Use the templates in Vegas, render as one file. This is the easiest method.

weird my post went above yours :)

DVD Architect - multiple, or single files?
 

Vegas has a template for DVD architect and I plan on using it. I've never authored a DVD yet but now it's time to do that finally. Should I render everything as one huge single file, or is it ok to render as a lot of tiny, separate files? It would be MUCH easier to make them separate, but I've read in tutorials that you should make them all one huge file.

Yeah, it's just that that would take me an entire day to render a file like that :|

It would be easier to maybe render 4 separate files since each DVD will have different sections. But if that's not possible, then maybe I'll just have to do two passes of rendering.


Also, I'm having a little trouble with getting the aspect ratio set. I'm using a Canon HD cam but I'm not sure which ratio to use for it to show up as widescreen DVD. I can use the 4:3 method but I think that that would encode the black bars at the top and bottom.

Ok, it looks like I've got the aspect matched. The HD and DVD ratio is a little different so I right clicked on the pan/crop video event window and it cuts off a little of the video but it looks ok, not much lost.

It would be much easier to just have a few different files for the DVD since rendering takes forever. What I can do though is probably just do multiple passes of encoding to save time when it comes time to do an authoring.

I have a side question: What is a good temporary, master format to compress/encode to downscale a bit if I'm working with DVDs? Working with AVCHD is a problem since it takes so long. I was thinking just a good WMV file.

I make everything that plays separately a separate file. So if I had a 1 hour program and a 5 minute bonus, I would render the 1 hour program as a single file and the 5 minute bonus as a single file. You can still add as many chapter points as desired in the 1 hour program and make them menu entries as well.