Handbrake seems to work!

For a while, people have been touting one piece of software or another for converting MKV video files to other formats more compatible over all. Up to now, I had been using MKVToolsnix to figure out the streams in the file, MediaCoder to tell me the stats of the audio and video streams, making an AVI, then go back extracting the subtitle data, and using AVIRecomp to make a hard subbed AVI.

However, I can use hard subbed MP4 video as well for my purposes. And until I tried Handbrake, I would have stuck to my AVI process.

Here's how to get compatible hard subbed MP4 video.

1. Install VLC 1.1.8 - at least this version for some reason. One guide recommended it.
2. Get Handbrake's install for Windows.
3. Install .NET Framework 4 for Windows (it works on XP). This takes a while but once you have it, you're done.
4. Minimum video resolution for your display for Handbrake to work is 1024x620, otherwise it will complain.
 5. Get a damn MKV. It can even be the 10-bit crap floating around. It's best not to have OGG audio, because it doesn't always convert right. AAC and MP3 work just fine.

Now, you'll have to tell Handbrake to automatically rename the new file with the new extension and where to put them. This is under something like Tools - Options.

Once you have an MKV file opened in Handbrake, here's what I've found works very well for me:

Source Title 1. Length change to Seconds, 0 to (end). The end number will always be the maximum length of the file in seconds. You do not want Chapters.

No need to check Large File or Web Optimized (which is for the h264 profile anyway), but if you need it Web Optimized which allows for progressive download and play, go ahead and check it. I have not checked this, but I do have files like this.

OK, now into the bottom box for things.

Video - Size 720x400. Keep Aspect Ratio. Anamorphic: Custom. Modulus: 16 (It's 16 by default anyway).
Display Width 720. You can't change the rest of this column. Cropping - Custom, but set all to 0, which is the default value.

Filters - none. You may need these at some point, but in general I haven't needed them yet.

Next tab is on compression. 
Video - MPEG4 (ffmpeg). You can choose other profiles though for other purposes.
You want Constant Frame Rate here - Same As Source.
Quality - set to Average Bitrate, 1500, 2-pass. This should be high enough for 720x400 video and have it without being crappy. I have no need at the moment for 1280x720 or anything like that.

Audio - Source - Japanese. You can try passing the AAC through from the source. There's some nice Dolby and Surround options for that, but in general I stick to output in MP3 (LaMe encoder), Stereo, 48K, 128 kbps. If the source is known to be Ogg audio, you may have to pull the stream out and convert it properly with Audacity. I have found this works very well.

Subtitles - yes, even though the stream is in the MKV, if the stream data is there you still have to add it in. Otherwise you can produce a raw for other purposes.
- Track - get it to show the English track, then Add it.
Click on the track in the list now so it's highlighted, and change Forced to Yes, Burn In to Yes, and Default to Yes. Ignore the rest of the settings here.

Chapters and Advanced - change nothing, add nothing at the moment. Maybe later on you'll find tips for what to put here, but I don't mess with them.

You'll need to add the file to the Queue. Now, you can add other files and process them all, but you need to set each one up to those same settings. If your video source is not larger than 720x400, you can encode only to the file's maximum size (like 640x368 which I had one file like that). Handbrake prematurely closed when I tried to edit items in the queue, so I recommend doing one file at a time, which presented no problem.

Click Start, and let Handbrake make a compatible 8-bit MP4 or 8-bit h264 MP4 video file which everyone can play. I realize that Handbrake encodes MP4 video for various crApple devices, but that's not why I use it - it's to convert MKV to MP4. I can take MP4 and turn it into AVI if I am not happy with how the sub stream appears in Handbrake (which can handle stylized subs). In which case I would not resize the source.

I had planned to bring down a multi-sync monitor to use on the computer I installed all this on after Handbrake complained about the monitor resolution (800x600 - it came off a Windows ME system), so I grabbed the one off my P4 tower and in the process jostled the video card on the P4 loose (which set off a lot of anxiety as I had thought I screwed it up - I turned it on and no video and it wasn't proceeding with booting up). I found out the problem by looking at the POST LEDs on the back and the code said there was a problem with the video controller. So I had to re-seat the card. It worked after I did that.

An extra bonus was finding the driver install CD for my USB video capture box!! I cleaned things up in needing to move the P4 tower and there it was. Now to get a replacement CD drive for Mom's Dell since the one I put in there got messed up with me trying to rip tracks off a CD I found on the ground last week or so. I did manage to get some data off it, but the drive didn't fare so well later.

Clubhouses

As a kid, I sometimes wondered about wanting to have a clubhouse. Something in the back yard that was a place I could go and just do clubhouse type things. Of course, that never worked out, but still. 

I mean, isn't that what some kids back in the 1970s wanted? A place you could go when your mom wanted you out of the house (and out of her way), and you didn't really want to go do anything. Depending on the size and what was in there, you could go in there with a few best friends, play games or something. Study or talk about anything. Hide. A place you could go and keep people out just because you wanted to that day. Hopefully keep out of trouble.

I remember seeing that sort of thing on TV and thought wow. A Clubhouse. nothing like a Treehouse, though I'm sure I probably wanted to make one of those, too but never did. It seemed like the greatest thing a kid could ask for and get. A club house to clubhousey stuff.

Of course, what would happen with me is that I would get one and not know what to do with it. "I got one! Now what?" I imagine myself saying. I could end up being (eventually) sitting around with nothing, doing nothing. Never mind that IMAGINATION stuff. Maybe 1 friend who wanted to hang out in there. (Too cold in the winter, mind you.) Spiders to watch out for. It would be fun during summer vacation from school. Maybe. With my luck, I'd go there to read a book and mom would go crazy not being able to find me, call the police and they end up finding me in there.

And it would be fine and dandy until the one kid in the neighborhood who was spoiled beyond belief would somehow end up with his father's cigarette lighter and burn that sucker down because HE wasn't the first one in the area to get a clubhouse.

It's always something.

Not quite what I was expecting

Recent figure kits I've worked on

Cardcaptor Sakura kit - I found the image that inspired this kit.

This is the 2nd Sailor Saturn kit I've worked on, but the first that I got to keep.

I had to mix a custom color for Saturn's bows since in the source images for her, they appear to be a muted reddish brown. There is purple on her eyes for the iris, but you can't see them because of the bright highlights.

Sakura got some pearlized white on the outside of the wings to give them a certain look when photographed. I hope to see if I can put a little LED light in the lamp post.

Coming Soon