DVD playback

[Fabian Rodriguez]

Gavin McCullagh wrote:
> Most movies sold on DVD are encrypted using a scheme called CSS.  [...]
> Load this link and go to the section headed "Install libdvdcss2 and w32
> video codecs in Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron)" and all should become a little
> clearer.
>   

Hmmm... no need to add third-party unsupported repositories for DVD 
playback in Hardy 8.04.1 LTS.

Please see:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats/PlayingDVDs

Remember depending on where you're doing this it may not be legal. This 
is may be of particular in terest in an educational environment. 
Although getting a license for codecs from Fluendo may help with most 
media formats, I am not aware of a DVD playback license you could get 
the same way. See:
https://shop.fluendo.com
http://www.linux.com/feature/143418

Although I am not a lawyer, the closest I'd see to having a legal way to 
watch such movies in a large Edubuntu install if you have indeed rights 
for public screening, etc. for such DVDs would be to encode them in the 
Ogg Theora free format. Thoggen (package name thoggen) and ffmpeg2theora 
will help, you would still have to install libdvdcss on at least one 
system to perform the conversion or do the conversion on a system that 
has licensed DVD playback (most DVD readed on Windows come with such 
licenses in their software).

I believe Copyright law here in Canada has provisions for such 
exceptions (ie. conversion of a format), however check your local laws.

Cheers,

Fabian Rodriguez, Ubuntu Systems Senior Support Analyst
Canonical Ltd., Global Support & Services
http://www.canonical.com/services/support
Montreal, QC, Canada