Step 4: Burning to DVD
Your consumer editing package should have rendering and burning in one step. One click of a button should render the movie and burn it to your DVD.
Separate DVD Creation Programs
However, if burning DVDs isn't part of your editing software then you can use different software to burn DVDs. You use your editing program to capture, edit and render. The you use a DVD creation program like Ulead DVD Studio or Roxio Media Creator to burn the rendered file onto a DVD.
These programs will also allow you to make DVD menus. Instead of the DVD just playing as soon as you insert it into the player, you can make a menu with a play button. The DVD will stop at the menu and won't continue until you hit the play button.
Most of these programs are very simple to use. Open up the program. Import the movie file. Choose from pre-selected menus or customize your own. Click burn to DVD.
DVD Burners
DVD burners are cheap. The new dual-layer DVD rewritable drives can be purchased retail for around $80 and even cheaper online.
Make sure that your burner can burn both DVD-R and DVD+R formats. What's the difference? We're really not sure technically. Basically, it's like the VHS/Betamax standards. One company owns the DVD-R standard. Another company owns the DVD+R standard. Whichever standard ends up being widely accepted will make that company alot of money.
All the new DVD players (within the last 4 years) play both formats. The very first DVD players that came out will only play DVD-R.
DVD Labels
DO NOT put labels on your DVDs. Most people like to print out a nice label for their DVDs. This is great for CDs but the recordable coating on DVDs are more touchy.
Information is written by laser onto the silver/blue coating on the DVDs. Paper labels heat up in the DVD player and melt this coating at a non-detectable level. You won't be able to see the damage with your eye, but when you try to play the DVD after while, it starts freezing and skipping.