MPEG to MP3+G

Lots of these available. Be sure to use a reputable site.

Thanks for the response, I had a look at the link you sent, but this only converts to MP3, not MP3+G. MP3+G is the karaoke format with the music on the 'MP3' and the graphics (words) on the 'G'. Both files have identical file names except one plays the audio, the other the graphics, they operate simultaneously when played with proprietary karaoke software like 'Karma' or 'Karafun'

I seem to have a very similar problem. My wife has various disks of various formats. Some only work on one machine, some only work on another machine. Not only would it be good to have backups (a party can be hard on optical media) but it would be nice to have them all work on one machine. Thus, I have started research but do not have any good solutions yet. Most of what I have below can be found pretty easily with Google, but sometimes it is handy to start with someones collection of good Google hits. Thus, this list

INFORMATION

http://www.tricerasoft.com/formats.html high level summary of Karaoke formats (there are a lot of them)
http://kibosh.org/pykaraoke/lpmag.pdf a pyKaraoke paper with some good information
http://www.karaoke-tutor.com/cdg-explanation.html a little information on the CD + G format
http://www.karaoke-tutor.com/mp3g.html a little information on the MP3 + G format
http://web.ncf.ca/aa571/cdgfaq.htm quite a few technical links on CD + G

RIPPING & CONVERTING

http://forum.videohelp.com/threads/28973-How-to-make-VCD-karaoke-from-DVD-karaoke instructions & software recommendations.
http://kibosh.org/cdgtools/ CD + G software tools
http://www.cyberciti.biz/tips/linux-dvd-ripper-software.html top 5 DVD rippers (many Karaoke disks are on DVDs)
http://linux.software.informer.com/download-linux-rip-karaoke/ this site lists "Linux Karaoke" programs but lists the OS requirements as Windows (no Linux). Thus, I feel very uneasy about this site.
http://www.powerkaraoke.com/src/prod_powercdgburner.php these guys seem to have quite a few Karaoke software tools
http://elliottback.com/wp/how-to-rip-a-dvd-a-tutorial/ a DVD Karaoke ripper tutorial

Please return and add posts as you work on your project.

Bruce

Thanks Bruce, I'll explore the links you kindly took the time to provide. I've also taken this issue up with Latshaws, the people that I bought the 'Karma' karaoke management system from. My problem is that the old MPEG files show on the laptop monitor but not the second monitor that I use for my singers. In reality a lot of these files are quite old and came from a dubious source! They are also largely duplicated in better quality elsewhere in my collection.

Just in case it helps you, my entire karaoke collection is digitized, I ripped my physical CD+G discs using 'Power GD+G Burner' software (then sold them). Files from other sources are in several forms including MPEG, CD+G & zipped in RAR I keep the collection on a 500 Gb portable USB hard drive with a backup on another portable hard drive. I have had a lot of experience of hosting karaoke events and find that 'Karafun' and 'Karma' (both free downloads for personal use) are excellent. Karma probably pips Karafun to the post because of its inbuilt no-nonsense second screen graphics and its remarkable search facility, both these programs play all the file formats I've thrown at them. Having left the UK a few years ago, I now live in central Portugal where I do Portuguese karaoke nights as well as English nights for the Expats!

Thanks for filling me in on your software recommendations.

I'm trying to do my conversions on a Linux machine. There is a good chance you prefer Windows. Reading through what is available free and virus free in Linux is worthwhile. If you find what you need then you might try to dual boot (Windows & Linux) a machine or reinstall Linux over the OS on an old machine.

Bruce