Proper Format for DVD

[walkerct]

I am in the process of setting up a HTPC to stream movies throughout house.

I want to begin burning my DVDs to my hard drive and would like to gather opinions on the best format to use. Should I use the native DVD format (.vob) or create images (.iso) or are there other formats recommended by this groups...Thanks.....

 

[Nemo128]

Do you have your software chosen yet? Are you doing a true HTPC with a frontend or just a Windows/Mac PC hooked up to your HT? That will help me better address your needs.

 

[walkerct]

I have not chosen software yet and my goal is to set up a true HTPC. Until I get to that point, I wanted to get a headstart on backing up my DVDs to HD.

 

[Nemo128]

All the good frontends I know of either natively support or use playback components that support DVD images as ISOs. This is far better than VOBs, since the DVD structure is played as if it were being used in a standalone DVD player rather than having to choose the right VOB file. They aren't always ordered the way we expect.

Once you choose your frontend, check ISO support. If it has it, trust me, go with it. Your family and guests will thank you for it.

 

[jinjuku]

In a nutshell .iso...