After installing this module, when you run SongShow Plus, you will see a new database panel. This panel is used to import and organize DVD titles. Before using a DVD, you will need to import one or more of its titles. Importing a DVD title simply catalogs the DVD and titles on your hard drive -- the actual content is not copied to the hard drive. This means that after importing a DVD, to play it back, it is necessary to have the disc in the DVD drive.

Requirements:

SongShow Plus Version 7, October 2006 Edition or later is required to use the latest version of this plug-in.
A third-party DVD player software will also need to be installed in order for the DVD features of this plug-in to work. There are two player software products that are known to be compatible with SSP. One is PowerDVD from Cyberlink (versions 6 and 7 have been tested with SSP), and the other is WinDVD from Intervideo. Intervideo also provides a product called DVD XPack that will work as well. Other players may also work, but none have been tested at the time of this post. Versions 4 - 7 have been tested with SSP.*

Another benefit to installing the third-party DVD player software is that these players will also install an MPEG-2 codec on you system. This will let you then play MPEG-2 video files through SSP (Microsoft Windows XP does not ship with an MPEG-2 codec.)

*Warning about WinDVD: Substantial research by the development and testing team of SSP has revealed that an instability was introduced into the WinDVD 5 product and still exists in it's version 7 product. This instability can cause problems when two MPEG-2 files are played simultaneously on the same system. Research has shown that this affects programs other than SSP as well. Because of this, at the time of this post, only version 4 of WinDVD is recommended as a solution if you also plan on playing MPEG-2 files through your SSP system, or if you expect to play from two or more DVDs within a single SSP program.

Using a DVD in SSP:

DVDs are generally made up of menus and video content. The menus are used to navigate to and play the video content on the disc. The video content, in DVD nomenclature, is referred to as titles.

Before playing a DVD through SSP, you will first need to import a title. This process creates a small file on your system that is a reference to the DVD disc and title number that you will be playing. To do this:

Importing a DVD Title:

In SongShow Plus, select the menu item View > Show DVDs Panel or click the icon.
Click Create / Import From > DVD. This will open the Import DVD window.
Insert the DVD you wish to import.
Click Open DVD. This will open the DVD and let you navigate through it.
Navigate the menu system of the DVD until you reach the title that you want to import.
Enter the name of the DVD in the DVD Name field. This would normally be the movie or feature. This information will be used to create the folder that will contain all titles you import for a particular DVD.
Enter the name of the title in the DVD Title field. You may choose to simply use a name like "Main Feature", or the the name of the special feature you are importing. This information will be used as the file name for the DVD import file.
Click Import. This will complete the import process and return you to SongShow Plus.

You can import multiple titles without closing the window by unchecking the Close this window after importing checkbox.

Playing a DVD Title:

To play a DVD title that you have imported, simply locate it in the DVD database panel, then click the present button next to it. You can also add a DVD title to a program by clicking the blue plus button. As with video files, you can specify a start and stop position, as well as default audio levels (although some titles prohibit this).

Important Notes:

If the DVD is not inserted when the DVD title is opened, then you will be prompted to insert the disc.
When a DVD title is added to a program, it is automatically opened at that time. This means that when you add a DVD title to a program, the disc needs to be in the drive.
If you have only one DVD drive, you can only use titles from a single DVD in the program. Also, you cannot play titles from another DVD until the program is closed.
If you have two DVD drives, then you can use titles from a maximum of two DVDs in a program. Or you can use titles from one DVD in a program and use the other drive for spontaneous use of DVDs. The total number of DVD drives you have installed with your system is the number of distinct DVDs that can be used in a single program.
When a DVD title is playing or cued, it is not possible to also preview other titles on the same DVD in the Inspector Window.
When a DVD title is playing or cued, it is not possible to cue another title on the same DVD. If you are using AutoCue in a program, be sure to insert Blank Slides between each DVD title.
If, while playing a DVD, you manually eject the disc, SongShow Plus will automatically stop the playback. However, it will appear on the media control toolbar that you can still resume playing the DVD (as well as pause and seek). This is not the case. Any attempts to resume play, pause, or seek, will be ignored once the DVD has been ejected. Also, reinserting the DVD is not sufficient to resume play. If you reinsert the DVD and wish to play the DVD Title again, click the blank slide button (this removes the DVD Title file from the media control toolbar), then replay the DVD Title.
It is not advisable to try to import a DVD title while at the same time playing a DVD for presentation. Use of the same DVD drive for both presenting a video and importing a video can result in stuttering behavior in the video that is being presented. This may even be prevented by the module. You can import a DVD without conflict, however, if you use a second DVD drive for the process.

Upgrade Notes:

The 10/2006 upgrade represents the most significant enhancements to this plug-in since it was first introduced. The main enhancements include complete support for DVD menu systems, the capability to use various DVD settings like audio options, the capability to skip past opening titles and menus after a title has been imported, and the support of both 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios. However, please note the following when using DVD titles that you imported using earlier versions of this plug-in:

Titles imported using previous versions of the plug-in will only play in a 1.5:1 aspect ratio.
Titles imported using previous versions of the plug-in will not skip past required opening titles.
If you play a title that was imported using the new plug-in, then play a title that was imported using the old plug-in, some properties of the first title's state may linger when you play the second title, such as audio options (commentary on/off, etc.)

Re-importing these titles will cause them to work with the new features.

History:

07/2008

Updated to be compatible with the July 2008 Edition of SSP.

11/2006

Fixed problem that prevented the setting of start and stop points for some DVD discs.

10/2006

You can now navigate the menu system of a DVD when selecting a title to import. This fixes the problem where, in previous versions, some DVDs were not compatible with SSP.
Additional transport controls are available for the import process (fast forward, fast rewind, chapter selection, etc.)
The DVD state is now stored along with the imported title. This state preserves audio and other options you may have set during the import process.
When you play an imported title from SSP, it will now skip any required opening titles and menus a DVD may have.
16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios are now supported. You are also given the option to clip the letterbox (black horizontal bars) from DVDs that use other aspect ratios.

10/2005

Changes made to accommodate new SSP video effects and crop display properties.

01/2005

Now specifically attempts to use known DVD decoders to avoid conflicts when multiple DVD Players are installed on a system.
Fixed problem with accessing drives as a non-admin user.

06/03/2004

Addressed issues with DVDs that have mandatory beginning titles.
Fixed problem with Backup / Restore utility.
Fixed a few bugs.

12/29/2003

Original Release

DVD Support for SSP