Quick-Play Menus, the gateway drug to BDedit menu creation. - Page 11

doobre · 6th November 2024, 05:01

My goodness lowpro you really have taken this far beyond the expected. Great work. Cheers CD

Lowpro · 8th November 2024, 05:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by doobre

My goodness Lowpro you really have taken this far beyond the expected. Great work. Cheers CD

Thanks for the kind words and yeah, I've come a long way since my first "Quick-Play" menu with BD Rebuilder. Re-authoring Blu-ray's has become an obsession thanks to BDedit. Great way to pass the time while I'm strapped in this chair here at work waiting for the next support call to come in. In fact, I just finished re-authoring another Blu-ray. Pics of the TOP MENU shown below.

TOP MENU:

(Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP" performs the same action as pressing "OK". Well, only in cases where pressing "OK" would take you up a level within the menu. Navigating "DOWN" is used to return to the previous level of the menu.)

PLAY:

(When selecting "PLAY" and pressing "OK" the above "Resume" prompt is given. The "Resume where you left off" option in this case is greyed out as playback can't be resumed.)

BONUS:

(When going to the "BONUS" page the last menu item played is selected by default. If the last menu item played is contained within a category that category is selected by default. Navigating "RIGHT" at any time takes you to the current default selection.)

BONUS (Resume):

(The above "Resume" prompt is always given if playback of the selected "Bonus Feature" can be resumed, otherwise playback starts from the beginning, no prompt given.)

SCENES:

(When activating the "SCENES" option the last chapter played is selected by default. If no chapter had been played yet the first chapter is selected by default. Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP" at any time moves your selection to the current chapter. Additional pics: Chapters 5-8, Chapters 9-12)

AUDIO:

(When going to the "AUDIO" page the check mark positioned to the right of the menu items calls out the current audio stream for the Feature Presentation. If the movie hadn't been played yet the first menu item is selected by default. Selecting the current stream will automatically take you to the "SUBTITLES" page. Navigating "RIGHT" at any time moves your selection to the current stream.)

SUBTITLES:

(When going to the "SUBTITLES" page the check mark positioned below the menu items calls out the current subtitle stream for the Feature Presentation. Selecting the current stream will automatically take you back a level to the "PLAY" button. Navigating "UP" at any time moves your selection to the current stream.)

Lowpro · 9th November 2024, 20:15

I revisited my re-authoring of "The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996)" last night as I didn't care for how the original disc handled both versions of the film. With the original disc the menus catered strictly to the "Director's Cut" of the film. The "Theatrical Cut" was included as a "Bonus Feature" only, the "PLAY", "SCENES", "AUDIO" and "SUBTITLES" options applying to the "Director's Cut" only. To add insult to injury, the POPUP MENU for the "Director's Cut" was used for the "Theatrical Cut". So when watching the "Theatrical Cut" the "AUDIO" and "SUBTITLES" selections don't apply as the "Theatrical Cut" only includes a single audio track and has no subtitles. The "SCENES" selections don't apply either. Well, they do, but not for the "Theatrical Version" of the film. When making your selection the given chapter from the "Director's Cut" is played instead. Not exactly the best implementation to say the least.

When re-authoring the original disc I also included the "Theatrical Cut" as a "Bonus Feature", but with one big difference. When playing the "Theatrical Cut" I didn't use the POPUP MENU for the "Director's Cut". I used my secondary POPUP MENU instead which provides for returning to the TOP MENU only. That being said, I took the opportunity here to add yet another feature to my "Universal Blu-ray Authoring Template", menu support for multiple versions of a film. The default menus in this case are for the "Director's Cut", the menu background video calling this out now, the "Theatrical Cut" listed as a "Bonus Feature". When selecting "Theatrical Cut" the original disc would immediately start playback of the film. With my version of the disc you're taken to the "Theatrical Cut" version of the menus instead, the menu background video calling this out, the "Director's Cut" then listed as a "Bonus Feature", the "SCENES", "AUDIO" and "SUBTITLES" options also being specific to the selected version. From the POPUP MENU playback of the particular version starts immediately when making your selection, the POPUP MENU when enabled then reflecting that version of the film.
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And here's some eye candy showing both versions of the TOP MENU. Gotta love it when a plan comes together!

TOP MENU (Director's Cut)

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)
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TOP MENU (Theatrical Cut)

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)
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But wait, there's more! I also included the below dedicated Playlist for selecting which version you'd like to watch. The Playlist is displayed the moment you start playback of the disc (if the option is enabled), the included "Always-On" menu providing for selecting which version of the film you plan to watch initially. Once making a selection the playlist for the FBI Warning, Commentary Disclaimer, Shout Studios and Scream Factory video plays after which you’re taken to the TOP MENU. When reaching the TOP MENU, the appropriate menus are used based on the version of the film selected.

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)

The above feature can also be used for "Double Feature" discs. When initially adding the feature there were some limitations in this regard. I've since gone back and rebuilt the feature from scratch. Some structural changes to the template were required. It was time well spent however as the feature now fully supports a given disc including 2 movies with completely different menus. Are we having fun yet!
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But wait, there's even more! I needed to make sure the above also worked in combination with my "alternate" Playlist feature where one can navigate "DOWN" from "PLAY" on Page 1 and press "OK" accessing an alternate Playlist for the current movie or version of the film selected, the TOP MENU in this case being visually confined to the same aspect ratio as the Feature Presentation. It took a while to determine the path of least resistance, but I eventually got both features working together beautifully. Both versions of the film now offer a TOP MENU in 1.78:1 and 2.39:1, the aspect ratio being maintained when selecting a different version of the film from the "Bonus" page. Pics of the 2.39:1 version of the menus shown below. Gotta love it when a plan comes together!

(Click on the preview image above to view the full size image.)

Lowpro · 17th November 2024, 19:56

I authored another Blu-ray yesterday during the process of testing my "Universal Blu-ray Authoring Template". Along the way I added a new feature to the template, the ability to jump directly to a given set of chapters from any of the "SCENES" pages. The implementation is a bit convoluted at present, but works. Next week I'll be rebuilding the feature as I've since come up with a better way to go about things. In any event, pics of my latest Blu-ray adventure shown below, the menu graphics mirroring the original version of the disc, a number of liberties taken along the way.

TOP MENU:

(Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP" performs the same action as pressing "OK". Well, only in cases where pressing "OK" would take you up a level within the menu. Navigating "DOWN" is used to return to the previous level of the menu. If a given set of menu items are arranged vertical navigating "UP" from the top-most item wraps around to the bottom-most item, navigating "DOWN" from the bottom-most item returns to the previous level of the menu.)

PLAY:

(When selecting "PLAY" and pressing "OK" the above "Resume" prompt is given which includes the "Overview" section from the back of the retail cover art. The "Resume where you left off" option in this case is greyed out as playback can't be resumed.)

SUBTITLES:

(When going to the "SUBTITLES" page the filled circle to the left of the menu items calls out the current subtitle stream for the Feature Presentation. Selecting the current stream will automatically take you back a level to the "PLAY" button. Navigating "RIGHT" at any time moves your selection to the current stream.)

SCENES:

(When activating the "SCENES" option the last chapter played is selected by default. If no chapter had been played yet the first chapter is selected by default. Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP", then "LEFT/RIGHT" and pressing "OK" provides for jumping directly to a given set of chapters. Navigating "UP" from there takes you back a level, the current chapter being selected rather than the chapter selected at the time prior to navigating “UP”. Additional pics: Chapters 6-10, Chapters 11-15, Chapters 16-20, Chapters 21-25, Chapters 26-30.)

EXTRAS:

(When going to the "EXTRAS" page the last menu item played is selected by default. The last menu item played can be accessed at any time by navigating "RIGHT".)

EXTRAS (Resume):

(The above "Resume" prompt is always given if playback of the selected "Bonus Feature" can be resumed, otherwise playback starts from the beginning, no prompt given.)
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POPUP MENU:

(Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP" performs the same action as pressing "OK". Well, only in cases where pressing "OK" would take you up a level within the menu. Navigating "DOWN" is used to return to the previous level of the menu. Navigating "DOWN" from the first level of the menu turns the POPUP MENU off. When turning the POPUP MENU off, then back on again the prior state of the POPUP MENU is restored.)

It's also worthy of note that retail Blu-ray's POPUP MENU mirrors the positioning used for the TOP MENU. As a result, the main level of the POPUP MENU is positioned outside the 2.39:1 screen area of the Feature Presentation. This doesn't present an issue if I were to watch the Blu-ray from my plasma display. It would present an issue from my home theater however, as I physically mask my 1.78:1 projector screen down to the aspect ratio of the Feature Presentation. The main level of the POPUP MENU in this case would be projected on my black velvet masking. Well, that's not an issue now as my version of the Blu-ray positions the main level of the POPUP MENU within the 2.39:1 screen area of the Feature Presentation. If you want something done right, do it yourself evidently.

SUBTITLES:

(When going to the "SUBTITLES" page the filled circle to the left of the menu items calls out the current subtitle stream for the Feature Presentation. Selecting the current stream will automatically take you back a level to the "PLAY" button. Navigating "RIGHT" at any time moves your selection to the current stream.)

SCENES:

(When activating the "SCENES" option the current chapter played is selected by default. Navigating "LEFT/RIGHT" wraps around at either end. Navigating "UP", then "LEFT/RIGHT" and pressing "OK" provides for jumping directly to a given set of chapters. Navigating "UP" from there takes you back a level, the current chapter being selected rather than the chapter selected at the time prior to navigating “UP”. )

EXTRAS:

Lowpro · 17th November 2024, 20:02

And here are pics of the secondary POPUP MENU accessible during "First Playback", before and after the "Feature Presentation" is played and while playing a given "Bonus Feature". (See my prior post for pics of the TOP MENU.) Two different versions of the secondary POPUP MENU are available, the "Move GPR2030, x" command executed from MovieObject 1 on First playback determining which version is used. The "Move GPR2030, 0" command provides for setting the position of the prompt per scenario. "Move GPR2030, 1" centers the prompt on-screen against a full screen backdrop.

FIRST PLAYBACK (Proceed to Main Menu):
Secondary POPUP MENU when accessed during First Playback prior to reaching TOP MENU for first time. Pressing "OK" skips directly to TOP MENU. Navigating "DOWN" turns POPUP MENU off.

Version used when value of "0" moved to GPR2030 on First Playback: