React OS 1 yr later | Encoding with DivX 6.02 ! ;)

React OS is a little something I did on Christmas Day a year ago. And there has been two releases (0.2.6, 0.2.7) since then. React OS got Unreal Tournament and Mozilla to work via software acceleration. It has potential to replace Windows by 2007. ReactOS needs to come with an Active X Binary to view web pages in Mozilla Firefox. If you download the install ISO you get a partition otherwise the LiveCD will allow the desktop to show and it’s suppose to read the Windows file system. Note that Windows 98SE installation CD used approx 400 MB. One day ReactOS will be fully compatible with Windows complete with 50+ programs! I may have to waste a CDR just to check out the improvements.

Last night I had Dracula encoded in DivX 6.02 at 1140 kbps 720x480 with 160 kbps MP3 ripped via 1 Click DVD Ripper. DivX 6 now supports AAC which is a good thing, but I’m thinking less plugin problems using the default mp3 option. Haven’t made a DivX movie since February! My parents own these movies and this way I get my free copy! DivX looks comparable to the NTSC version. That’s why next generation systems shall use MPEG4 pt 2. Blu-ray supports Microsoft’s VC-1 (a super set of Windows Media Video 9). Xbox 360 VC-1 will be the testing grounds for Blu-ray / HD-DVD video. VC-1 has better quality : compression ratios than DivX 5 from what I’ve read on forums. My way is to compress the movie in real time instead of “dumping” uncompressed video on the HDD. Converting took several hours, but what the hay….got the time for it & still can fit 3 movies per DVD and I have 150+ of them DVDs. : -D

VC-1 is the official video codec of Xbox 360, Blu-ray Alliance, and HD-DVD Alliance. They all like Microsoft’s work……even Microsoft likes Microsoft’s work. LOL!

VC-1 Stats

Simple

Low
max bit rate = 96 kilobits per second (Kbps)
176 x 144 @ 15 Hz (QCIF)

Medium
max bit rate = 384 Kbps
240 x 176 @ 30 Hz
352 x 288 @ 15 Hz (CIF)

Main

Low
max bit rate 2 megabits per second (Mbps)
320 x 240 @ 24 Hz (QVGA)

Medium
max bit rate 10 Mbps
720 x 480 @ 30 Hz (480p)
720 x 576 @ 25 Hz (576p)

High
max bit rate 20 Mbps
1920 x 1080 @ 30 Hz (1080p)*

Advanced

L0
max bit rate 2 Mbps
352 x 288 @ 30 Hz (CIF)

L1
max bit rate 10 Mbps
720 x 480 @ 30 Hz (NTSC-SD)
720 x 576 @ 25 Hz (PAL-SD)

L2
max bit rate 20 Mbps
720 x 480 @ 60 Hz (480p)
1280 x 720 @ 30 Hz (720p)

L3
max bit rate 45 Mbps
1920 x 1080 @ 24 Hz (1080p)*
1920 x 1080 @ 30 Hz (1080i)
1280 x 720 @ 60 Hz (720p)

L4
max bit rate 135 Mbps
1920 x 1080 @ 60 Hz (1080p)*
2048 x 1536 @ 24 Hz

Today, I decided to convert most of my MP3s into WMA9 at nearly half the bitrate with the help of dBpowerAmp. Very nice program dude. The audio can’t sound any worse than it already is. I wish there was an option where it does half the bitrate for each one that probably won’t happen. 73 kbps WMA encoded with WMA professional sounds like a 128 kbps mp3. The only thing keeping me from mass converting MP3 files is there’s plenty of hard drive space on them. AAC is difficult pear 2 pear clients these days.

In other news I found a bunch of discs in my Jeep and one of them was my missing Knoppix 4.0.1 DVD I use for Linux Desktop since 09/05. That’s the free Linux with tons of free tools. I was happy again!