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Distributed DVD Back-up Solution?
SoBeIcedT asks: "I just bought the third season of 24 [fox.com] on DVD and have begun to back it up to DVD+R using DVD-Shrink on Windows XP. Being the gadget loving guy I am, it makes sense that I would have multiple computers. The trouble is I can't make use of all of those CPU cycles and they go to waste. Is there a way (perhaps using clusterKnoppix or something of the sort) that I can easily use all of the processor power in my home to transcode the DVDs?" dvd::rip is one option that has clustering support. Are there any others?
DVD and have begun to back it up to DVD+R using DVD-Shrink
Why do people accept this solution? Why is it necessary to use DVD shrink and discard large quantities of data in order to fit a DVD onto another DVD? Am I the only one that sees this scheme as ludicrous?
The main question is, why can't DVD writers write in the DVD format rather than +-RRW? I won't accept the cost argument. If it really was that much more expensive to write in native DVD format, Blockbuster would be stocking DVD+-R instead of DVD's. WTF?
You could take the easy way out. Have each computer rip/transcode a different DVD. Kick them all off at once and walk away.
"An unarmed man can only flee from evil, and evil is not overcome by fleeing from it." Col. Jeff Cooper
DVD::Rip looks really neat. It mentions that the heavy I/O operations are done on the system with the local disk, and that transcoding is done on the agent nodes... though I'd think there's significant I/O involved in the transcoding... has anyone got data on the point at which adding systems really stops helping unless you've got switched gigE? I would imagine that the NFS mount becomes a bottleneck at some point before you get to a dozen nodes.
500GB of disk, 5TB of transfer, $5.95/mo
1. You are presuming he lives in the US, is controled by US laws, and/or gives a shit about the MPAA.
Presuming that he is under US law, last I checked space shifting for your own purposes, particularly backup, was still legal. Many people have ripped their movies for some type of a media server. The origianls are still tucked away in their case, safe and sound, and I have near instant access to all my movies.
2. If the activity is actually illegal, then possibly. Trying to track down some user named SoBeIcedT likely will require more labor then it's worth when there are so many more people that would be simplier to track down (e.g. use their real names in forums). Or going after people who are actively distributing copyrighted material would be a better use of resources.
3. Grey area. Could go either way. If it was just 1 disc, then the court may lean towards giving you the benefit of the doubt. If you had 100 movies that all had their discs lost and you didn't have receipts, it may be harder to still talk your way out of it. But still, their may be other ways to document the circumstances why you don't have the originals (e.g. house fire with supporting documentation).