DVDA Script to Prevent Play Until Play Button Is Pressed

[Douglas Spotted eagle]

In the “End Action,” set it up so that the introductory media either Holds or Loops. This prevents the next component from playing.

Douglas Spotted Eagle
VASST

Certified Sony Vegas Trainer
Aerial Camera/Instructor

[Janet Turner]

Hi DSE –

I don’t seem to have an End Action that allows me to to say hold or loop. My screen for media properties End Action shows

Command
Destination
Destination Item
Destination button
Set audio track; subtitle track
Set video angle

I must be at the wrong place?

Grasshopper

[Douglas Spotted eagle]

In the COMMAND dropdown, you should have:
Hold
Loop
Activate Button

if my memory serves correctly

Douglas Spotted Eagle
VASST

Certified Sony Vegas Trainer
Aerial Camera/Instructor

[Janet Turner]

DSE –

I am using version DVDA 4.5 Build 39 and my only options under Command are Link and Stop. I am linking to the main video Any other ideas? Under General, I have the option of adding a start script but that is about the only thing I see that will let me do what I want to do.

Thank you again for sticking with me on this problem.

By the way it was great to say hi to you at NAB this year! It has been about 5 years since I was last there and I still remember our small gathering back then for the Vegas party. What a difference – the room, the food, and the number of people attending the party was impressive.

Grasshopper

[Don Bloom]

Janet,
just to make sure about the end action, you need to open the file you wish to place the end action on. IOW, when the DVD project is in the work screen open the first play so it shows on the timeline. Now you should be able to goto END ACTION and set it to LOOP-the defaault should be HOLD.
At least it is in DVDA3-maybe things changed in 4.5
Don

[Janet Turner]

Don –

Thank you for jumping in on this. I have the start video on the timeline but under End Action in Media Properties, I still have only two options under End Options Command I have Link or Stop. Pretty weird this option would be missing. It has got to be here someplace if it was like this in an earlier version.

I’m going crazy but with everyone’s help, I know I’ll get better.

Grasshopper

[Edward Troxel]

If you set the intro to hold or loop (even if you had those options which are not there for the start media when I just looked), and you disabled all the various buttons on the remote, how would you ever get out of the intro?

I guess if you really, really, really want to force them to watch it, make it start your intro video when they select a menu option and then link to where the menu button should have gone.

Edward Troxel

[Janet Turner]

Edward –

I did wonder if loop or hold would cause me not to be able to get the main video. Thank’s for clarifying the point.

I wonder how they do it in Hollywood when you put a DVD into your player but you are still on TV input, once you switch to the DVD input, the DVD is just sitting there waiting for you to press enter and you still have to watch all the “Dire Warnings”.

It seems like this should be a start option in the first-play options. Maybe I’ll suggest it to Sony.

Thank you again one and all for your help. It looks like a script would be my only option and I have no experience with it. I left off with Basic and that was many, many years ago.

Grasshopper

[Don Bloom]

why not put the warnings to play AFTER you hit the play button just before “movie”. IOW, set the 1st play “menu” to automatically go to the first menu page and have the play and scene selection buttons there. In either case have it start with the warnings. The 1st play could be a logo or an intro or even (heaven forbid) a preview of coming attractions 🙂
Just a thought.

Don

[Mike Kujbida]

Taking Don’s suggestion one step further, here’s another workaround.
Drop a logo from the video on the main screen so that’s the first thing they see when they stick the disc in.
Put a link to the First Play on this screen. This way, the DVD just sits there and waits until the viewer is ready to hip Play.
Now the sneaky part 🙂
Put the link to the video on this screen but change the Button style to “Text Only” and then delete the text.
This way, it’s hidden from view.
Set the End Action of the First Play to the video and change the Remote Button actions as suggested earlier so the viewer can’t skip past it.