HOWTO: AVI to DVD Conversion, Part 2: Merging Multiple AVIs

Converting a single AVI to DVD format is easy.

However, if you want to merge multiple files into a single DVD image, you must:

• Convert the AVI files to MPEG:

  for f in $(ls /path/to/season1/{GI_Joe.S1E0*.avi,GI_Joe.S1E1*.avi,GI_Joe.S1E2{0,1,2,3}*.avi}); do \
    g=${f/.avi/.mpg}; g=${g/season1/season1_mpg}; \
    transcode -i $f -y ffmpeg --export_prof dvd-ntsc --export_asr 3 -o movie \
      -D0 -s2 -m movie.ac3 -J modfps=clonetype=3 --export_fps 29.97; \
    mplex -f 8 -o $g  movie.m2v movie.ac3; \
    rm -fr movie.m2v movie.ac3; \
  done; \
  cd /path/to/season1_mpg

• Next, using a more complex dvdauthor.xml file...

  <dvdauthor dest="DVD_Season1_Ep01-05">
    <vmgm />
    <titleset>
       <titles>
         <pgc>
           <vob file="GI_Joe.S1E01.The_Further_Adventures_of_G.I.Joe.mpg" chapters="0,8:00,16:00,21:00"/>
           <vob file="GI_Joe.S1E02.Rendezvous_in_the_City_of_the_Dead.mpg" chapters="0,8:00,16:00,21:00"/>
           <vob file="GI_Joe.S1E03.Three_Cubes_to_Darkness.mpg" chapters="0,8:00,16:00,21:00"/>
           <vob file="GI_Joe.S1E04.Chaos_in_the_Sea_of_Lost_Souls.mpg" chapters="0,8:00,16:00,21:00"/>
           <vob file="GI_Joe.S1E05.Knotting_Cobras_Coils.mpg" chapters="0,8:00,16:00,21:00"/>
         </pgc>
       </titles>
    </titleset>
  </dvdauthor>

  ...merge the MPEG files into a single disc image:

  dvdauthor -x dvdauthor_s1e01-05.xml

• Verify the video and audio will play.

  xine dvd:/full/path/to/DVD_Season1_Ep01-05

• Burn the DVD.

  growisofs -Z /dev/dvd1 -dvd-video DVD_Season1_Ep01-05/

Yo, Joe!