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Aspect Ratio - The shape of the rectangular picture in a TV set. It is the width of the picture relative
to the height. Our standard TV picture, is 4 units wide by 3 units high, or 4:3 in aspect ratio. There
are currently two standard TV aspect ratios in the U.S., 4:3 and 16:9.
Chapter - In DVD-Video, a division of a title. Technically called part of a title (PTT).
Component Video - A video signal split into three parts, luminance and two color signals (marked
as YPbPr). It provides the highest resolution video, but cannot be processed by all television sets.
Composite Video - A single video signal that contains luminance, color and synchronization infor-
mation. NTSC and PAL are examples of composite video systems.
Dolby Digital
®
- Also known as AC-3, a type of multi-channel surround sound format used on discs.
Dolby Digital is a perceptual coding system for audio, developed by Dolby Laboratories and is
accepted as an international standard. Dolby Digital is the most common means of encoding audio
for DVD-Video and is the mandatory audio compression system for 525/60 (NTSC) discs.
DTS - A type of multi-channel surround sound format used on some CDs and DVDs.
DVD - An acronym that is most commonly known to mean Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile
Disc. The audio/video/data storage system based on 12 and 8 cm optical discs.
DVD Video - A standard for storing and reproducing audio and video on DVD-ROM discs, based on
MPEG video, Dolby Digital and MPEG audio, and other proprietary data formats.
Letterbox - The projected aspect ratio of feature films is often 16:9 rather than the 4:3 aspect ratio
of most TVs. Therefore, it is becoming common practice to transfer films to video with black bor-
ders at the top and bottom of the picture. The film becomes a “letterbox” within the video.
MPEG - A type of data compression used for audio or video storage on disc.
MP3 - MPEG Layer 3 audio. This is a compressed audio format that allows you to record many
hours of music on a single CD.
NTSC - An acronym for National Television System Committe; the organization that developed both
the American Black & White and Color television systems.
PAL - An acronym for Phase Alternate Line. This is one of several composite video systems.
The PAL format is used extensively in Western Europe.
PCM - An uncompressed, digitally coded representation of an analog signal. This is the form of the
digital audio signal used for both CD and laserdisc. It is a serial data stream that is coded for trans-
mission or recording. PCM is also used for many other types of serial data communications.
S-Video - A video interface standard that carries separate luminance and chrominance signals,
usually on a four-pin mini-DIN connector. Also called Y/C. The quality of S-video is significantly
better than composite video since it does not require a comb filter to separate the signals. Most
high-end televisions have S-video inputs.
Title - Numbered elements of the DVD contents, which may include more than one movie alone.
Track - Individual selections recorded on an audio tape or disc.
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
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