[MEncoder-users] Encoding to DVD: to deinterlace or not?

[Phil Ehrens]

Michael Rozdoba wrote:
> James Hastings-Trew wrote:
> 
> > I'm of the opinion that interlaced video should go the way of the dodo 
> > bird - it has outlived its welcome.
> 
> Perhaps in relation to deciding what source format to adopt, I'd agree, 
> but if we're talking about archival formats for existing material surely 
> that makes it a slightly different question?

The question here is what you mean by "archive". To most people, that means
to keep as close to the source as possible. To a smaller number it means
to only keep the version that works and looks best for their particular
viewing environment. In the latter case, deinterlacing can be the right
thing to do.
An example would be Munna Bhai MBBS, where the viewing experience is
dramatically improved over the "official" dvd by pp=lb. But this sort of
determination needs to be made on a case-by-case basis, especially if
your dvd's are Chinese or Indian.