Well, it depends on a lot of variables, and it's all down to personal preference. The absolute best site on the internet relating to digital video - editing and making is the following:
http://www.videohelp.com
It is an absolute treasure trove of information and probably more than you want. But go into it and they have a lot of links to free video editing software.
Also, you won't be able to put a slide show or anything video onto a CD and have it be read on a DVD player that's not a computer. The vast majority of DVD players (like 99%) won't play data files on either CD's or DVD's. So, that means you will have to put your slide show on a DVD to have it play on a DVD settop player.