Converting DVD to editable footage in Premiere: NOT STEALING DVDS

Hmmmm.... Probably not the best solution but you could rip them into H.264 using handbrake, then use jes de-interlacer (using "bare project" settings) and output to AIC.

I sure some quality will be lost but it's worth a shot because it's free.

Use MpegStreamClip and convert them to DV files. Don't use h.264, more compressed.

I think somebody asks this every week. Mpeg Streamclip is by far the best way to do this, but you do need the $20 mpeg2 codec from apple for it to work with DVDs. If you have FCE or FCP, this codec is included.

I, too, have an interest in this question. I have a number of old home movies that I recently got converted to digital format and put on DVD. I want to be able to rip the video from the DVD, edit it, and make it into a nice DVD with chapters and the like. My biggest concern is loss of quality. The original files were from VHS-C and I don't want to use any file formats that will affect the image quality. So, more specifically to the original question, what program will allow one to convert ripped DVD files to a format where they can be manipulated in iMovie or iDVD without losing quality? I have used MacTheRipper in the past and am sort of familiar with that; it should not degrade the video quality. If I use MTR to rip what, then, would I use to convert to an editable file format WITHOUT losing quality?

Many thanks!