[MEncoder-users] what video output to select for mencoder when encoding dvd's to h.264

[Cristian Manea]

There is something that I don't understand about MEncoder. By default,
MEncoder and MPlayer both use xv as video output. But, for example, when I
open a dvd title or vob file in MPlayer, it scales it to a 16:9 resolution:

...
> Movie-Aspect is 1.33:1 - prescaling to correct movie aspect.
> VO: [xv] 720x480 => 720x540 Planar YV12
> ...


But I would imagine that, for example, this "prescaling to correct movie
aspect" where the resolution of 720x480 is scaled to 720x540, doesn't have
to occur when encoding the vob/mpeg2 stream to H.264 with MEncoder.

So, my first question is: do I have to use a different video output that xv
when encoding DVD's/mpeg2 streams to H.264 using MEncoder with x264 ? Maybe
a video output that doesn't scale 720x480 to 720x540 and leave all frames
unscaled ?

The second question: suppose I let MEncoder to select the video output, wich
I think it's xv, because i know that MPlayer selects xv by default, and
MEncoder is based on MPlayer to decode the frames using a certaing codec.
After MEncoder starts the encoding process, if I open a video file with
MPlayer, to watch it, is this somehow affect the encoding proccess, just
because there are 2 videos opened at the same time using xv as video output
? Or, another example: I noticed that, when flash player is opened because a
youtube video is loading in the web browser, mplayer has some screen tearing
while flash is running. Does this affect the encoding process, if for
example, I watch a youtube video while mencoder is encoding - is it possible
for mencoder to send frames affected by tearing, to x264 ?