What is the format of digital video?

[amazonmike]

I would like to experiment with applying some simple signal processing ideas to digital video. I'm working on a Macintosh G5.

I would like to read digital video into a FORTRAN program, do some processing, and then write it back out in the proper format. In order to do this, I need to know the format of digital video. Does anyone know where I can find this information?

Thanks a lot, Mike.

[Quality's Proof]

What you are talking about is essentially re-mastering a mastered dvd video.

You could try a 'net search about dvd mastering. The Geeks whom do the mastering are the "golden boys" of the dvd movie transfer industry and are really geeked out. Your work would be surprising and who knows, you might figure out something tosimplify things. Do post if you solve something. Some of the posters might help you on some of the fine points.

[amazonmike]

Thanks for the comments. Just to clarify, what I want to do is independent of DVD's. In the end, I might want to burn it onto a DVD. However, I want to work with raw digital video. I don't want to work with encoded video. I would have no idea how to do that!

[Quality's Proof]

It's called "backwards engineering", by some.........copyright your work (if you can), could lead you to a breakthrough........

[rsquirell]

I have no idea what format digtal video is in...but I've seen a lot of Techies referring to "hex editors"...which leads one to believe they're working in some form of assembler. A higher level language (like FORTRAN) would need to be compiled, which would slow it down...but I don't know squat...just thought I'd throw the "hex" reference I've seen in...

[ChristianHJW]

Digital video are frames using one of many possible colour spaces, like YUV, YV2 or RGB .... they can come in different containers such as AVI, MOV, MKV ....

[GRDODD]

I would be VERY interested in learning more about this experiment.
I am always interested in finding better ways to compress video.