Playing Foreign DVD's

[mastavic]

I'm not sure where this thread should go, so please move it to the appropriate forum if needed. Sorry for the inconvience.

I'm trying to play this DVD9 that I just got from Asia (more specifically, Taiwan) on my regular DVD-ROM on my computer. Not only does it not play, it makes this sound as if the disk is spinning and it can't read anything. Are there programs out there that will read foreign DVD's?

Thanks,
-=ViC

 

[edemiere]

DVD's are region encoded, so in theory it should work on your system, however, I think most applications let you change your region once or twice before it locks out changes.

It's a pretty lame design, but that's another issue.

Hacking or changing the ability of a player to play all region codes is illegal, just as an FYI.

Cheers!

 

[FaiTHLeSS]

If its a dvd movie then try DVD Region Free from

http://www.dvdidle.com

it costs $40 though. Most players are able to play any region but the manufactures lock it out or limit you to change the region 3-5 times. I dont know how legal theses all are but all players are able to play the regions you want and just require unlocking, so i wouldnt really calling it hacking.

 

[dakota81]

Try finding your dvd-rom drive on this site:

http://forum.rpc1.org/dl_all.php

They've got many firmware updates for many drives that make the drive region 0 (unlocked). I used them to update my Pioneer drive & the process worked flawlessly.

Then you'll need to search around, I forget where you can get it, but there are utilities to change the region of dvd players such as PowerDVD and WinDVD without running the risk of the current region becoming permanently set.

I personally think dvd region encoding is the dumbest thing ever, so just unlock your drive & your software and you'll be set!

 

[mastavic]

I'll try all everything you guys have said and will report back later. Thanks a lot for the help. Any additional advice will be much appreciated.

-=ViC