An open letter to all Blu-ray studios… re: Java Use

[Brad Ley]

An open letter to all Blu-ray studios… re: Java Use

I posted this on another forum, but since I think it might get in front of the eyes of those that need to see it quicker here, I'm posting it again. And since it was suggestions from these forums that got things as minute as what kind of stickum is used on security stickers changed, I feel compelled to bring this issue to the forefront.

As for history, I have been, since the launch of both formats, more red leaning than blue, almost without hesitation. I would buy the HD-DVD versions of Warner and Paramount titles and was less than a complete fan of the Blu-ray format. That all changed with the release of the Panasonic BD30. I have been able to realize that it has been the hardware, and not the software, that has been keeping Blu-ray from making the appropriate steps forward. Now that there is a player that I feel allows me to fully enjoy the benefits of Blu-ray, I have been busy converting much of my collection from red to blue. I recently partook in the Amazon 3-for-2 sale and replaced 12 of my Warner HD titles for Blu-ray for two simple reasons… Speed and Resume. The Panasonic player loads most discs in about 20 seconds and allows you to resume all basic authored discs, even after turning the player off. This, for whatever reason, is a nice advantage to me and I’m enjoying the new flexibility that this is giving me… except for

--JAVA--

I am noticing a more and more frequent trend (especially from Sony and Fox) of titles being authored in Java. This is troublesome for two reasons… Speed and Resume. As anyone here is already aware, the loading of a Java disc can take anywhere from 20-30 seconds (the PS3) to over 2.5 minutes (almost anything else). While the Panasonic is now certainly much closer to the PS3 than the Pioneer, Java still adds anywhere from 25-40 seconds to the load time and it also completely kills resume on every player.

Now I’m all for Java when there is a reason to author in it. Disney’s recent Santa Clause 3 has a clever Christmas decorator activity that clearly couldn’t be there without Java authoring. But why (other than the inclusion of bookmarks) is the original Spiderman authored in Java? There’s absolutely no features on the disc whatsoever, so now we have an example of authoring a disc in Java just to say you did rather than because you should have or had to. Similarly, the Die Hard releases are all authored in Java, and other than flashy menu animations and personal scene selections, the only thing the Java gives me is longer load times and no resume. I can do personal scene selections on a basic disc; I just go into scene selections and personally select a scene. Same ultimate effect. Legend of Zorro is another disc with Java authoring… Not for any features or because it’s necessary, but simply so we can have overly complicated menus with swords that move when you make selections.

So, to all you Blu-ray studios out there, please be judicious in your use of Java authoring, because there are some downsides to it as well. I completely understand that with the upcoming profile 1.1 discs, Java is going to be necessary, but I really feel it should be used only in concert with special features (and only with special features that actually need it). Use it when you need to and not simply because you want to or feel the need to show something off. A good rule of thumb would be that if you’re only using it for menus or menu related functions (like personal scene selections or bookmarking) then you’re misusing it and making your discs more complicated than they need to be (after all, how many players have needed firmware updates because they have trouble with basic authoring… not a lot).