BleepingComputer.com: How do I tell if a DVD is read-only?

I just want to know how to tell if a DVD is read only. I was ripping a few DVDs that I bought with Handbrake, and all of them turned out to have extremely garbled video and audio. I read that ripping a homemade DVD can damage it. The DVDs I bought where from a retail store, so they aren't bootlegs. But I still want to make sure. I played some of the DVDs for a few minutes and they worked fine.

This post has been edited by MalwareWarrior: 29 January 2012 - 11:12 PM

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I've ripped hundreds of homemade DVD's, haven't ruined one yet.
I don't think Handbrake will rip copy protected DVD's, (Can someone confirm this?)
maybe the DVD's are copy protected.
Or, maybe try a different Handbrake preset/output setting, to see if that makes a difference.

I've stopped using Handbrake for a while, and I'm just worried if my DVDs are damaged because of the unsatisfactory results.

Like 12x48y I can't believe you'd damage a recorded DVD (whether DVD+R, DVD-R, or ReWritable) by "ripping" it. When you "rip" a DVD you merely read the data off the disc. This is what they were made for. Same laser, same power, the computer just does something different with the data.

I had the same thought about copy protection, which would make sense if you bought a commercial DVD from a retail store.

Thank you for clearing that up. I wasn't ripping a homemade DVD, btw. I was just worried about my commercial DVDs that I bought.

I have ruined DVD/CD "burners" by ripping. Especially using EAC in Paranoid mode.
I usually go through one DVD burner per year. LOL

Anyway . . .

A good example would be a vine on a trader website. (Legal content of course) The cd/dvd is passed from person to person via snail mail, each person copies the content, and mails it to the next person on the list. So the cd/dvd is ripped (copied) many times.
The DVD suffers only from poor handling, but not from ripping.

If the DVD is not copy protected, you should be able to copy the VIDEO_TS folder to your PC, no problem.
With the DVD in the drive, go to "My Computer" right click the dvd drive, click "explore" right click the VIDEO_TS folder,
"Copy" then paste to a place on your hard drive. If it won't copy, play, or, if the VOBs are garbled, then it's copy protected.

12x48y, on 31 January 2012 - 08:03 AM, said:

The drives, yes. The lasers have a limited life and lose power with extended use. My computer is on its 4th and 5th drives, right now. And running EAC on Paranoid is a great way to use up a laser's life -- heck, you might even burn out the bearings on the with the "right" source CD!

I've learned that if I can't get it on the "Medium" setting ... well, additional copies of the source CD are almost always easier to find than a drive is to install.

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Learned that the hard way.

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That is the correct way. But when they say "you must re-offer" then I must do my best to create a perfect copy.

I prefer data Flac, or Shorten trades, over audio cd's.

Take care
Mark

You'd be surprised how many DVDs out there are impossible to rip with just a regular DVD ripper. Now, if what 12x48y said about copy protection is true, then that means Ratatoing (Yes, it's a knockoff) has copy protection. What's sad is that it's mostly Disney movies that have the protection. (I.E. Hunchback of notre dame 2, Cinderella, Fantasia, etc) These are all ones i've tried with Magic DVD Ripper and Handbrake and they all came out with glitchy video and audio, so the copy protection theory makes sense.

This post has been edited by MalwareWarrior: 06 February 2012 - 07:33 PM