DVD region restrictions...driving me nuts.

ok, the topic speaks for itself... basically i'm trying to watch this Region 1 DVD and WMP tells me i'm using a non region free drive (not in Region 1). i understand that if i reset the region 5 times, it will be stuck at the fifth region that i set...and goodbye to the drive.

Is there any way to reset the DVD drive's region infintely?

 

No, but you can boot from knoppix Live CD, and region issues don't plague you. Works like a charm.

 

You could use a program called DVD43 (free) or AnyDVD. They work very well with most DVD drives and software DVD players.

 

Region free sucks.

But solve all of your problems by going to: http://www.videohelp.com/tools?s=25#25

 

If he boots from the CD drive on a laptop, then what drive is left for him to play the DVD on?

 

Download a program called DVD 43, this allows you to watch any region DVD on your laptop. As one can buy a multi-region DVD player I'll presume this is legal.

 

Didn't it technically used to be illegal? I wonder why it changed.

 

Point taken, Skagen.. but Knoppix can be ejected, w/o shutting down.

 

There is also a way to get at this problem using firmware, but it's not worth mentioning due to the problem(s) you could have in a botched firmware flash.

Yes, this is a good idea. Region free DVD players are available everywhere.

I don't think it was ever illegal to buy or watch DVDs from regions that are not your own...the reason for regions was to do a simple copy protection. the idea was to segregate out Asia (THE pirate haven) from the west. However, that didn't really work out. People are buying DVDs in PAL/NTSC format, in all regions and formats.

 

Well that and money

For some reason the suits have a problem with CD-Wow allowing British customers buying non-region 2 DVDs from Asia/NA. Unfortunately the courts support them. But people can carry on buying non-region 2 discs regardless. Funny how CD-Wow said it was an "isolated incident" when the suits did a check...

 

DVDIdle is another option for playing DVD's without worry about region.

The whole region coding is a moronic venture anyway and I think even the media companies are seeing that (which is why most movies are now released at the same time around the world).

 

Region coding is done as much for pricing as it is for different release data. In fact probably more so. DVD's in America and Asia are cheaper - they rip off European buyers instead because this continent is too full of rules/laws/tax and everything is regulated enough that they can get away with it.

In the US there is always a state that will let you sell things cheap/no tax/etc and so they cannot do this to consumers. And Asia well, they just laugh and keep copying.

That is what region coding is about really - price discrimination in order to maximise profits.

 

Take a look at the Firmware Page to see the recommended solution for your model of optical drive.

Another free workaround is to use DVD Shrink to copy the DVD onto your HDD from where you can play the movie. DVD Shrink will strip out the region coding.

John

 

And getting DVDs from other regions can be good, e.g. Kill Bill 1 Uncut (well for you yanks. Japan is still region 2 like the UK ) only from Japan/HK has the fight scene with the Crazy 88 in colour and uncut

See this excellent site http://www.dvdcompare.net/index.php Compares between different region releases of a film as well as different editions, to ensure you get the best picture quality/extras/material (no thumbs up smiley?)