Creating a Menu-Less Video DVD from the Linux Command Line

This guide creates a playable video DVD compatible with standard DVD players. It focuses on a menu-less DVD where the first title plays automatically, and you can use chapter skip buttons to jump to subsequent titles.

Since you're familiar with K3b for burning, we'll generate an ISO image that you can open and burn directly in K3b.

Required Tools

• ffmpeg – for converting videos to DVD-compliant format
• dvdauthor – for authoring the DVD structure
• genisoimage (or mkisofs) – for creating the ISO

Step 1: Convert Videos to DVD-Compatible MPEG-2

DVD video must be MPEG-2 with specific parameters (e.g., 720x480 for NTSC or 720x576 for PAL).

Example commands (adjust for your region and aspect ratio):

ffmpeg -i input1.mp4 -target ntsc-dvd title1.mpg
ffmpeg -i input2.mp4 -target ntsc-dvd title2.mpg

Use -target pal-dvd for PAL regions.

Step 2: Author the DVD Structure (Menu-Less)

Option A: Separate Titles (Chapter skip jumps between videos)

Create a file named dvd.xml:

<dvdauthor>
  <vmgm>
    <menus>
        <video format="ntsc" aspect="16:9" />
    </menus>
  </vmgm>

  <titleset>
    <titles>
      <pgc>  <!-- Title 1 -->
        <vob file="title1.mpg" />
      </pgc>
      <pgc>  <!-- Title 2 -->
        <vob file="title2.mpg" />
      </pgc>
    </titles>
  </titleset>
</dvdauthor>

Then run:

dvdauthor -x dvd.xml -o dvd_folder/

Option B: Sequential Playback (Title 1 → automatically Title 2, as chapters)

For automatic continuation:

<dvdauthor>
  <vmgm />
  <titleset>
    <titles>
      <pgc>
        <vob file="title1.mpg" />
        <vob file="title2.mpg" />
      </pgc>
    </titles>
  </titleset>
</dvdauthor>

dvdauthor adds a chapter mark at the start of each file.

Add manual chapters: chapters="0,5:00,10:00" (times in seconds or HH:MM:SS) inside the <vob> tag.

Step 3: Create the ISO Image

genisoimage -dvd-video -o mydvd.iso dvd_folder/

Step 4: Burn with K3b

• Open K3b.
• Choose Burn DVD ISO Image (or similar).
• Select mydvd.iso.
• Burn at low speed for best compatibility.

Additional Notes

This creates a simple, menu-less DVD that auto-starts the first video and allows chapter skipping to the next.