Quantcast
Subscribe to magazine
You are not logged in, click here to log in.
Up to Discussions in Story Discussion
18 Replies Last post: Feb 27, 2005 12:40 PM by puc119   1 2 Previous Next
Click to view MW Forums's profile New Member
MW Forums
12,220 posts since
Aug 2, 2004
Reply

Feb 15, 2005 3:10 PM

Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more

Velan Software on Tuesday announced the release of Fast DVD Copy v3.5 for Mac OS X, a new version of their DVD archival utility, suited to backing up DVDs, audio CD collections, PlayStation 2 games, DVD-ROMs and CD-ROMs. Unlike other some other DVD archival utilities, Fast DVD Copy is designed specifically to duplicate otherwise copy-protected media including commercial DVDs. more
Reply
Click to view RudolphRed's profile New Member
RudolphRed
182 posts since
Dec 22, 2004
1. Feb 15, 2005 3:24 PM in response to: MW Forums
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
Seems to be a very virtual organization.
Reply
Click to view macnuke's profile Old Hand
macnuke
6,672 posts since
Mar 5, 2004
2. Feb 15, 2005 3:27 PM in response to: MW Forums
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
outstanding.
now we can "archive" our originals...
and watch just the movie which is what we wanted to do in the first place.

m
Reply
Click to view melgross's profile Member
melgross
237 posts since
Sep 9, 2004
3. Feb 15, 2005 4:04 PM in response to: MW Forums
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
Does anyone know how well this actually works?
Reply
Click to view Peter Cohen's profile Macworld Editorial
Peter Cohen
4,204 posts since
Feb 5, 2003
4. Feb 15, 2005 4:09 PM in response to: melgross
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
You're welcome to read Macworld's review.
Reply
Click to view fribhey's profile Member
fribhey
689 posts since
May 21, 2004
5. Feb 15, 2005 7:15 PM in response to: macnuke
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
just use mac the ripper (freeware) and roxio's popcorn ($50) to 'archive' your originals.....
plus, mac the ripper WORKS. judging by reviews from actual owners of Fast DVD Copy it seems like crapware with slim to no support. for software that costs $99 you should get responsive support. i tried it myself and never got it to work on numerous DVDs and my emails went ignored.
Reply
Click to view macnuke's profile Old Hand
macnuke
6,672 posts since
Mar 5, 2004
6. Feb 15, 2005 7:24 PM in response to: Peter Cohen
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
read it.
it seems like it works, but....
is the impression i get from the article.
which leaves me to believe there is better out there.

m
Reply
Click to view bufflo's profile New Member
bufflo
61 posts since
Sep 3, 2004
7. Feb 15, 2005 10:16 PM in response to: fribhey
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
In reply to:<hr />
just use mac the ripper (freeware) and roxio's popcorn ($50) to 'archive' your originals.....

<hr />


But it would be nice with a one button application, seeing how "archival" has a certain time frame sometimes. I have no idea if this is that program though.

It's funny when you think about it, how far away are we from the "one button" hardware solution? Like the double tape deck recorders, I mean, I'm sure it's out there on some level, but will it ever be a totally accepted product? The only main difference between the two procedures is the DRM, right?
Reply
Click to view mgroup's profile New Member
mgroup
1 posts since
Feb 16, 2005
8. Feb 16, 2005 7:51 AM in response to: bufflo
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
I like MTR and Popcorn myself but let's not quickly condemn Fast DVD Copy. I tried an earlier version of Fast DVD Copy and had problems. But they do give you a free trial of the software before you buy. It allows you to copy & burn one DVD.
But lets give them credit for bringing this product to the MAC and offering a free trial. I wish other software vendors would do this. What good is a trial version if you can't save your work (like Poser).
Give it a try. I will.
Reply
Click to view Xaero's profile New Member
Xaero
13 posts since
Aug 28, 2004
9. Feb 16, 2005 8:04 AM in response to: melgross
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
The time it takes to "dupe" a CD is excruciating, to be quite frank (with Fast DVD Copy). This is on a new PowerBook. While the all-in-one experience is nice, I agree with another poster that MacTheRipper and Popcorn do the job better, with far greater consistency in results.

A DVD I archived in its entirety refuses to play on any machine "normally". I was only able to view the movie using the VLC player. Not good. Same DVD with MacTheRipper and Popcorn, good to go.

But over on the PC side, the grass is much greener. DVD Shrink is considerably faster than anything on the Mac side. Also, DVD Decryptor, well, it does what the title says, and does it well. DVD Shrink gives you a video preview as it rips the DVD and is still faster than the Mac apps. And did I mention those two apps are free? You still need to burn them to DVD with another app, but those are plentiful on the PC side, if not free on most machines sold with burners (like Nero or Roxio's Easy stuff).

I have tried nearly every Mac DVD ripper/burner on VersionTracker and MacUpdate. Check the comments on their forums, too, usually some good feedback.

Lastly, Fast DVD Copy is very overpriced even though it supposedly does a lot with a simple interface. Unfortunately, IMHO, it should be shareware and priced at $20 max, because it does not do what it says it does very well at all. I suppose with that line of reasoning it should be free until it does what it says it does.

My .02.
Reply
Click to view Dimwhit's profile New Member
Dimwhit
84 posts since
Jul 7, 2003
10. Feb 16, 2005 8:30 AM in response to: fribhey
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
Actually, using MTR (freeware), DVD Imager (freeware) and Apple's Disk Utility (free) works great, and you don't pay a dime. Took me 20 minutes from rip to burn on an old G4 PowerMac.
Reply
Click to view T1mac's profile New Member
T1mac
32 posts since
Aug 31, 2004
11. Feb 16, 2005 8:46 AM in response to: Xaero
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
In reply to:<hr />
But over on the PC side, the grass is much greener. DVD Shrink is considerably faster than anything on the Mac side. Also, DVD Decryptor, well, it does what the title says, and does it well. DVD Shrink gives you a video preview as it rips the DVD and is still faster than the Mac apps. And did I mention those two apps are free? You still need to burn them to DVD with another app, but those are plentiful on the PC side

<hr />


Nice post Xaero. You're right, the PC side is vastly better than the Mac software. I've tried Fast DVD Copy for the Mac on a few disks works well but it's really slow. Over 1 hour on a new G5 iMac for a typical DVD. I had a few hiccups on scene changes as well, but this seems to be DVD specific. The good thing is it's really easy to use. Click one button, put in the DVD, rip and then put in the blank, and in an hour or so you're done. I've also tried and DVD2oneX for the Mac, and it is horrible. No ripper, no burner, and it costs $70 US. Neither of these are as good a DVD Shrink for the PC.

One other thing, it's nice that they have dual layer on the new version of Fast DVD, but isn't the Superdrive still only single layer? Second, I can't find dual layer media. From what I understand if you can find it, the cost is $15 - 20.
Tmac
Reply
Click to view Jon Seff's profile Macworld Editorial
Jon Seff
760 posts since
Dec 13, 2000
12. Feb 16, 2005 9:30 AM in response to: T1mac
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
In reply to:<hr />
One other thing, it's nice that they have dual layer on the new version of Fast DVD, but isn't the Superdrive still only single layer? Second, I can't find dual layer media. From what I understand if you can find it, the cost is $15 - 20.

<hr />


Yes, SuperDrives are currently single-layer, but you can buy and internal or external dual-layer drive that will work fine with the Mac. And the media is down to $6-$8 a piece already.

Jon Seff - Senior News Editor, Macworld
Reply
Click to view Xaero's profile New Member
Xaero
13 posts since
Aug 28, 2004
13. Feb 16, 2005 9:38 AM in response to: T1mac
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
In reply to:<hr />
One other thing, it's nice that they have dual layer on the new version of Fast DVD, but isn't the Superdrive still only single layer? Second, I can't find dual layer media. From what I understand if you can find it, the cost is $15 - 20.

<hr />


Thanks for the kind words, T1mac. The thing is about dual layer - assuming you're right on the cost - is that it would be cheaper to simply buy another DVD, assuming you get them at Sam's, Costco, Amazon, or other discounted source.

At least that's how I see it, open to other views. I can pick up most DVDs there for $20 or less. That money is better spent on a "mastered" DVD than a ripped DVD that not only takes a lot of time to burn, but also has the chance of burning wrong and being rendered useless, hence that ~$15 is flushed down the drain.

But not being "up" on all that stuff, I could be wrong on the use of dual-layer DVDs. And yes, I believe you're right on the inability of current Superdrives to not be able to burn dual-layer DVDs.

I'm going to try DVD Imager, suggested by another poster, to see if it is as good as Popcorn. Didn't see any description of it shrinking content to fit on current 4.7GB DVDs, though.

Below is sort of semi-on/off-topic, and perhaps, too well-worn:

On the Mac v. PC thing, I've been wondering if it (speed of things like DVD ripping software, etc.) is a fundamental issue with OS X as opposed to developer problems (not withstanding poor development rendering broken or unusable DVDs).

Windows XP, being x86, and the most popular platform in the world, is extremely well optimized code-wise. I'm hoping that by Tiger, OS X will be more optimized, thereby leveling the speed-field.

I assist many folks who've switched to Mac. They're fed up with XP and frequent down-time with viruses, etc. But the comments have come up, and I can relate having first-hand experience with XP Pro (and below, owning a few Windows boxes), that some things on Wndows are just faster.

For one, Office 2003 (Win) vs. Office 2004 (Mac). Office 2003 is faster hands-down, even on Pentium II based hardware.

Back to DVD software - I have hope that DVD ripping (and other things) on Tiger will rock the speed barrier. I suppose it is good for some long-time Mac-only users to not have experienced the "other" side. But once tasted, i.e., DVD Shrink, Nero, etc., the Mac leaves the desire for the same functionality combined with speed. It honestly pains me to say this.

But on the flip side (there is light in the tunnel), Windows holds no candle to OS X when it comes to BBEdit (altho Edit+ is excellent), AppleScript, flexibility in macro apps, iLife, iWork, availability of QUALITY share/freeware, cleanliness of the OS, and the list goes on.

Regardless of one's feelings toward Windows, the bottom line is that it does DVD ripping and burning better than the Mac.
Reply
Click to view pstys's profile New Member
pstys
4 posts since
Feb 16, 2005
14. Feb 16, 2005 10:08 AM in response to: melgross
Re: Fast DVD Copy adds dual-layer burning, more
It works very well; truly a one-button click-and-forget operation. It does a very good job at compressing oversized (6-7GB commercial DVDs) disks into 4.7 GB, but you will often need to omit bonuses, etc... These will likely fit onto dual-layer disks but I don't have a dual layer burner.
The new movie-only option is very handy.
Recommended.
Peter.
Reply
Go to original post 1 2 Previous Next

Actions

More Like This

Macworld powered by Jive Software's Clearspace ® -1.10.1 (Version: {3}) - Submit product feedback
© Jive Software