ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
*****************************************************************************

Ditto on using regular cheap DVD players that can be set up (with the remote control each day) to auto-repeat.

We've used several of the Samsungs because they were cheap ($60 or so).  One had to be replaced after 1 1/2 years or so;  the folks at Best Buy claim you should buy their service plan and get them "cleaned" once a year, whatever that may mean.  In addition, Consumer Reports just rated DVD players (Dec 2004, page 24) and some had significantly higher repair rates than others.

I haven't found a DVD player that power cycles with the breaker, so that it comes on automatically in the morning when the breakers are turned on, as many TVs will do.  Of course this assumes your DVD is programmed to autorepeat all by itself, which we've had done with some custom video projects..

Kathy Krafft
Director of Exhibits
Sciencenter
Ithaca NY

>

>
> Subject: Re: Repeatedly playing dvd
> Date: Mon, 8 Nov 2004 19:31:10 -0500
> From: JasonJayStevens <[log in to unmask]>
>
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related institutions.
> *****************************************************************************
>
> Eric,
> My wife is a video artist and plays with this technology all the time.
> She says the menu on a Samsung DVD player will give you the option to
> repeat chapters or entire movies, and I just tested our Sony DVP NC 625
> and it offers the same, and it skips the menu.
>
> I'd recommend a trip to a retail outlet, anyhow, and testing a model
> with your particular DVD before purchasing, to avoid unknown unknowns
> (as opposed to known unknowns, you know).
>
> Digital video players are really cool, but chances are you'll have a
> difficult time getting your commercial video OFF of the DVD upon which
> it came, so as to record it to a hard drive player.  DVDs are
> manufactured to thwart copying.  In fact, in our experience, commercial
> DVDs seem to resist even analog copying, such as onto VHS by means of a
> simple RCA cable whilst the DVD plays.
>
> If you could author your own DVD, of course, most authoring software
> will give you options regarding automatic start-up and playback
> looping.
>
> Good luck and let us know what you end up going with.
>
> JasonJayStevens
> exhibitDesignDevelopmentFabrication
> annArborHands-OnMuseum
> [log in to unmask]
>

***********************************************************************
More information about the Informal Science Education Network and the
Association of Science-Technology Centers may be found at http://www.astc.org.
To remove your e-mail address from the ISEN-ASTC-L list, send the
message  SIGNOFF ISEN-ASTC-L in the BODY of a message to
[log in to unmask]