Chapters within videos - how they can help you

I mentioned that my encode of Chisato's solo live vol. 1 is the first video I've uploaded here that features chapters. This post is meant to better explain what they are and how it can make watching things like concerts much more awesome.

So first let me explain what they are. When you hear the word "chapter", you probably think about chapters in a book, which is good because chapters within a video serve a similar purpose.

If you are reading a book and want to go to specific point in the book, you look in the index, find the chapter you want, and turn to that page right? It's the same concept here.

For example, if you are watching Chisato's solo live and want to skip to when she sings Bokura no Kagayaki, all you have to do is select the chapter that says Bokura no Kagayaki and instantly the video skips to that performance. Doesn't that sound helpful?

Now I'll show you how to do that, using the Chisato solo live encode in this post. Note: not all video players support this feature. Media Player Classic, VLC Player, and Zoom Player (three of my favorite video players, in that order) DOES support chapters. Windows Media Player (the one built into Windows) does NOT support chapters.

For Media Player Classic:
1. Open the video
2. On the menu bar, click on Navigate
3. Click Jump to
4. Select whatever chapter you want

For VLC Player:
1. Open the video
2. On the VLC menu, select Playback
3. Click on Chapter
4. Select the chapter of your choice

For Zoom Player:
1. Open the video
2. Right click on the video screen
3. Select Nagivate
4. Select Chapter Browser (or to skip all of this, just press alt + N on your keyboard)
5. Double click on the chapter of your choice

And there you have it!

BTW, not every video has chapters. Its up to the encoder to add them. Otherwise the encoded video won't have chapters. However, if you have an ISO (or own the DVD itself), then it should have chapters already (but they won't be named).