[MacDV] Any success with mini-DVD on a Mac ?

[Erica Sadun]

>From what I can glean from the 'net, mini-DVD's are video files 
>organized according to the standard DVD file structure but burned to 
>the lower speed CD-R. What you're supposed to get is about 18 
>minutes of pretty snazzy video (better than SVCD, approaching DVD) 
>on a cheap CD-R.
>
>I've tried to do it but my standalone DVD player informs me that all 
>such disks are unreadable in this player (Samsung P421). This 
>Samsung sometimes refuses to recognize my SVCD's too but if I 
>persist by ejecting and reloading the SVCD, it often plays!
>
>Has anyone had any success making mini-DVDs on a Mac and having them 
>play in standalone players ?

It's very easy to make miniDVDs with Toast.

But your player has to be able to play them. Chekc out
the DVD Player compatibility list on dvdrhelp.com

In a nutshell, playing back miniDVD uses different software
than playing back VCD/SVCD, etc. Most players load the VCD/SVCD
software when they detect a CD (different reflectivity. different
laser in some players) and can't handle the miniDVD format. Also,
the spin rate may be too high for some players because the info is
so much less dense on a CD

-- Erica