[MPlayer-dev-eng] 3 pass encoding syntax poll

[Andreu Escudero]

I like the idea of using first, middle, last instead of 1, 2 and 3,
but adding the new parameters instead of replacing the old ones, for
not breaking compatibility.

Anyway, you are somewhat missing it again, you are saying that 3 pass
would be 1-3-2, and four pass 1-3-3-2, and, as someone said before, it
is legal to use 2 as the third or fourth pass (when it is the last
pass), but it is not needed to do that!

The correct way to do a 3 pass encode is not 1-3-2 but 1-3-3, imho.
Why? because if you do 1-3-2 you are stuck with the 3-pass encode, but
if you do 1-3-3, while you get the same result (for the avi file) as
with 1-3-2, you are still open to refine a bit more to a 4-pass
(1-3-3-3) or even a 5 pass (1-3-3-3-3).
I don't do encodes with more than 3 pass because in my tests don't
find it valuable, but I know of people who program an N pass encode,
during the night or the weekend, and then stop it when they see there
are no more improvements.
Using 1-3-..-2 as your encode makes an artificial limitation. Making a
1-3-..-3 gives the same result and still lives it open for an
additional refinement, so using first, middle, last would induce to
confusion, too, because then will be people who surely would think
that they NEED to end their encodes with a 2 pass.

Thinking of 1, 2, 3 as binary flags is the best idea I have heard to
improve clarity (with good examples, of course).


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