Using still assets that are not dvd-compliant, Using dvd-compliant assets, About the parse files – Apple DVD Studio Pro 4 User Manual
Page 200: About segmented mpeg files
This method of configuring encoding settings for specific assets allows you to customize
how the integrated MPEG encoder gets used in your project. It also makes it possible to
have a mixture of assets with different encoding requirements (such as some that use
the 4:3 aspect ratio and others that use the 16:9 aspect ratio).
Using Still Assets That Are Not DVD-Compliant
You can add still assets in any format supported by QuickTime to a slideshow or a track.
DVD Studio Pro automatically converts them to the MPEG format once you start the build
process. It creates an MPEG folder in the location specified in the Destinations pane of
DVD Studio Pro Preferences. See
for details on setting up this
preference.
Using DVD-Compliant Assets
When you import supported assets that are DVD-compliant, they are left in their original
locations with no processing (other than the parse file being created, as described in the
next section).
About the Parse Files
To use an asset in a project, DVD Studio Pro needs to know some general information
about it, such as its length, type, and integrity. Video assets encoded within DVD Studio Pro
can include this information in the encoded files, or can create separate files for it. Assets
encoded by Compressor outside of DVD Studio Pro can include this information if you
select the “Add DVD Studio Pro meta-data” option in the Extras pane of the Encoder
settings.
Assets encoded with other encoders, or with the “Add DVD Studio Pro meta-data” option
deselected when using Compressor, must be parsed before DVD Studio Pro can use them.
Parsing creates a small file, with the same name as the video asset and a “.par” extension
that contains the required information. The parse file can take from several seconds to
several minutes to create, depending on the size of the asset file.
See
for details on setting up the parse file preference.
About Segmented MPEG Files
The segmented MPEG files created by some third-party encoders do not import correctly
into DVD Studio Pro. Some encoders segment their large encoded files into 1 GB files.
When imported into DVD Studio Pro, only the first 1 GB segment is imported. You need
to append the files into a single file before importing the asset into DVD Studio Pro. There
are several third-party applications that can be used to append a segmented MPEG file
into a single file.
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Chapter 11
Importing and Managing Assets