Abstract: Method and apparatus for enabling a user of a video laser disc to interact with the video image being displayed so as to provide capabilities which are either not available or difficult to implement using prior art techniques. An example of the use of the present invention would be to enable a user, while viewing a music video or movie, to be presented with a menu specifying choices which the user may make wherein the next program played is an item from the menu selected by the user. A branch table is encoded within what is known as a subcode channel of a laser video disc, which table is loaded into a memory and specifies information which identifies segments on the laser video disc to which the playback head of the laser video disc should go when a particular control button is pressed on a remote control.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for encoding graphical data on an audio compact disc or laser vision disc without affecting the digitized sound stored in the main audio channel by utilizing what is known as the subcode channel of the compact or laser disc. The subcode channel is reserved for information other than digitized compact or laser disc audio data. Multiple active areas are created on each screen or picture displayed, with each active are being synchronized with the information in the main channel by creating multiple bands in the subcode channel which can be simultaneously displayed and loading graphics and/or lyrics data which is to be displayed in the various bands.

Abstract: The present invention is an apparatus and method for ecoding data in MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) format on an audio compact disc without affecting the digitized sound stored in the main channel by utilizing what is known as the subcode channel of the compact disc which is reserved for information other than digitized compact disc audio data. The invention is directed to a technique for converting MIDI information generated by a MIDI source (for example, a keyboard or sequencer) into subcode data which may be recorded on a transportable floppy diskettes or other transportable media for subsequent conversion to signals which are input to a compact disc encoder which places the MIDI information into the subcode channel.