playing dvd question

As I stated in a earlier thread I'm currently in iraq and just purchased a NP5792 although I currently own a HP dv6000. Recently my Hp and another friend of mines who owns a alienware area51 9750 have had problems trying to play dvd's on our laptops. We have bought and play "bootleg" copies of movies from locals here in Iraq and I believe that somehow that, that has contributed to the non-playablilty of dvd (although cd, games, and even older dvd's still play). I'm not sure if that is the problem but I know that I have I changed the region to no effect other than it wouldn't play even the older dvd's or the "haji dvd's" as we call them. So changing the region is not the problem or solution. Other than the bootleg dvd's I don't see how our laptops could be affected and I don't want my Sager to fall victim to the same problem.I am not 100 percent that these "dvds'" are the probelm and if anyone has information about the problem or how to fix it I would appericate it. I knowits not nessicarly a Sager issue but I just want to make sure it dosn't become one also. Thanks.

 

The DVDs are probably unencrypted (stripping out DVD copy protection is trivial and makes life easier) and therefore changing the region setting is irrelevant. I'd bet on bad DVDs and/or bad DVD drives. There are still occasionally compatibility issues between certain DVD disc and drive brand combinations, assuming these DVDs are burned and not pressed. See if you can find a machine that can read the discs, then make copies onto better media.

Those of you inside Netflix's delivery area or otherwise not in the sandbox: be good and buy/rent legitimate DVDs. Besides, it's easier.