Appendix D: Glossary
Aspect ratio
A ratio which defines the shape of the rectangular picture in a TV. It is the width of the picture relative to the height. A conventional TV picture is 4:3 in aspect ratio.
Bit rate
Shows the number of digital information needed to play back sound for 1 second. The bit rate is expressed in bits per second.
Bitstream
The digital form of multichannel audio data (e.g., 5.1-channel) before it is decoded into its various channels.
Chapter/title
Chapter is the smallest division and title is the largest division on DVD VIDEO. A chapter is a division of a title and similar to a track for Video CD or Audio CD.
Component video
Video signals with three channels of separate information that makes up the picture. There are some types of component video, such as R/G/B and Y/CB(PB)/CR(PR).
Composite video
A single video signal commonly used in most consumer video products that contains all luminance, color, and synchronization information.
Dolby Digital (AC3)
A six-channel system consisting of left, center, right, left rear, right rear and LFE (Low-Frequency Effect channel, for use with a sub-woofer) channels. All processing is done in the digital domain. Not all Dolby Digital discs contain six (5.1) channels of information.
Dolby Surround/Dolby Pro Logic
Dolby Surround records four channels of front and rear audio in two channels in a way that allows a decoder to recover the original four channels for playback. Because the audio is recorded in two channels, it can be played back naturally by a two-channel stereo system.
Dolby Pro Logic introduces directional circuits in decoder-side processing (increasing the level of specific channels and lowering the level of silent channels) for greater spatial perspective, and adds a center speaker used primarily for dialog. The result is enhanced channel separation.
Down-mix
Internal stereo mix of multichannel surround audio by a DVD unit. The down-mix signals are output from stereo output connectors.
DTS
A Digital Surround audio encoding format configured with six (5.1) channels, similar to Dolby Digital. It requires a decoder, either in the unit or in an external receiver. DTS stands for Digital Theater Systems.
Not all DTS discs contain six (5.1) channels of information.
Dynamic range
The difference between the loudest and softest sounds.
Group
The largest division on DVD AUDIO.
Interlaced scanning
In a conventional video system, a picture is shown on the display monitor in between lines of two halves. The Interlaced scanning system places lines of the second half of the picture in-between lines of the first half of the picture.
JPEG
A popular file format for still image compression and storage. JPEG stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group.
There are three sub-types of the JPEG format as follows.
•baseline JPEG: used for digital cameras, the web, etc.
•progressive JPEG: used for the web
•lossless JPEG: an old type, rarely used now
Linear PCM audio
PCM stands for “pulse code modulation.” Linear PCM is the usual method for digitally encoding audio without compression, and is used for the audio tracks on DVD VIDEO discs, Audio CDs, etc.
MLP
MLP stands for “Meridian Lossless Packing.” A lossless audio compression system that can completely recreate the PCM signal.
MP3
MP3 is an audio data compression format, which stands for MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3. Using MP3, you can achieve a data reduction of about 1:10.
MPEG Multichannel
This feature expands the 5.1 channel audio format recorded on the disc to a 7.1 channel format. The further expansion of the 5.1 channel audio makes it easy for you to reproduce the movie theater experience in your own home.
NTSC (National Television System Committee)
A black and white and color television system format used in the U.S.A., Canada, Mexico and Japan.
PAL (Phase Alternation by Line)
A color television system format used extensively in Western Europe.
PBC
PBC stands for “Playback Control” and is a method of controlling disc play for Video CDs (VCD). You are able to interact with the disc through menus.
Progressive scanning
Progressive scanning displays all the horizontal lines of a picture at one time, as a single frame. A progressive scanning DVD unit converts the interlaced (480i) video from DVD into progressive (480p) format for connection to a progressive display. It dramatically increases the vertical resolution.
RGB
An abbreviation for Red, Green and Blue. Color monitors and color television sets display different hues by mixing these three colors.
Sampling frequency
The rate at which measurements of an audio signal are taken during A/D and D/A conversion. The sampling frequency is expressed in samples per second.
S-video
A video signal which improves picture quality over standard composite connections. Used on Super VHS, DVD, high end TV monitors, etc.
Track
The smallest division on SVCD, Video CD and Audio CD discs.
VR mode
A recording mode which is applied when video signals are recorded onto a DVD-RW or DVD-RAM disc. This mode allows to edit recording; for example, the VR mode enables a programmed recording and a manual recording in which recording time can be adjusted.
WMA
WMA is an abbreviation of “Windows Media Audio,” and is an audio data compression format developed by Microsoft Corporation. Sound quality of data compressed using WMA is the same as that of MP3, though the WMA file size is smaller than that of MP3.
