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How to Convert Your HD-DVD Discs to Blu-Ray
eldavojohn writes "Are you one of the few who boarded the HD-DVD Titanic ship headed to the bottom of ocean to join BetaMax? Fret no longer, friend, simply convert those and pretend like you never invested in the wrong technology! All you need is a Windows machine with a fast processor, an HD-DVD drive, a Blu-Ray burner, 30GB of free disk space, at least, though 40GB or more is recommended and an internet connection to download the software! Or you can sit and be the crazy guy who continues to argue that HD-DVD is the superior technology whether it's true or not."
That's what I thought... unless you've shelled out for 100s of movies, wouldn't it be just more sensible (both financially and time-wise) to sell off your HD-DVD discs (and player) and rebuy them in Blu-Ray format? (The cost of the BR player doesn't count, as you'd have to buy one to watch transferred discs anyway).
Or better still, since their value is already gone, sit back and happily watch your worthless HD-DVD discs like you would have done anyway. Replace them in a couple of years time when the current Blu Ray releases have come down in price substantially.
Sounds better than shelling out for expensive blanks (and a burner, if you wouldn't have been buying one otherwise), especially when you're probably going to have to compress the film down to fit on a single-layer Blu Ray.
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some of the compUSA joints closing up have been unloading BR blanks for as low as $2/each... I just got a ps3 this weekend, finally figured it was safe to pick a format. About damn time.
Well, just make sure you use the BDAV profile (the "dumb" collection-of-videos mode).
Only BDMV (mastered movies) discs are an issue in playing back in standalone machines. Since you're not supposed to be mastering these except to test before pressing, you shouldn't have an issue.
Unless your standalone player supports BDMV on writable BDs.
Why would they need to introduce a new version of the Xbox 360? The HD-DVD player for it was an add-on, external drive. All 360s use DVD as the built in drive and as the medium for games.
"Our opponent is an alien starship packed with atomic bombs. We have a protractor."
And, uh, HD?
Anyone can "stand up for what they believe", but it takes a very brave individual to change what they believe. - Loundry
60Hz (depending on the power source) hum in audio equipment is quite common, and not actually a sign of a bad ground. Removing the ground pin is the wrong way to fix it.
The hum occurs because of an amplified ground loop. A ground loop is formed when the output of a grounded audio device is passed into an amplifier connected to the same ground. Shielded cabling will then ground the chaises of the signal device and the amplifier together, creating a closed loop between the devices and the electrical earth. This closed loop can then build up a 60hz cycle, I believe through induction with the power mains, but have not found a definitive answer. Normally this cycle is not enough to be electrically significant, except it is passed through an amplifier along with the desired signal. Removing the ground pin from one device will indeed open the circuit, preventing the ground loop from being able to cause a hum.
However, as you surmised, disconnecting the ground from an electrical device can be dangerous. The accepted way to open the circuit is by breaking the ground connection between the amplifier and the signal device, generally at the amplifier rather than the signal source. Doing so will essentially eliminate the effectiveness of the cable shielding, but will also eliminate the loud 60hz hum which is generally much louder than any electrical interference you will find. However, the electrical ground of your electronics will not be compromised, saving the equipment and operator from damage in the case of a malfunction.
I'll never make that mistake again, reading the experts' opinions. - Feynman
>> disconnecting the ground from an electrical device can be dangerous. Yeah, I found that out the hard way. Back in my younger and stupider rock band days, I got a nice shock on the lips by playing electric guitar and then singing into a mic. It was an old house that didn't have 3 pronged outlets, so we just got those little grey adapters that defeat the ground. It hummed like crazy, and was a bit too "shocky" for my tastes.
I had a conversation with my electrical engineer father, asking him about what might have gone wrong, and after he was done slapping me for being so stupid, he gave me the exact same informative lecture that's in the parent post.
Shawb, I hope you saved the lips of some young rawker somewhere from an unpleasant surprise. An easy way to sidestep the issue is to use a wireless guitar rig... but that introduces a whole new set of issues.