off and re-author with custom menus.

On my computer this morning, the recorded DVD showed up as a folder with a minus sign, but MPEG Streamclip was able to recognize that it was a disc in the first place, whereas the friend's computer - MPEG Streamclip did not recognize that there was a disc there.

I tried everything I knew how, and researched a bit online as well, and I think I learned that the folder with the minus sign in general is related to permissions. I also saw online that this may be a Sony DVD recorder thing with their navigation structure.

However, we had a disc on the friend's computer that did work a few weeks ago in MPEG Streamclip, but doesn't now. So I think there must have been some setting that was changed. Roxio Toast may have been installed after this first DVD was readable, but I didn't see anything in Toast's preferences that would seem to affect this.

I'd like to try a disc that was recorded on my Panasonic DVD recorder on the friend's computer next time I get out that way.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!
Casey Petersen

Let's first rule out the simplest explanation. You say the discs do mount on the computers. When you try to open the VOB files with MPEG Streamclip, did you make sure the bottom of the dialog box says "All Files"? By default MPEG Streamclip's Open File option is set to look for "Video Files"...and DVD VOB files don't count.


www.derekmok.com

The discs do actually mount on the computers and are playable in Apple's DVD Player in both cases. In MPEG Streamclip I have been going to "Open DVD" and on my computer the DVD shows up in that left pane with all the hard drives, networked drives, flash drives, etc., so I'm able to select it. But on the friend's computer, it does not show up in that left pane where it can be selected. So I can't get to the DVD's directory in the first place...I did also try the "Open File" method and checked the "All files" option as well.

Thanks,
Casey

Nah...if the disc doesn't mount, you can't use MPEG Streamclip on it, period. Unfortunately, video DVDs by nature don't work on all computers. My home G5, for example, rejects virtually all discs (data or video) from other computers, including discs burned on this computer itself, but has no problems with commercially purchased DVDs, and burns data and video DVDs just fine.

You might need to extract the files on your computer and then send them to your friend.


www.derekmok.com

Strange that it worked a few weeks ago. What we were able to do was select the DVD on the desktop, hold down option and move the icon somewhere else, making a copy of the disc to the desktop, and that would show up on MPEG Streamclip. Kind of an extra step, but I guess you do what you gotta do. I can extract it here, but he's going to have to be doing this a lot, and it really needs to be done on their end...plus they're 20 miles away.

It's also strange that it shows up on mine, which is an identical system...that's why I figured there must be a setting somewhere that's wrong. I can't remember if when it worked the first time, if it showed up as a disc icon or a folder icon. My only hunch is that Toast changed something, but I don't know what.

Casey

Aha!

It was easier to fix than I thought, and had nothing to do with the icon.

In the Finder menu under Preferences, there is a Sidebar option that has a place where you can check whether or not to show CDs/DVDs in the Sidebar (with the hard drives, network drives, etc.). When unchecked I couldn't open it in MPEG Streamclip because it didn't show up, but when checked, BOOM, there it was!

Casey

Another angle on this discussion, with new SONY set top DVD recorders, you have to be logged in as ROOT on your Mac to see contents of DVDs burned by SONY.

it's a copy protection scheme built into the finalizing process on the recorder.

Other web forums report that all is fine with Panasonic set top DVD recorders - no locks.

My original SONY DVD recorder from 2003 did not set root permissions on DVDs I burned. When it died in 2005, I got the house brand at Target, and then when it died, I got a Panasonic. When I got my new camera last week, i decided to sell the Panasonic and get something 2 years newer.

DUMB mistake! Never sell something that works BEFORE buying something new!!

Independent photographer, film maker and Producer. In the wonderful UK.