Chapter 1

format. MPEG-4 files, however, can be stored on DVD-ROMs for use on
computers. For example, DivX uses MPEG-4 (see “The NewDivX” earlier in
this chapter).
It’s possible that MPEG-4 or H.264 will be used in a future, high-definition
version of DVD. In any case, it will probably not appear before 2005 at
the earliest. For more about MPEG, see Tristan’s MPEG.org site and the
MPEG home page (www.cselt.it/mpeg).
What’s WebDVD or Enhanced DVD?
WebDVD is the simple but powerful concept of combining DVD content
with Internet technology. It combines the best of DVD (fast access to highquality
video, audio, and data) with the best of the Internet (interactivity,
dynamic updates, and communication). In general, WebDVD refers to
enhancing a DVD with HTML pages and links, or enhancing a web site with
content from a local DVD drive.
WebDVD is not a trademarked term of AOL/Time Warner, Microsoft, or
any other company. Variations on the WebDVD concept are known as iDVD,
eDVD, Connected DVD, and so on. It’s not a new idea; it’s been done on
CD-ROMs for years, but the differences with DVD are that the quality of the
audio and video are finally better than TV, and the discs can be played in
low-cost set-top players.
Almost all WebDVD implementations are currently available for PCs, but
new players are adding WebDVD features. A working group of the DVD
Forum is creating a standardized Enhanced DVD format for set-top DVD
players.
Most major authoring systems (see “Which DVD Authoring Systems Are
Available?” in Chapter 5) include rudimentary tools for adding HTML
enhancements to DVD. For fancier WebDVD development, a variety of tools
are available (see “How Do I Play DVD-Video in HTML, PowerPoint, Director,
VB, and So On?” in Chapter 4).
For more on WebDVD, see Phil DeLancie’s EMedia article, “Untangling
Web-DVD Playback” (www.emedialive.com/r8/2001/delancie2_01.html).
Good examples of WebDVD sites are Mars: The Red Planet, Stargaze, and
DVD Demystified. The authors of these sites (Ralph LaBarge and Jim Taylor)
encourage you to copy their code as a starting place for your own Web-
DVD creations.
What’s a Nuon Player?
DVD’s Relationship to Other Products and Technologies 79
Nuon was a specialized “media processor” chip designed by VM Labs
that was powerful enough to play DVDs and video games. The chip was