52.16 = corrupted dvd, 41.09 = clear dvd?

Masters,

This had been bugging me ever since the 42.xx. If I use anything above
41.09, the dvd playback always gets corrupted with funny color squares
(codec problem). But re-installing 41.09 always solves it. Since I watch
dvds quite a lot I am stuck with the 41.09 driver forever.

The software I use to watch dvd is PowerDVD that came with my Hercules
GeForce 3 Ti 200 64MB AGP. It's PowerDVD 3.0 and I never bothered to
upgrade cuz it was free.

Had anyone experienced this and does PowerDVD 5.0 solve the problem? Btw,
this happens even after a clean WinXPPro installation.

===

p3-866
asus cusl2-c i815ep
512 pc133 sdram
quantum fireball hdd x 2
sblive xgamer
2 nic's
hitachi gd-2500 region free dvdrom
silly 4x panasonic cd writer

===

Thanks.

-bron

"Bronney Hui" <> wrote in message
news:bp9jhv$...
> Masters,
>
> This had been bugging me ever since the 42.xx. If I use anything above
> 41.09, the dvd playback always gets corrupted with funny color squares
> (codec problem). But re-installing 41.09 always solves it. Since I watch
> dvds quite a lot I am stuck with the 41.09 driver forever.
>
> The software I use to watch dvd is PowerDVD that came with my Hercules
> GeForce 3 Ti 200 64MB AGP. It's PowerDVD 3.0 and I never bothered to
> upgrade cuz it was free.
>
> Had anyone experienced this and does PowerDVD 5.0 solve the problem? Btw,
> this happens even after a clean WinXPPro installation.

Some card manufactuers choose to put on a TV out chip without inbuilt
Macrovision passthrough protection for use with Software DVD players to
prevent people recording films off the PC. Nvidia where "obliged" to force
this via the newer drivers instead.
This does mean that you can only watch the DVD on the monitor, not the TV,
but also if it thinks a TV is connected you get it on the monitor as well.
Older drivers don't have this "copyright" fix.

> Some card manufactuers choose to put on a TV out chip without inbuilt
> Macrovision passthrough protection for use with Software DVD players

> This does mean that you can only watch the DVD on the monitor, not the TV

Macrovision doesn't affect TVs, only VCRs. This is not the reason for the
problem.

Anyway, IF macrovision had been the problem, it would not have been stating
itself as miscolored squares in the image; macrovision interference looks
quite different (it is rooted firmly in the analog domain, not digital).

The original poster could try to enable/disable hardware acceleration in the
DVD player software and see if that changes anything. Some drivers have
created problems with hardware acceleration in the past.

"Lenny" <> wrote in message
news:TX7ub.34029$...
>
> > Some card manufactuers choose to put on a TV out chip without inbuilt
> > Macrovision passthrough protection for use with Software DVD players
>
> > This does mean that you can only watch the DVD on the monitor, not the
TV
>
> Macrovision doesn't affect TVs, only VCRs. This is not the reason for the
> problem.
>
> Anyway, IF macrovision had been the problem, it would not have been
stating
> itself as miscolored squares in the image; macrovision interference looks
> quite different (it is rooted firmly in the analog domain, not digital).
>
> The original poster could try to enable/disable hardware acceleration in
the
> DVD player software and see if that changes anything. Some drivers have
> created problems with hardware acceleration in the past.
>
>

The problem is that macrovision dosn't get trigged with certainTV output
chips. I don't have such a chip on my card so I don't know what Nvidia have
had to do to screw up software dvdplayers when those chips are present.
Please tell us how the TV output chip can tell the difference between a VCR
and a TV? Nvidia have been forced to screw up the players whenever the
TVoutput chip is being used, but it seems they screw up the players just
becuase the faulty tvoutput chips are present wether anything is connected
or not.

> Nvidia have been forced to screw up the players whenever the
> TVoutput chip is being used

"Forced", how? Nvidia has no DVD-specific hardware acceleration in place on
their chips; the DVD encryption decoding is done entirely in software by the
player program, so no industry player(s) would have any handhold to force
Nvidia to do such a thing.

What's your evidence for this anyway? It sounds highly suspicious to me. I'd
say it's a bug.

Lenny wrote:
>> Nvidia have been forced to screw up the players whenever the
>> TVoutput chip is being used
>
> "Forced", how? Nvidia has no DVD-specific hardware acceleration in
> place on their chips; the DVD encryption decoding is done entirely
in
> software by the player program, so no industry player(s) would have
> any handhold to force Nvidia to do such a thing.
>
> What's your evidence for this anyway? It sounds highly suspicious to
> me. I'd say it's a bug.

No, it's not a bug. Nvidia put this "Protection" into later driver
releases. I have a TV card installed, and if I try to use a driver
newer than 40.72 my DVDs will not play.

Regards

Martin

"Lenny" <> wrote in message
news:7t8ub.34035$...
>
> > Nvidia have been forced to screw up the players whenever the
> > TVoutput chip is being used
>
> "Forced", how? Nvidia has no DVD-specific hardware acceleration in place
on
> their chips; the DVD encryption decoding is done entirely in software by
the
> player program, so no industry player(s) would have any handhold to force
> Nvidia to do such a thing.
>
> What's your evidence for this anyway? It sounds highly suspicious to me.
I'd
> say it's a bug.
>
>

I have only been posting what has appeared on numerous forums sicne the
problem appeared. Just because a PC is being used to play DVD's dosn't mean
that copyright protection can be ignored. Media companies are very vocal at
protecting their copyright and making hardware companies abide by industry
agreements on copyright protection. Macrovison is just an agreed method of
implementing that protection. Some Nvidia based cards have been found to
circumvent macrovison protection when a minority of TV out chips are used.
Nvida had to find an alternative way of doing something similer as
macrovision when such tv chips are found on a card.

> I have only been posting what has appeared on numerous forums sicne the
> problem appeared.

So you don't know do you? You're just assuming?

> Just because a PC is being used to play DVD's dosn't mean
> that copyright protection can be ignored. Media companies are very vocal
at
> protecting their copyright

Except, Nvidia isn't bound by anything to screw up their own products just
on the wish of these companies, and in fact, DVD playback is an advertised
feature of their cards. To intentionally break that would be bordering on
fraudulent. Imagine a car where the firmware update refuses to unlock the
trunk because you could use it to smuggle drugs.

> and making hardware companies abide by industry
> agreements on copyright protection.

They have no leverage to actually do this. Anyway, why worry about people
taping DVDs to a vastly inferior analog format when people just rip them
digitally extremely easily? Your logic doesn't work at all.

> Nvida had to find an alternative way of doing something similer as
> macrovision when such tv chips are found on a card.

What evidence do you have to back this up? Anything at all or just more
guesswork?

"Lenny" <> wrote in message
news:25cub.38216$...
>
> > I have only been posting what has appeared on numerous forums sicne the
> > problem appeared.
>
> So you don't know do you? You're just assuming?
>
> > Just because a PC is being used to play DVD's dosn't mean
> > that copyright protection can be ignored. Media companies are very vocal
> at
> > protecting their copyright
>
> Except, Nvidia isn't bound by anything to screw up their own products just
> on the wish of these companies, and in fact, DVD playback is an advertised
> feature of their cards. To intentionally break that would be bordering on
> fraudulent. Imagine a car where the firmware update refuses to unlock the
> trunk because you could use it to smuggle drugs.
>
> > and making hardware companies abide by industry
> > agreements on copyright protection.
>
> They have no leverage to actually do this. Anyway, why worry about people
> taping DVDs to a vastly inferior analog format when people just rip them
> digitally extremely easily? Your logic doesn't work at all.
>
> > Nvida had to find an alternative way of doing something similer as
> > macrovision when such tv chips are found on a card.
>
> What evidence do you have to back this up? Anything at all or just more
> guesswork?


I suggest you find more places on the Net than just this NG and you might
learn something. No one on any NG is going to go round with a long list of
links to justify their comments. Grow up!

> I suggest you find more places on the Net than just this NG and you might
> learn something.

Dude, my point is it is your claim and I should not have to justify it for
you. Certainly you could do better to back up your own words than ask me in
a snooty tone to go 'learn something'. The reason I asked is because I
haven't seen anywhere on any reputable site (or otherwise I might add) about
Nvidia voluntarily ****ing up DVD playback on cards where macrovision can be
turned off just to satisfy the DVD consortium, so how I'm supposed to find
anything about it is definitely beyond me.

I was wondering wether this was a rumor bounced around amongst a bunch of
noobies as if it was truth, but apparantly that is indeed the case.

> No one on any NG is going to go round with a long list of
> links to justify their comments. Grow up!

*EEEEE!*
Wrong answer, thank you for playing!

Guess it's you who needs to grow up a bit. And dude, drop the attitude next
time, okay?