Rating: 
Summary: EXCELLENT BOOK!!!!!!!
Review: I have had www.thedigitalbits.com as my homepage for the past 3 years. Bill & Todd & the rest of the bits staff put a lot into this book to help newbies & veterans of dvd's with whats what & whats to come for the format. I love the section on Aspect Ratio's & the whole Widescreen vs Full Frame debate. Why anyone would still want to watch movies in the awful, disgusting, flawed full frame is beyond me!!! When DVD first came out, they were all WIDESCREEN, but now the big studios feel they need to bring out full frame discs too. Just to make more money. Widescreen/OAR/1:85:1/2:35:1 (Original Aspect Ratio) is the filmmakers original version of the film, the WAY IT WAS MEANT TO BE SEEN!!!!! Not cropped, chopped & squeezed into a 4:3 full frame to make you miss up to 60% of your movies!!!!!! The special section on the upcoming 9-Disc Alien Quadrilogy we frequent bits website visitors were told about months ago was well worth the price alone. Several reviews on the best DVD's ever made are also included. Overall the best guide/book/manual on the history of DVD, the present of DVD, the future of DVD, anything you need to know about buying & setting up a Home Theater system in your living room, dozens of different reviews on different genres of films & a lot more!!!!! Keep up the EXCELLENT JOB Bill, Todd, and the rest of the Bits Crew!!!!!! Cant wait for your next book!!
Rating:
Summary: EXCELLENT BOOK!!!!!!!
Review: I have had www.thedigitalbits.com as my homepage for the past 3 years. Bill & Todd & the rest of the bits staff put a lot into this book to help newbies & veterans of dvd's with whats what & whats to come for the format. I love the section on Aspect Ratio's & the whole Widescreen vs Full Frame debate. Why anyone would still want to watch movies in the awful, disgusting, flawed full frame is beyond me!!! When DVD first came out, they were all WIDESCREEN, but now the big studios feel they need to bring out full frame discs too. Just to make more money. Widescreen/OAR/1:85:1/2:35:1 (Original Aspect Ratio) is the filmmakers original version of the film, the WAY IT WAS MEANT TO BE SEEN!!!!! Not cropped, chopped & squeezed into a 4:3 full frame to make you miss up to 60% of your movies!!!!!! The special section on the upcoming 9-Disc Alien Quadrilogy we frequent bits website visitors were told about months ago was well worth the price alone. Several reviews on the best DVD's ever made are also included. Overall the best guide/book/manual on the history of DVD, the present of DVD, the future of DVD, anything you need to know about buying & setting up a Home Theater system in your living room, dozens of different reviews on different genres of films & a lot more!!!!! Keep up the EXCELLENT JOB Bill, Todd, and the rest of the Bits Crew!!!!!! Cant wait for your next book!!
Rating:
Summary: Great book and Great Site
Review: I have to they did a great job on this book. I love the site and the book is great as well. A great amount of time and work was put into the book and it shows. This is a great book for all,especially new DVD users.But it still has great info for hardcore fans as well. I know that I will be letting friends know if they want to learn about DVD, to go get this book and check out your site as well.It is kind a like a special edition book version or companion piece to your site.
Rating:
Summary: This book is awesome!
Review: I just finished reading it and it is a great read! It's great for newbie DVD'ers and diehards alike. It's funny and informative, I reccommend it to everyone.
Rating: 
Summary: Not worthwhile
Review: I visit thedigitalbits website daily and I looked forward to this book. However, there were times when I wondered what exactly made these authors experts on the subject of dvds. Most of the information in the book is common knowledge, anyone with a disc player would already know more than half of the information presented in the book. Another problem with this book is that the information will be horribly dated in less than a year. There are always new releases and rereleases and special editions and box sets coming out, and to include a top list of dvds is a truly futile effort best left to websites where the list can be constantly updated. The website has a serious cashflow problem (they remind visitors of it every day) and I see the book as a quick and lazy way to earn some cash. Is the new Alien boxset any more interesting to read about than say, the new Star Wars boxset due sometime next year?? No. Leave writing books to authors and stick with what you do the best, running a wonderful website.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Up to Expectation.
Review: I would have to agree with the review done by the reader from Maitland, FL United States. My main intention to get this book is to learn more on the "Technical Information" such as in-depth explanation on Progressive Scan, Vertical/Horizontal Resolution, PAL vs. NTSC, etc. Unfortunately, it lacks such useful details. Instead of discussing & explaining more on the DVD technology, features & benefits, a huge DVD movie lists are reviewed instead. Furthermore, the comprehensive review of the 9-Disc Alien Quadrilogy is included which it's way too long & unnecessary. The only interesting areas are in Part 1 (Understanding DVD), Part 2 (Building a Home Theater) & Part 5 (The Future of DVD). The section on Aspect Ratio, Widescreen vs Full Frame, various sound formats, etc which are informative for newbies. Also, the part that explains the latest technology, such as DVD recorders and the new SACD and DVD-Audio high-resolution music formats is very revealing. In conclusion, this book is concise & suitable for all DVD newbies (no, it's not boring at all!) but for the rest of us, our thirst for additional technical aspects isn't satisfied. Well, it's certainly worth adding this book into your current DVD book collection (just like your DVD movies) or simply to show off that you own the latest DVD book available in the market!
Rating:
Summary: Great Information from Great People
Review: I've been following the reviews and information posted about DVDs and DVD-related materials from these guys on their website for about 3 years now, and I cannot tell you how excited I am that they've started writing books as well. Hunt & Doogan convey a wealth of information that is informative to people with all levels of experience. I sincerely hope they keep up the good work!
Rating:
Summary: Useless book on DVDs
Review: If you are going to buy this book looking technical infomation concerning DVDs, forget it. This book is more like a review of movies DVDs, talking about released DVDs and the upcoming Aliens DVD set. In fact,less than ten pages are devoted to discussing technical aspects of DVDs. All things considered, this a waste of money, time and effort on a book dealing with the trivial aspect of DVDs. You are much better off reading FAQ DVD on the Internet.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for n00bies AND pros
Review: If you've ever tried to explain to your friends how DVD works, what equipment they should buy, or why there are little "black bars" on the bottom of the screen, of if you've ever tried to convince your parents to get a widescreen instead of a 4:3 DTV, this is the book for you. Also, if you've ever wondered what all these Surround Sound modes mean or what anamorphic means, this is the book for you. Finally, if you've ever wondered what equipment or DVDs to buy, this is the book for you. Anyone building a home theater or DVD collection should start at this book before making purchases you won't be happy with! There is also a discussion of all the new Audio standards like DVD-AUDIO and SACD, as well as the next generation of DVD, HD-DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Informative but padded
Review: The authors did a great job of laying out all the technical info on how DVDs work and are produced in an informative yet entertaining way. Here are some of the ares covered: - The evolution of the format
- How DVD works
- What aspect ratios are and why they're important
- Explains the different sound formats on DVD
- Explanation of Region Codes The great thing about this information is it's either in the past or standard to DVD so it's not likely to change. This will be useful info through the life of the DVD format. Next on the list is a discussion on setting up a home theater. Everything is covered from recievers, speakers, DVD player, TV even the cables you'll need and best style of room. They're honest in how much this is going to cost and separate the guidelines into four price ranges. It helps to keep the book current in passing years by not talking about specific brands, but features that are important. As a way of describing the process of how a DVD special edition is created, the book then goes into an in-depth interview with the creator of the ALIENS QUADRILOGY set due later this year. It's a fascinating look at the hard work and amount of time invloved in creating a truly comprehensive set. Some might find it a bit distasteful that this section is all about a specific DVD, but in focusing on one you get a full picture of the process. After all this great information we get the least helpful (and by far the largest) section of the book - DVD reviews. They offer things like the best DVD sets ever, best sci-fi movies on DVD, best dramas on DVD etc. All this information though in-depth can be found on their web site and many others for free. I read 4 or 5 of these and skipped the entire section. The book redeems itself near the end when it discusses teh future of DVD. Namely HD DVD, recordable DVD and high resolution audio. This section helps you get a handle on the near future of the format, but is also the sectin with the thinnest information since they of course can not predict the future. I'd reccomend this book to those interested in creating a home theatre and those interested in learning a bit of the technical side of the DVD format. The book is most hurt by the lenghty DVD reviews that add little to the books value but much to it's length.
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