[bossmonkey]

i notice when i use the 'frame grab' feature in PowerDVD that the resultant image file is worse quality than the 'freeze frame' i see in PowerDVD. (the captured image features 'jaggies'/stairstepping i do not see in the freeze frame in PowerDVD)


- why is this?


- how do i fix it?


thks!


about the photo included:


i PAUSED PowerDVD 3.0 (photos on the RIGHT). i then did a screen capture using PowerDVD, and opened the resultant .BMP file (photos on the LEFT).


i took a photo of my monitor while BOTH these images were displayed at the same time on my monitor.

http://homepage.mac.com/zoom/mummy.jpg


PowerDVD "Live" , but PAUSED on RIGHT


PowerDVD "framegrabbed" file on LEFT (Yuckk!)



my system:

pentium4 1.5GHz

ATI 32MB AGP Radeon


PowerDVD 3.0 OEM

Windows 2000 Pro

DirectX 8a

 

[JasonX]

Looks like PowerDVD just has a poor screen-grab functionality. Have you tried something like HypersnapDX or some other screen-grab software?


Jason

 

[Bjoern Roy]

Yup, PowerDVD screenshots always had terrible scaling artefacts, yuck.


At least in the older versions. In PDVD4XP, you can choose to either capture at the original size (720x480) or scaled to the output resolutions. The former is what it should have been like from the beginning. If you want to scale the image, use Photoshop or similar.

But i recommend not using PDVD screenshots directly anyway, but rather taking Hypersnap. As an external tool, it provides a fair basis for comparing the quality of different DVD software decoders.


The reason i say 'fair', is that Hypersnap captures/grabs the images directly from the relevant DirectDraw surface, which means they represent real-time performance, untouched. A DVD programm that features a dedicated screenshot option could implement improved precision in its own screenshot algorithms, that aren't available under realtime conditions.


Regards

Bjoern