AcidRip

I recently tried out AcidRip and I have to say, I was impressed. It's a Gtk2::Perl application that's designed specifically for ripping and encoding DVD's. One of the things I loved about this software is that it neatly wraps MPlayer and MEncoder. In my opinion, MPlayer is by far the best video playing kit for Linux, making AcidRip a valuable addition to the Linux ecosystem.

The software has created a simple Graphical Interface that's perfect for users who are afraid of getting down and dirty with MEncoder's command-line interface. Additionally, the application has an automated process that streamlines the ripping and encoding process. This includes parsing the DVD into a contents tree, finding the longest title, calculating the video bitrate for a given file size, finding black bands and crops them, and gives suggestions for improved performance, among other things.

It's important to note that AcidRip isn't an encoding program - it can't do anything complicated that MEncoder can't do, such as output to VCD format. Nonetheless, it's an incredibly useful tool that should be considered as part of your DVD ripping and encoding workflow.

Overall, if you're in the market for a reliable DVD ripping and encoding software, then AcidRip is definitely worth checking out. The software is continually improving, and feature requests are always welcome, but it's essential to ensure they're within the program's jurisdiction to avoid disappointment.