Apple Compressor 2 - Manual (Page 29)

Chapter 2 The Basic Transcoding Workflow 29
After you have created a setting, you can further customize it with additional adjustments
such as filters (to adjust image quality), pixel size (geometry values), and post-transcoding
actions. These additional adjustments are all managed in the Inspector window. See
Chapter 14, “
Adding Filters to a Setting ,” on page 185 and Chapter 15, “ Adding Frame
Controls, Geometry, and Actions to a Setting ,” on page 195 for more information.
Choosing an Output Format
Choosing an output format is the first decision you need to make once you’ve
decided to transcode a source media file. You choose an output format based on the
intended playback method for the audience. Compressor gives you access to the
following industry-standard formats, all of which have their own particular attributes:
 QuickTime: Intended for use with QuickTime in a variety of playback environments.
Because QuickTime is cross-platform multimedia technology, it allows Mac OS and
Windows applications to capture and play back video, audio, and still-image files.
For more details on the QuickTime format, see Chapter 12, “
Creating QuickTime
Movie Output Files ,” on page 163.
 MPEG-1: Intended for Internet, CD ROM,. and specialized DVD use. For more details
on the MPEG-1 format, see Chapter 9, “ Creating MPEG-1 Output Files ,” on page 115.
 MPEG-2: Intended for standard and high definition DVD use. For more details on
the MPEG-2 format, see Chapter 10, “ Creating MPEG-2 Output Files ,” on page 127.
 MPEG-4, Part-2: Intended for a variety of uses including the web or wireless devices.
For more details on the MPEG-4 format, see Chapter 11, “ Creating MPEG-4 Output
Files ,” on page 153.
 H.264: Intended for a variety of uses including HD-DVD. For more details on the
H.264 format, particularly for authoring HD-based DVDs, see Chapter 8, “ Creating
H.264 DVD Output Files ,” on page 109.
 Dolby Digital Professional. Also known as AC3. Intended for DVD authoring. For
more details on the AC3 format, see “ Creating Dolby Digital Professional Output
Files ” on page 93.
 AIFF: Intended for audio use (including DVD or CD authoring). For more details on
the AIFF format, see “ Creating AIFF Output Files ” on page 180.
 TIFF: Compatible with a wide range of compositing and image processing
applications. For more details on the TIFF format, see “ Creating TIFF Output Files ”
on page 183.
Note: Compressor and QuickTime can also be extended to support additional codec
options and third-party formats. The QuickTime Export Components feature allows
you to control the third-party encoding engine without having to open another
application. For more information, see “
Creating QuickTime Export Component
Output Files ” on page 177.