DVD Player That Isn't a Dictator?

[TromboneAl]

We have an older DVD player that allowed me to disable UOP (I had to do some kind of firmware magic].

The user operation prohibition (abbreviated UOP) is a form of use restriction used on video DVD discs and Blu-ray discs. Most DVD players and Blu-ray players prohibit the viewer from performing a large majority of actions during sections of a DVD that are protected or restricted by this feature, and will display the no symbol or a message to that effect if any of these actions are attempted. It is used mainly for copyright notices or warnings, such as an FBI warning in the United States, and "protected" (i.e., unskippable) commercials. [From Wikipedia]​

In most cases, I can skip the FBI warnings and commercials, although sometimes I still get the dreaded "The DVD player cannot do that right now."

Sometimes I can press "Stop" then "1" and it will start playing the movie, but many newer movies don't allow that.

Are there any new players that give me total control over what I watch?

 

[wmc1000]

What's a DVD player? JK

 

[Chuckanut]

I just love these old copy protection systems. Punish the people who do the right thing. While the crooks do what they wish. What a business model!

I wish I could help you. But, I can't.

Stop worrying. Somebody has to pay for the Entertainment industry's lavish lifestyle. It might as well be you.

 

[statsman]

DVD rip to USB external drive. Don't ask me how.

 

[ERD50]

What's a DVD player? JK

It's that thing my wife uses often, for all those Netflix shows she likes that aren't available on streaming (which she also does).

In case that was too subtle, it's insulting to joke that anyone using a DVD must be someone stuck in the past, that can't adapt to new technology, or is ignorant of it. Same thing when someone say "what's a 'landline', hah, hah?" - we have a VOIP 'landline' in addition to our cell phones, and there are advantages. We even use the (digital) "answering machine", there are advantages to that too. It's a choice, and a valid one for many of us.

-ERD50

 

[easysurfer]

I just love these old copy protection systems. Punish the people who do the right thing. While the crooks do what they wish. What a business model!

I wish I could help you. But, I can't.

Stop worrying. Somebody has to pay for the Entertainment industry's lavish lifestyle. It might as well be you.

I hear you. Only recently when I was thinking of getting a blu ray recorder did I discover that blu ray recorders are pretty much not manufactured in the USA (though available in Japan) for fear of pirates.

Even more irony is the recorders out these days popular with gamers that allow for recording using HDMI ports.

 

[Chuckanut]

I use my DVD player with DVDs I check out from the library in place of layering on expensive streaming services. I am currently on the waiting list for the last season of Game of Thrones, Star Trek: Discovery and a few Disney movies. One does have to be patient when using this method.

 

[easysurfer]

I use my DVD player with DVDs I check out from the library in place of layering on expensive streaming services. I am currently on the waiting list for the last season of Game of Thrones, Star Trek: Discovery and a few Disney movies. One does have to be patient when using this method.

I use my DVD player for Stranger Things. I Amazon Prime but not Netflix (where the show is streamed). So, what I've done is waited until each season was available on DVD, then bought and watched.

I'm proud of myself for avoiding spoiler discussions while waiting.

 

[TromboneAl]

What's a DVD player? JK

That's a valid comment that I don't mind (and I kid DW with similar comments).

But our library lets us take out twenty videos every week, so I don't see any other solution that's works as well and is free. Here's this week's haul:

But I still haven't gotten an answer to: Are there any players out there that won't force me to watch previews and FBI warnings?

 

[Chuckanut]

But I still haven't gotten an answer to: Are there any players out there that won't force me to watch previews and FBI warnings?

My guess is that if you found one, the Feds would raid your home, seize the DVD player, fine you $20,000 and toss you in jail for five years. Politicians seem enamored of millionaire entertainers and will do anything to please them.

 

[ERD50]

...
But I still haven't gotten an answer to: Are there any players out there that won't force me to watch previews and FBI warnings?

I think the answer is going to be post #4 - rip them to something (hard drive, int, ext, flash, whatever).

I do it with DVDs I own, it just so much easier to control on a computer with the whole file loaded, no interruptions with scratchy discs, no waiting for the drive to seek or anything. For library DVDs, just delete when you return the DVD. Yes, I know, not technically legal, but it's not unethical in my book. Up to you.

But you could try some of the DVD sub-forums at avsforums, they are the experts:

https://www.avsforum.com/forum/index.php

-ERD50

 

[easysurfer]

Though not actually skipping past the FBI warning, my suggestion is to as the DVD plays with the FBI warning, have your smart phone by the side and browse that for the time it takes the FBI warning to play. About a minute?

Since you'd be distracted, the FBI warning would be hardly noticeable.

 

[jim584672]

I had a PS3 and it had Cinevia protection built in. If you tried to play a file and it detected Cinevia it would refuse to play it. Cinevia adds something to the sound track as a DRM and if the player is set up for it it will refuse to play the file. Which is really dumb, since I could just play it on a different player with no problem. The PS3 has been thrown out.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I never had a DVD or rented any, so I am no help..... Not much use to this thread, but I thought it would provide some humour. I have 2 hardware media players that do the job for me. I guess they are more like a DVR but they do not record. Each has a 2Tb Hard drive to store content.

 

[TromboneAl]

I think the answer is going to be post #4 - rip them to something (hard drive, int, ext, flash, whatever).

That takes a lot longer then watching the 10 second FBI warning.

 

[The Cosmic Avenger]

I keep around one old DVD player because it was manufactured pre-UOP. The only other thing I can suggest is ripping to a Plex server. If you have a desktop set up for it, you can run MakeMKV, tell it to start ripping, walk away, and your movie will probably be ready to watch in less than an hour. Your total effort may be shorter than having to watch the FBI warning...AND all the previews or other ads. It is a bit less flexible than just popping the disc in and watching, of course.

 

[HI Bill]

It's that thing my wife uses often, for all those Netflix shows she likes that aren't available on streaming (which she also does).

In case that was too subtle, it's insulting to joke that anyone using a DVD must be someone stuck in the past, that can't adapt to new technology, or is ignorant of it. Same thing when someone say "what's a 'landline', hah, hah?" - we have a VOIP 'landline' in addition to our cell phones, and there are advantages. We even use the (digital) "answering machine", there are advantages to that too. It's a choice, and a valid one for many of us.

-ERD50

+1. I use Netflix BluRay subscription service to obtain documentaries and foreign films I can't stream on Netflix or Amazon.

 

[Lakewood90712]

My guess is that if you found one, the Feds would raid your home, seize the DVD player, fine you $20,000 and toss you in jail for five years. Politicians seem enamored of millionaire entertainers and will do anything to please them.

Shoosh ! You are probably now on the " Do Not Fly " list.

 

[corn18]

Are there any new players that give me total control over what I watch?

No.

One answer might be to use a laptop with a DVD player and play it with a program called VLC. It let's you do what you want. You could use Chromecast and cast the laptop to a TV.