Playing AVCHD Movies (ISO)

I've been 'playing around' with some of the AVCHD movies that are around, and I've only been able to play the dvd5 versions.

Basic reason is I've been unable to find a viewer ('free' or otherwise) that will play ISO images. The DVD5 ISO's are somewhat easy to burn out to a DVD-RW, and suck back in, but I've been unable to find any drive image s/w (like is very available for 'standard' dvd's) that will 'mount' the AVCHD ISO and allow one to transform the ISO image back into it's 'components', so to speak.

So I'm between the rock and a hard place. Either I need to find a viewer/player that does AVCHD ISO's, or (even better), a virtual drive image device that works with those types of ISO's.

By the way, the 'standard' image mounting programs (including Daemon Tools and Nero) report "incorrect function" when trying to load those ISO images.

I would buy the latest NERO 8 for my new Vista machine (I'll probably need it anyway for other things), if I knew in advance it actually DID work (either the imagedrive or the NeroShowtime player). Unfortunately, it spppears both items are NOT included in the 'free' demo version, so one can't 'check it out' beforehand.

So, thanks in advance to anyone who can give me a thumbs up or down on an way to head.

Okay, after grinding through every potential/possible solution, finally found went back to Daemon Tools and VOILA! the latest DAEMON Tools Lite v4.12.3 works! Jeez, one of these days, things will get simpler... maybe need a new brain hemisphere or something.

Well, I thought it was running just fine, then...ZIP! I appears to run just fine, then no output. I'll have to do some more wacking around, to try and get it all to work consistantly, Bummer!

Oh, after a night of looking through all my 'options', and attempting to find just ONE application that actually fully 'worked', I could give you my long-held opinion (gained through over 40 years of running major projects around the world) of programmers, and programmer wanna-be's (which is virtually all who have or aspire to the title).

I have three AVCHD capable video players: I'll list them and the problems with each (only problems with AVCHD playback listed, there are others):

Arcsoft Total Media Extreme (Total Media Theater)(Owned)
- plays material just fine; video OK (including output from the video cards component out), no digital (only analog 2ch) sound, even though S/PDIF is selected as output.

Cyberlink PowerDVD8 (Tryware)
- plays material just fine, but blanks out video via the component output, but ONLY the video 'window' of the player. Neat trick. (Monitor display from one of the DVI/HDMI outputs is fine, though). Digital audio works just fine, both Dolby and DTS (proves system S/PDIF and external receiver is connected okay and works just fine). Oh, the program DOES play 'raw' .m2ts files just fine (no 'blanking' of component video output), complete with digital sound. So why the hokey playing around with my component outputs when playing straight from the disc (real or virtual)?

Corel WinDVD9 (Tryware)
After installation, managed to run one clip for about 10-15 minutes. Same basic results as PowerDVD8, then upon closing down and then coming back to try another clip, program started generating major MFC faults. Either has major problems with Vista, or doesn't 'play well' with other installed apps. After flicking on the 'ok' button to shut down Corel, PowerDVD8 starts automatically. Hmm. 'Plays Well'...NOT.

Found that even though I did NOT select to 'associate' any filetypes with the program, it did so anyway. Once I de-selected all of that, it 'calmed down'. But like Arcsoft, no digital audio output, although there appears to NOT be a selection for digital out, only 2ch analog. That may be a restriction on the 'tryware' version, although it's not specified in the literature (other restrictions are), and the other players tryware (well, PowerDVD8) has it just fine.

BTW, I have another hardware (why is it always h/w that gets around bad programming?) device that will connect the DVI/HDMI output of my graphics card (2 outputs, one used to go to VGA monitor) to component outputs, to go to my HD display. I should get it some time next week, and see how it works (or not).

There is a moral to all this story, somewhere. But nothing I have found causes me to re-evaluate the state of software programming. Makes used-car dealers look like the pinnacle of professions.

I would say that simply attempting to send a bug report to these folks is an exercise in near futility. Yes, the products were registered, with email addresses and account passwords, when they were installed. NOW, to get into the company run forums, requires yet another password. Then to actually send a question to the 'technical stall' YET ANOTHER password. Give me a break. And with leach layer, you get a new 'confirmation' email you must respond to to 'activate' that particular level.

Obviously the system (and it's the same with every vendor!) is built to turn away questions, not accept and answer them.

In my quest to find 'something that works' rolled over this VLC program..


PURE EUROTRASH!

Don't even bother d/l'ing and putting on your machine. Not one, ONE, part of it works. A dead giveaway is that the 'documentation' is a Wiki, and is absolutely horrible shape.