Why Rip DVDs?
The natural limitations of DVD and the advance of alternative media (both storage and distribution) have caused a significant drop in its popularity, but that doesn't mean it will disappear in the short term. On one hand, some movies are particularly accessible in that format, and on the other, it’s very easy to create backup rips using free tools. One of the best candidates for this mission is HandBrake, but it needs a little help…
For less than ten euros you can find some very good movies on DVD. Now, I know what you're thinking: "Buy DVDs? In 2018? 480p? 576p? The horror!" If the only thing you're interested in is accessing the content, the truth is that streaming already covers a large part of the demand... not to mention certain alternative routes that require an eye patch. On the other hand, through the DVD format you can start a small collection without burning your budget, and get the best of both worlds creating backups of the original discs. Technically, there's the possibility of making an ISO image and storing its complete structure, but it's not very efficient (unless you have plenty of space and don't mind storing up to 8.5 GB per movie).
HandBrake and the libdvdcss Module
That's when HandBrake steps in, one of the best conversion programs, which is also free and open source. HandBrake has no problem ripping a DVD, unless it's an original and protected disc. Naturally, every user has the right to make personal backups, but the HandBrake developers are prohibited from distributing a key piece of the process, the libdvdcss module. The good news is that we can download it separately. After downloading and installing HandBrake, we must visit the official libdvdcss repository, and download a copy of the libdvdcss-2.dll file in its 64-bit version (there's also a 32-bit build, but it only works with older versions of HandBrake). Copy the file to the HandBrake folder (C:\Program Files\Handbrake), and that's it.
Ripping Your First DVD
The rest is a matter of running HandBrake, clicking Open Source, opening the DVD to back up, choosing the correct Title (the largest one usually contains the movie), finding a suitable preset (H.264 MKV 480p30 or 576p25 are good options for DVDs), and finally pressing Start Encode. Depending on the preset or selected quality, HandBrake can finish in a few minutes, or take much longer than we initially imagined. Don't stop experimenting, and good luck!
