BD Demystified
Stuff You Need to Know About Blu-ray
The Demystified Team
Jim Taylor
Jim Taylor is senior vice president and chief technologist at Sonic Solutions, the leading developer of BD, DVD, and CD creation software. Jim is the author of the first two editions of DVD Demystified, Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About DVD and the lead author of DVD Demystified Third Edition. Jim has been involved in DVD Forum and Blu-ray Disc Association working groups, serves as Chairman of the IDMA/DVD Association, and was named one of the 21 most influential DVD executives by DVD Report. He received the 2000 DVD Pro Discus Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Industry, was an inaugural inductee into the Digital Media Hall of Fame, and was named one of the pioneers of DVD by One to One magazine. Formerly a Microsoft DVD evangelist and chief technology officer with Daikin US, Jim is recognized worldwide as an expert on DVD, BD, and associated technologies. Jim lives on an island near Seattle, Washington.
Chuck Crawford
Charles G. Crawford is the co-founder of Television Production Services and Heritage Series production companies specializing in traditional and interactive production and title development. He has been involved with DVD technology since 1998 when he wrote the Operations and Reference Manuals for Matsushita/Panasonic’s award winning DVD Authoring System. Chuck has been involved in video production for over 35 years at the local, network, and international levels, and has received three national EMMY awards for his technical and directorial expertise, plus numerous other industry awards for his production skills. He is a co-author of DVD Demystified Third Edition and a co-author of High Definition DVD Handbook: Producing for HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Chuck lives in Washington, DC
Chris Armbrust
Christen M. Armbrust is a leader in the development and implementation of new digital media. Chris is the Founder of Marin Digital, a company which focuses on the “new” technology of DVD and has produced over 1,100 DVD titles. He has delivered white papers and has spoken at SMPTE, NAB/BEA, Replitech Europe, DVDA and other DVD related conferences. Chris recently worked at Technicolor Creative Services, a Thomson Company in Burbank, CA, to define, develop, and implement their encoding, authoring, and mastering processes for the next generation of DVDs (HD DVD and Blu-ray). Chris is a co-author of High Definition DVD Handbook: Producing for HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc. Chris lives in Sausalito, CA.
Mike Zink
Michael Zink is director of advanced technology at Technicolor, Burbank, CA. Mike helped set up the Blu-ray Disc production units within Technicolor as well as developing tools to enhance high definition DVD production. Mike represents Technicolor in standards associations such as the DVD Forum, Blu-ray Disc Association, and AACS. Mike attended the University of Applied Sciences, Mittweida/Saxony, Germany and wrote his dissertation on WebDVD applications. Prior to joining Technicolor in 2003, he worked and consulted with several firms in Germany on television production and DVD title development. Mike is a co-author of Programming for HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc: The HD Cookbook. Mike resides in Burbank, CA.
Samantha Cheng
E. Samantha Cheng, managing editor for Blu-ray Disc Demystified, is co-owner, executive producer, and CFO of the Washington, DC-based Television Production Services (TPS), which produces and authors DVDs. Prior to work at TPS, she was an independent television producer and public relations specialist. Samantha produced the demonstration disc for Blu-ray Disc Demystified as well as the demonstration discs for DVD Demystified second and third editions.
