Greetings, Tony

It is nice to be communicating with you. The question for which I’m in need of you help is probably a tough one: I’ve asked it in different places and never got an answer for it. So brace yourself:

I use Windows Media Player to watch movies, especially DVDs, and occasionally, Video CDs. I have no problem playing DVDs, be it a Hollywood one or personal one. Sound and picture is always great. However, Windows Media Player loves to call my beloved movies “Unknown DVD”. (I have included two screenshots.) But why? What’s wrong? How can I make Windows Media Player recognize my movies with their proper names? Is it something related to disc format or Windows Media Player itself?

Curiosity is killing me. Any help would be highly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

Regards,

John

Hi, John. For songs, Windows Media Player can lookup songs in Internet directories using the actual content of the song. So, even if the song isn’t labeled, Windwos Media Player can figure out what it is.

Unfortunately, it’s not as smart with DVDs. To find the name of the DVD, Windows Media Player simply looks at the DVD volume label. If whoever burned the DVD doesn’t specify a volume label, Windows Media Player will display “Unknown DVD”.

If you’re burning a DVD, follow these steps to view or specify a label:

1. Insert the DVD.

2. Click Start, and then click Computer.

3. Right-click the DVD and then click Properties.

The Properties dialog box displays the name of the DVD at the top of the General tab.

4. Type a new name (if it’s a writeable DVD) and then click OK.

So, most DVDs you’re playing are read-only, including all commercial DVDs, which means you can’t change the label. Your only option would be to copy the DVD and specify the label when burning the new media.