Hi. I have two videos I would like to post on YouTube and Google
video, etc. (you can just answer for YouTube if you think there's a
conflict.

1. I have a DVD of a video that I own the rights to. Using Mac the
Ripper on my Macbook, it's easy to rip that to my hard drive. Now, how
do I convert it to something that I'm allowed to upload? In other
words, is there a program that I can open it in and save it out as
something else?

2. I've read some stuff online about improving the quality of the
compression used (some stuff online looks great, some looks horrible).
So, if I have a QuickTime or similar video, what is the best way to
tweak it before uploading it to maximize the chances it looks good.

I'll settle for a few well annotated links. I don't need an entire
volume (but if there's a good book on the topic, feel free to point to
it!) Thanks.

YouTube itself offers the following advice at "Help Center - Making
and Uploading Videos" YouTube, Inc. (2006)
http://www.youtube.com/t/help_makevideo

"What video file formats can I upload? 

YouTube accepts video files from most digital cameras and camcorders,
and cell phones in the .AVI, .MOV, and .MPG file formats.

What's the best format to upload for high quality? 

We recommend the MPEG4 (Divx, Xvid) format at 320x240 resolution with
MP3 audio. Resizing your video to these specifications before
uploading will help your clips look better on YouTube."

There are a variety of approaches that can be used to convert a
Video_TS folder from a DVD to DivX.  First, as you have pointed out,
you need to rip the DVD to your hard drive if the conversion program
requires it.  Then, you need to convert it to the DivX specification
recommended by YouTube.

The most direct way to do this on the Macintosh appears to be using
the program  ffmpegX.  A step-by-step DVD conversion guide and link
for downloading the program can be found at "GUIDE TO VIDEO_TS -> DIVX
CONVERSION WITH FFMPEGX" Major (2006)
http://ffmpegx.com/videots_divx.html.

Alternately, you could use the program "HandBrake," available at
http://handbrake.m0k.org/?page_id=2.  A tutorial is available at
"HandBrake 0.7 How-to" FreeSMUG (2006)
http://www.freesmug.org/tutorial/handbrake/.

If you want to convert to DivX 6, the latest version of the DivX
codec, you would need to apply the following program to compatible
output from either ffmpegx or HandBrake:  "Using DivX Converter" DivX,
Inc. (2006) http://www.divx.com/divx/mac/guides/converter.php.  "Drag
and drop one or more QuickTime movies onto the DivX Converter. You can
convert files files ending in one of the following extensions: '.mov',
'.mpg', '.mpeg', '.mp4', '.avi' and '.divx.'"  If you already have a
QuickTime  or similar video, using this program will most likely give
you the best compression results using the Pro version of the codec
(available, along with the DivX Converter, as a free trial).

I hope one or more of these approaches meet your needs.

Sincerely,

Wonko

Search terms:  divx encode dvd mac

Perfect

perfect

great work.