Hi! I am a newbie here. Just got my sony and had No problems using Nero to burn to a 12 cm disc ONLY THE FIRST TIME- beginner's luck for that first time. However, since then I have tried to burn 3 more discs, but I am losing quality (one only sound/audio quality) another both sound and quality when I transfer from Picture Package to Nero. I already had Nero 7, so did not use Express 6. I called Sony and they suggested I reinstall it. Still having problems. Why should I be losing quality when transferring to the 12 cm disc (all after the first time, but perfect the first try?). The files on Picture Package are fine (both sound and pic quality), but it is the burning process or something. Anyone have same problems? I have used both mini dvd-rw and dvd+rw discs and finalized dvd-rw before trying to transfer (in video mode). Love the camcorder, except this part and cannot afford to purchase all minidvds. THANKS in advance for any opinion or feedback!

In Nero7, open NeroVision.
Click on Make DVD > DVD Video.
Click on the More>> button bottom left, then Video Options.
Under the General tab, make sure Enable Smart Encoding is ticked.
Under the DVD-Video tab, set:
Aspect Ratio - Automatic
Quality Setting - Highest Quality
Sample Format - Interlaced (top field first)
Encoding Mode - Fast Encoding (1 Pass)
Audio Format - Dolby Digital (AC3) 5.1
Click OK
Place 1st miniDVD in drive
Click on Import Disc
Select titles to import
Click OK
Carry on with other miniDVDs until space used indicator shows full, or close to (don't try to cram more on, you should see no red in indicator, delete titles if you do see red)
Click Next
Edit your menu
Click Next
Test play your menu if you want to, click Next
Place blank full size DVD in drive and click Burn.

You don't need Picture Package at all for this (or most other things, I uninstalled mine as it kept crashing the PC)

Regards, Mike

Mike: Thanks so much for all the info! I will try it and see if it works and hopefully it will. I will let you know! I appreciate it!

YOU ARE THE BEST MIKE!! Wahoooo! It worked! To think I spent 2 days fiddling with this, staying up late, messing up lots of dvds and you had the perfect directions all this time! I think I will uninstall the Picture Package too - worthless! Thanks again and hope this helps a lot of other frustrated people!

Glad to be of help. You might also want to have a look at an editing program like Womble mpeg video wizard or Ulead VideoStudio 10+. These allow you to edit your video (cut out bad/boring bits, add titles, add music, commentary, titles etc), then author and burn the DVD. (Authoring a DVD is essentially what you did with NeroVision). Both these programs work well with video off 8cm and 12cm DVD (which not all editing programs do) and both offer free 30 day trials.

Regards, Mike

Mike-I will look into Womble and Ulead. Of the 2 you recommended, do you prefer one over the other and which is more user-friendly? I am a beginner and do not want something too complicated and will wait until I am more comfortable burning/copying successfully. Another quick question - while I did burn the dvds successfully, I notice on 2 that there are very MINOR freezes (2 skips or freeze?)which are not on the original minidvds They are only at the end of the dvds - last few minutes. I only use about 1 GB or 1.2 GB so not squeezing them in. Is this normal or should I have a perfect duplication (I guess I am thinking like a copy machine copying an original, the copy never 100% like the original) Is the same concept here with burning dvds? Just curious. Thanks again for your expertise! Much appreciation,
Rommy

Ulead is probably easier and has more features, but Womble is very fast once you are used to it and runs on low spec PCs. I like and use both depending on what I want to achieve.
The skipping might be an incompatibility between the make and/or type of DVDs you are using and the player. Try some different makes and types (+R, +RW, -R, -RW). I personally find Verbatim works well for me, but YMMV. Avoid the cheapie no name brands, these are more likely to cause problems.

Regards, Mike

Mike- I only use Sony dvds and Sony minidvds. I know a little about formats, but purchased Sony dvd-r 12cm discs. Should I try dvd+r? I have a Panasonic DVD/Audio/Video Playre DVD-RP91 Progressive Scan DVD-RAM Video Playback player which was part of a big package for our big screen when purchased in 2002, so kind of old. It is the only dvd player that appears compatible with all my burned/copied discs. Is Verbatim better than Sony? I guess I just stuck to Sony and they were on sale. Thanks again for your expertise!
Rommy