I’ve switched to buying everything on DVD or Blu-ray. It’s the only way to be sure I can watch, for example, Community Season 2 Episode 14 (one of the funniest episodes ever). If you don’t own the physical medium, you’re just renting a stream. No thanks.
JKCalhoun 187 days ago [-]
And then ripping them.
When I hit PLAY I want the movie to start — not FBI warnings, not "previews" (ads), etc.
freedomben 185 days ago [-]
I've been hesitant to do this because DVD is a bit too low quality for my big TV, but I've heard that ripping Blu-Rays on Linux can be a nightmare. Anyone have experience ripping blu-rays on Linux willing to share what it's currently like?
tacotastic 185 days ago [-]
I started ripping on Linux this year and it's honestly been pretty easy, I just use makemkv to rip and it wasn't much trouble to get running. you'll wanna flash libredrive to your drive to rip 4k Blu-rays and iirc it's a pain on Linux but if you've got a windows PC anywhere you can flash it pretty effortlessly and then you don't have to worry about it ever again
asyx 185 days ago [-]
Don’t even need a windows PC. You can do USB passthrough with KVM. Just setup a Windows VM, USB passthrough the drive, do it, through the VM away.
The iso can be downloaded officially from MS, activation is not needed for this.
If it takes more than half an hour on Linux just so it in the VM.
kalleboo 184 days ago [-]
I occasionally rip Blu-rays (1080p, not 4K I hear those are more difficult) just using makemkv inside of Docker running directly on my Synology NAS, it's a piece of cake.
datavirtue 187 days ago [-]
Same here. I backup all DVDs to iso. Don't really care for BluRay because ripping/playing them is a nightmare. I then create MP4s and ingest them into my Plex server. I keep my DVDs stored away in the basement, making me 100% legal. Having your own media server is VERY nice. The ripping process is not straight-forware. Almost impossible to automate.
I would ravage this guy's store.
dnel 187 days ago [-]
During lockdown I ripped my entire DVD collection using makemkv. It's as close to one click as you'll get and works brilliantly. All my DVDs are stored away now and I play them from Plex in full quality.
datavirtue 185 days ago [-]
My main issue is with ripping TV series. The title to episode mapping is all over the place.
voltaireodactyl 184 days ago [-]
Filebot is very helpful for this. There are free utilities too but filebot is pretty fool proof so worth the cost imo.
bluGill 185 days ago [-]
Technically storing ripped DVDs doesn't make the rip legal. However if they try to come after you for that the courts will start questioning the law and so you have a good chance of winning on appeal.
tylerflick 185 days ago [-]
> Don't really care for BluRay because ripping/playing them is a nightmare.
What makes you say this? The only issue I occasionally run into is needing to clean 4k BR discs that aren’t reading well.
hecanjog 185 days ago [-]
They might be doing it on linux. I've had the same experience. Supposedly it's possible! I never managed to get around the DRM nonsense.
ungawatkt 185 days ago [-]
makemkv->mkv->handbrake->mp4 is pretty straightforward for saving media, especially if you don't mess with handbrake much (I just use one settings profile for everything). _Playing_ bluray directly from disk is a PITA because of needing to set up the encryption keys and extra system libraries.
The part that eats my time is converting the subtitles from an image format (vosub/psg) to a text format (srt), since the image formats have never worked well for me on plex. SubtitleEdit is good but it still takes manual managing.
Edit: I forgot about the annoyance of finding a drive that works with ripping software, iirc there's only a couple that will without flashing firmware
loloquwowndueo 187 days ago [-]
DVDs rot after a while. Can’t be sure you’ll be able to watch them indefinitely. Def recommend ripping it and backing up the copy periodically for archival purposes.
cooperadymas 187 days ago [-]
While this is undoubtedly true, the lifetime is almost certainly a multiple of whatever it is on a streaming service. I have working DVDs older than Netflix's streaming service.
loloquwowndueo 187 days ago [-]
Oh I agree streaming is not an alternative if you want to stay in control of your library. Just DVD are probably not great for foolproof long-term archival.
throwaway89201 187 days ago [-]
Burned DVDs rot after a while (and quite inconsistently between brands), but pressed CDs and DVDs – such as retail movie DVDs – barely rot at all.
There have been manufacturing 'incidents' in the past, also with audio CD's. Some of my old Aphex Twin CDs rot because one big UK manufacturer screwed up production in the early 90s.
Gud 187 days ago [-]
I would argue internet piracy is a more sure bet than your DVD collection.
eadmund 186 days ago [-]
I am playing the long game: I want folks to keep on releasing great movies and TV on disc, so I buy great movies and TV on disc.
Tostino 185 days ago [-]
Sucks how much extra effort it is, while paying, to get the same convince of pirating.
It's a great episode. And the dark-elf-face joke is not at the expense of any demographic.
tmm84 186 days ago [-]
Been buying up DVDs and Blu-rays that are cheap of movies I like or have heard a lot about. Experienced the whole no one is streaming it this time so just buying the discs and never looking back has been my thing.
185 days ago [-]
nashashmi 187 days ago [-]
PSA: Your local library has a good collection of DVDs. Go in there and see how they are still relevant. Sometimes the DVDs are free to borrow.
tacotastic 185 days ago [-]
even really poorly funded library networks I've seen in the states tend to have pretty great Blu-ray selections, not just DVDs
daveoc64 187 days ago [-]
Whenever this sort of topic comes up, I always have to give a shout out to 20th Century Flicks in Bristol:
They have a huge library of DVD and VHS for rental!
185 days ago [-]
stewx 187 days ago [-]
There is going to be an interesting breaking point when DVDs and Blu-rays stop being sold mass-market. I think a lot of people will realize the downside of going all-in on streaming.
extraduder_ire 185 days ago [-]
New ones, sure. But there's a thriving retail market of "recycled" optical media being repackaged and sold for cheap in discount stores last I checked. That should stick around for another few years after.
cooperadymas 187 days ago [-]
Many things already don't make it to DVD, unfortunately.
tjpnz 187 days ago [-]
Can't be far off given manufacturing of blu-ray players is winding down.
tuna74 187 days ago [-]
That has already happened in a lot of parts of the world.
bombcar 187 days ago [-]
We had one that finally shut down a few years ago.
The key seems to be if they own the shop they’re operating out of; then they can last quite a while if the owner wants them to.
a2tech 187 days ago [-]
This is an important thing for any brick and mortar business--if you don't own your building, you're always at more risk for rent changing and putting you in bad straits.
Kraftwurm 184 days ago [-]
We're the Last Man Standing in Zurich, Switzerland. We have DVDs and Blu-rays but do not rent them, we only sell.
Many many regular customers, all Fulm Freaks / Nerds.
Our name is LASERZONE because we startet in the early 90's with Laserdiscs.
Come to visit us, when you're in Zurich an mention that you read this comment. We will love you for that!
Just search for DVD, Zürich and you will find us.
They recently had to go through a donation drive to keep the lights on, so it’s worth supporting them.
noisy_boy 187 days ago [-]
As long as they also sell DVD players, I think they stand a chance. The longer they hold out, the more unique they get.
infecto 187 days ago [-]
I hope he does well. On the flip side I cannot help but feel this is one of the greatest times to be a media consumer. I definitely look back and have nostalgia for going to Blockbuster on a Friday to pick out some tapes to watch but it may just be mostly the nostalgia of it all. We have easy access to almost any movie/show you want to watch, this includes lots of media that is outside of the country you live in. It is far from perfect and while there is a minority that prefers to own the disc, I suspect the vast majority of consumers prefer renting or buying digital.
gandalfian 185 days ago [-]
I think it's the resolution that will kill dvd's. 55" TV's are now entry level. A cinefile in ten years may well have an affordable laser projector filling and suddenly see the merits of 4k.
LeoPanthera 185 days ago [-]
"DVD" is usually used as an umbrella term that includes blu-ray and 4K blu-ray.
No streaming service matches the quality of 4K blu-ray, and often they look worse even than regular blu-ray.
gandalfian 185 days ago [-]
Perhaps, thought blu ray is looking a little laserdisc like. Never quite got the mass adoption to stay around and now fading away. It's now hard to buy a cdrom drive without dvd support. But ones without blue ray remains common. Notmto mention second hand dvds are available for pennies on bulk for hoarders ...
There are still plenty of vintage vinyl, cassette, and VHS stores. Lots of runway left for even younger niche markets.
187 days ago [-]
2OEH8eoCRo0 187 days ago [-]
It's sad we can't buy people media anymore. Most don't have a way to play CDs or DVDs!
t-3 187 days ago [-]
Most? I find that very hard to believe. Only the latest generation of consoles and a few late models of the last generation have no disc drives. Plenty of people will still have PS* and Xbox-n with disc drives, not to mention a lot of people will have 30-year-old Walkman CD players and 20-year-old set-top DVD players in their garages that still work. I have several working computers that have working DVD drives. My car still has a CD player. If all else fails, new USB-connected drives are still purchasable for very cheap prices.
infecto 187 days ago [-]
I don't have anything that can play a DVD or a Blu-ray. It is a lot more common than you think. A lot of people don't game or they don't game on console.
onecommentman 186 days ago [-]
New DVD players are available (HDMI) for $30 online. Pick up a couple for the price of a mediocre meal + delivery. Literally plug and play.
infecto 186 days ago [-]
I don't want one and neither do the majority of consumers. Hence why most people don't have media players anymore.
elzbardico 187 days ago [-]
I donate most equipment that I don't use regularly. Most people I know do even worse: They throw stuff away in the garbage.
My old PS4 and XBox-X got donated, and then I bought a discless series-S because I am a casual gamer, and game pass is cheap and good enough for me, as most AAA exclusive games on PS are now woke boring trash.
If my life depended on playing an old DVD I would probably die.
danielbln 187 days ago [-]
There are some real hard truths about not being able to own physical media, but purely in terms of UX, on-demand streaming blows anything else out of the water. I can stream any children's audiobook under the son to my daughter's Bluetooth speaker in a whim, instead of shuffling through a bunch of optical media that break easily, and for my own purposes I don't have to have a physical player, space to store the media, etc.
Maybe the best of both worlds would be to rip everything to a Plex server and have the originals in the basement.
onecommentman 186 days ago [-]
Using the phrase “real hard truth” and “optical media that break easily” in the same post made my eyes cross. Are you referring to glass plate negatives from early 19th C. photography? And storing 400 DVDs in a binder takes about 1 cu ft of storage, and DVD players are $30 and the size of a hardback book.
Your best of both worlds proposal sounds right, though.
scarface_74 185 days ago [-]
Why do you care about buying CDs? Music you pay for has been DRM free since 2009 from all of the stores including Apple’s.
187 days ago [-]
Rendered at 12:41:21 GMT+0000 (UTC) with Wasmer Edge.
When I hit PLAY I want the movie to start — not FBI warnings, not "previews" (ads), etc.
The iso can be downloaded officially from MS, activation is not needed for this.
If it takes more than half an hour on Linux just so it in the VM.
I would ravage this guy's store.
What makes you say this? The only issue I occasionally run into is needing to clean 4k BR discs that aren’t reading well.
The part that eats my time is converting the subtitles from an image format (vosub/psg) to a text format (srt), since the image formats have never worked well for me on plex. SubtitleEdit is good but it still takes manual managing.
Edit: I forgot about the annoyance of finding a drive that works with ripping software, iirc there's only a couple that will without flashing firmware
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_Dungeons_%26_Dragons_...
It's a great episode. And the dark-elf-face joke is not at the expense of any demographic.
https://20thcenturyflicks.co.uk/
They have a huge library of DVD and VHS for rental!
The key seems to be if they own the shop they’re operating out of; then they can last quite a while if the owner wants them to.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarecrow_Video
No streaming service matches the quality of 4K blu-ray, and often they look worse even than regular blu-ray.
My old PS4 and XBox-X got donated, and then I bought a discless series-S because I am a casual gamer, and game pass is cheap and good enough for me, as most AAA exclusive games on PS are now woke boring trash.
If my life depended on playing an old DVD I would probably die.
Maybe the best of both worlds would be to rip everything to a Plex server and have the originals in the basement.
Your best of both worlds proposal sounds right, though.