What's the Difference between DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, and DVD-RAM?Dave, I have just installed a new DVD burner in my computer (a Pioneer DVD-RW DVR-105 internal drive) and am trying to figure out what kind of blank disks I should be using. There are apparently five different blank DVD formats. Do I want DVD-R? DVD-RW? or ?? Also, if I just want to burn lots of data onto a DVD disk, can I use my Roxio Toast Titanium to do so, or do I need to use a special DVD-friendly app like iDVD? A DVD-R is a write-once format: once you've burned the data onto that DVD platter, the disk is forever frozen with that information. Add the "W" to that, and you'll find that DVD-RW can be erased or rewritten up to a thousand times. Seems kinda weird, but if you can do so, DVD-RW obviously has significant advantages over DVD-R. DVD-RAM was even more flexible, however, since it let you erase and rewrite sections of an existing DVD, something that you cannot do with DVD-RW. Moving to the plus side is where things get a bit confusing, because DVD+RW came before DVD+R. The plus formats have the same data storage capacity as the minus formats (4.7GB), but DVD+RW offers faster writing, better internal linking (a technical obscurity you don't have to worry about), and support for drag-and-drop desktop files, which makes it easy to compose the contents of a disk. DVD+R is a write-once format intended to be more compatible with more DVD players, though at this point it seems to be about even with DVD-R, which remains the most compatible computer-burned DVD format. In your case, since your drive is a DVD-RW, you're effectively limited to DVD-R and DVD-RW format discs. Stay away from any of the "plus" formats, as those won't work with your drive (and being newer, they cost more anyway). As to whether you want to use DVD-R or DVD-RW, that depends on what you want to use them for. DVD-R is a write-once format, just like CD-R, and you can't erase the data once it's written. DVD-RW is rewritable, so you can use it somewhat like a 4.7GB floppy disc, for all intents and purposes. In general, I suggest that you use DVD-R for archival purposes -- stuff that isn't going to change, and DVD-RW for more fluid data. DVD-RW discs are more expensive than DVD-R discs, so that may also influence your decision. How do you confirm what format your drive works with? One way, if you're on a Mac, is to use the System Profiler application. You'll find this useful utility in Applications -> Utilities. Launch it, then click on the "ATA" item on the list. If you have an internal DVD burner, you'll see something like what I get: "PIONEER DVD-RW DVD-106D". If it's an external DVD drive, you might find it in SCSI, USB or FireWire, depending on how you hook it up. As far as your second question, your data-burning application definitely has to be aware of the DVD format you want to use (i.e. DVD-R or DVD-RW in your case). For Windows, you can use GEAR for burning CDs, but you'd need to upgrade to GEAR Professional Edition to be able to burn both CDs and DVDs. Toast Titanium does burn DVD-R and DVD-RW so you should be set in that department. My thanks to Robert LeBlanc for his help on this question
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Never miss another useful Q&A article again! Subscribe to AskDaveTaylor with Google Reader. I checked this site because I need to buy a supply of DVD's and was unsure of what the difference between DVD - and + R's is. I found this pretty helpful. Fortunately for me I have now found that my dvd burner will handle - and + types so I should be in good shape either way. Which is better for movies?? DVD+R or DVD-R Posted by: Alex at June 17, 2005 5:59 PMDVD-RAM is not old and hard to find. All Panasonic DVD recorders use it because it is Panasonic's format. The idea is that it would act like regular RAM, or a hard drive, such that you could apply any file system you like. You are not restricted to writing sessions and tracks, because the whole disc is essentially formattable. It is by far the most useful kind of disc, however lack of implementation due to royalties means it is not a famous format. The reason you need a special drive for this disc is that the TOC only contains information regarding the size of the disc etc. DVD+R and +RW are Philips formats. They refused to pay royalties to Sony to allow -R recording in their devices so instead developed formats that were close enough to the original -R and -RW specifications but deviated enough to be classed as separate formats. Pioneer and a few other Chinese brands were given cheap royalty fees to promote the +R format. The TOC on this disc is different to that found on a -R disc, and the actual burnable area begins at a different point, so a special drive is also required. Posted by: David G at September 5, 2005 11:55 AMhttp://www.askdavetaylor.com/whats_the_difference_between_dvdr_dvdr_dvdrw_dvdrw_and_dvdram.html DVD+R is a write-once format is this still true? Hi, This is krish. I do have a doubt that whether the DVD+R is meant for writing Videos and other files and DVD-R is meant only for data / information. Whether both support writing on the session basis? If so, please guide me in getting a +R or a -R disks. Which is better? With regards, Thanks for clearing this up for me. Too bad the industry can't work together to solve some of this confusion. I may try some -r since it is cheaper. I am glad my burner does both though. I used some +r with no problem. They play in my dvd player as long as I write/save correctly for dvd players. I have also discovered cd-r does work well for video use on my computer. It just won't play on my dvd player of course. Posted by: Barbara the Geek at November 16, 2005 9:24 PMawesome site, helped a lot on buying decision !! god bless ! KDK Posted by: kapil kirpekar at November 18, 2005 8:32 AMI bought a GO-Video a year ago and a bunch of DVD+R blanks and now I find I can't use the +R...any suggestions as what to do with the blanks??? Posted by: cherry at November 28, 2005 6:23 PMwe bought a player to transfer our vhs tapes to dvd.No copyrighted material just family vhs tapes. we can not get the dvd to play on our dvd recorder, we have dvd-rw please help, are we going to have to buy new dvd players Posted by: cindy at January 14, 2006 10:37 AMSo DVD+RW are the only ones that are eraseable and re-writable. I guess I am just confused. Posted by: Bobbie at January 22, 2006 10:00 PMHi Dave: There is, Phyll, but it's not something I write about on this site. Posted by: Dave Taylor at February 3, 2006 11:03 PMI purchased new Laptop Toshiba it has a DVD-RAM Drive. I was reading the info on dvd's to buy I am not sure which ones now to buy. Could you advise me on this. Posted by: Mick at June 6, 2006 1:47 PMDoes anyone know of a way to rip chapters from a DVD onto a computer hard drive? I have been using DVD-RW to record with and the computer drive I use will play the disks in Power DVD but I can rip individual chapters from the DVDs. Any help? Posted by: Mike at June 19, 2006 11:11 PMI have a Maxtor53073h4 with a driver of 5.1.2535.0. Could you tell me what would be better to use DVD-R or CD-R and why? I bought both and I'm not sure what to use. Thanks! Posted by: Shelley at July 16, 2006 8:29 AMOk... I am just a little confused. I believe that my dvd burner will burn + or - dvd's... my question is which would be the more universalally used format. I am burning a dvd for a family reunion and need to burn 50 dvd's. I would hate to do all that and have picked the wrong one... help! Posted by: Kathy B at August 17, 2006 7:26 AMWill DVD+R DL do multisesion? If I burn four DIVX movies at should I be able to come back later and burn a fith? My +RW disk will do this. How about a single layer +R disk. Posted by: John Beasley at August 27, 2006 5:25 PMI have the new iMac with the Intel chips. What DVD/ Cd format should I buy should to burn to play on an old Sony DVD player? Posted by: Richard wolf at October 4, 2006 2:32 PMmany thanks for the very throrough explanations obviously I am new at this but your explanation will save me a lot of time and$...B.F. Posted by: bud freeman at November 5, 2006 9:33 AM" So DVD+RW are the only ones that are eraseable and re-writable. I guess I am just confused. Ummm...no. DVD+RW and DVD-RW are re-writeable. Posted by: jimbo at November 16, 2006 12:44 PMI would think that the +R and +RW would be more universal, since -RW format is SONY. I would think I am confused. please help I understand dvd-r is a one time write, but am I able to add data (pictures) onto the disc after I have written other pictures, or do I have to write everything at one shot?. also, on a rw disk, can I add data without writing over existing data Posted by: doug at December 4, 2006 7:52 PMWell everyone has anyone heard of the newest and LASTEST tech on the market that will MOST LIKELY replace DVD technology.... If you haven't your in for a surprise... Go to Blueray.com to find out more!!!! Oh yes these babies (the disks) can hold up to 50GB on a single dual layer disk!!!! COOL!!! HUH!!! Posted by: Matthew Reed at December 5, 2006 6:50 PMI GOT A CALL TODAY ASKING FOR ADVISE ON DVD-RAM IT SEEMS HE HAS RECORDED ON IT FROM A DVD RECORDER PLAYER BUT WHEN HE WANTS TO RECORD AGAIN SAYS DISC FULL.ARE ALL DVD-RAM REWRITABLE? DO YOU NEED TO ERASE PROGRAMMES BEFORE RE-RECORDING? First of all, you need to identify which format your DVD Player able to support. This can be easily know by finding the logo sticker either at the front or the back of your DVD Player. (usually DVD-R,DVD-RW,DVD+R,DVD+RW,DVD-RAM). Cazzey, i am using nero 7 premium reloaded to copy dvds.the dvd that i am copying is from mini dvds discs from dvd camera.can i use dvd+r to do this. the computer keeps on spitting them out. I have a GO-Video Recorder and cannot find any compatible DVD's. Can anyone help with this? Which DVD's are compatible with Go-Video Recorders? Thank you. Posted by: brs at January 23, 2007 1:03 PMPlease advise if I can use DVD-R discs to copy photographs on my Packard Bell laptop. Posted by: Jim Morgan at February 9, 2007 9:01 AMI want to know the differences between CD-R, CD+R, CD-RW, CD+RW, DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, DVD RAM, and DVD ReWriter. Posted by: Bright Dey at February 13, 2007 4:13 AMI get the whole DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW now thanks to all of you. :-) Help Please! Thank You Posted by: Vicki at February 20, 2007 8:15 PMso whats the best one Posted by: tim at February 23, 2007 7:48 PMHi Sir I have a LG DVD Writer Model No. GSA-H42N, I recently made a MP3 DVD on Sony Disk which was DVD+R, I was able to make the disk, but was not able to play the DVD on my DVD player which is Coby 207 model. I would like to know if I have a DVD Burner with - sign, is it really necessary to use disk with - sign or can I use DVD with + sign. Please let me know asap about the same. Regards Anurag Posted by: Anurag at February 28, 2007 11:38 PMMAKE ME CLEAR ON BELOW POINTS DVD-R -- USES,CAPACITY,PERFORMANCE,RESULT,PRICE DVD+R -- USES,CAPACITY,PERFORMANCE,RESULT,PRICE WHICH IS GOOD,BETTER,THE BEST AMONG THESE TWO? WHAT DOES IT MEAN BY DUAL LAYER IN DVDs?IS IT BOTH SIDES OR SAME SIDE 2 LAYERS? HOW CAN WE COPY/RECORD/BURN THE DVDs OF SIZE MORE THAN 4.7GBs? SOME MOVIES ARE MORE THAN 7 GBs. Posted by: VIPUL PATEL at March 10, 2007 3:25 AMhi, many thanks dave from london Posted by: david ord at March 11, 2007 2:36 PMsir, i have just bought computer with dvd writer.I copeid a movie on it,while playing it on dvd player it does not play.It is dvd-r type.Other dvds with dvd-r plays in the dvd player.What would be the reason? speed of dvd disc is 1x16. Posted by: AMIT at March 26, 2007 4:40 AMHi, However when I click on the hardware profile, I see MATSHITA DVD-RAM UJ 842S. So what kind of drive do I have, a DVD+RW or a DVD-RAM. Please help.
sree Posted by: sree at March 29, 2007 6:43 AMDVD-RAM, DVD-R, and DVD-RW are all older formats, not that there's anything wrong with that. They are generally more compatible with "random" players. DVD+ formats came out after the - formats. There is basically no significant differences between a DVD-R and DVD+R, besides price (+ is more!). I just bought myself a Samsung DVD burner for $32 and it supports all formats, even got free shipping! ( http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16827151136 ). What discs will I be using? DVD-R. I generally stay away from RW media, probably because I would never rely solely on the DVD media for my main copy of important data. Most the stuff I burn is multimedia. DVD media is pretty fragile... heat, UV light, and high humidity can turn your disc into a coaster after only a few hundred hours, if that. Be sure to store your media in a dark, cool, dry place for maximum life. Never attach sticker/labels to a disc! This can make them wobble when they spin and they will not read correctly, so do what I did and get a burner with LightScribe for under $32. Posted by: FireXtol at March 29, 2007 2:08 PMdear friend thanqu Hi, I am having trouble rewriting to a dvd. It was used and then erased and now when looking at properties it says that okb used but the picture is completely blue meaning that there is no free space. It wont let me format, only erase. My drive is a Matshita Dvd-Ram UJ-842S, and if Im reading the manual correctly seems to allow all formats to be used. Please help I have a pile of DVD-RW that I cant do anything with. Thanks Posted by: Davy at May 11, 2007 9:32 AMI have a burn DVD+ R why can't i erase it? I have a Toshiba DVD Recorder DR-2. I recorded a DVD-R/DVD-RW but it won't play in my other DVD player. Why? I finalized the DVD-RW. When placed in my other DVD player it reads "Bad Disc"! Posted by: Greg at May 23, 2007 4:49 AMI have been recording DVD-R disks on my Canon recorder and then I finalize the disk and move it to my computer. I then copy the contents to a directory and later point Nero to that. Once the files get to my hard drive, are they still in DVD-R format. I ask because I also have some DVD-RW disk that I recorded and people have trouble viewing the movies that I eventually send to them on their DVD players for their TVs. I am playing with the recoder now. Posted by: JohnR at May 30, 2007 8:30 PMhi i know that dvd rw these are re-reordable Dave- MF i bought a bunch of DVD+R blanks and when i burn a movie onto the dvd it does not play on any of my dvd players could someone please tell me why this is? Posted by: john at July 4, 2007 2:51 AMI need to copy the info. from the DVD-R to a DVD+R for viewing on my DVD player. ok one question i havent seen.. I have a file thats bigger than what can fit on my cd-r disc.. I have hundreds of cd-r's. short of buying dvd-r which my burner will only burn on...i found this out buy buying dvd+r and it not working.. i know little about comp. obvious.. but now know its a -r burner and not +.. can i somehow burn part of my movie and then put the rest on another disc? if so can you explain how? please.. lol thanks alot.. your site is awsome... Posted by: Tim at July 17, 2007 1:51 AMI have a lot of stuff on the ancient VHS/VCR tapes, and I recently bought a Panasonic DVD recorder and it is recording fine. My question is, I want to use the DVD burner on my pc to burn all my VHS stuff. This means I have to transfer all the VHS thing into my pc, AND then use the pc to burn it. Now, how do I transfer the output from my VHS player to the pc? My VHS player has RCA jacks only. Thank you Hello. I am not at all hi-tech, and have recently taken my computer into a store to have an "LG" Internal Super Multi DVD Rewriter installed into my drive. This states on the box that supported disc formats include:- CD-R, CD-RW, DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-RW, DVD+R DL, DVD-R DL and DVD-RAM. The store in question also connected a firewire port so that I could transfer video from my camcorder to my computer (as apparently a normal USB wouldn't work!). My sister downloaded some photos combined with music on my computer, which I want to put on a disc so that I can view it on any DVD player. Unfortunately I can't get it to burn properly. I have managed to burn it on a couple of CD-R's, but these won't play on any DVD player I've tried. They only play on my computer. How can I get the photos and music transferred onto either a CD or a DVD so that I am able to watch it on a normal DVD player?! Also, I would like to transfer video footage (I have already managed to download it from my Sony camcorder to my computer) to a DVD. However, I have tried to burn it from my computer to a couple of DVD+R's, but to no avail. It comes up with the message "Sorry, your compilation cannot be written on this kind of disc". It then tells me to use a CD-R/RW. But how can I use CD-R/RW for what is ultimately a moving video?! Surely it needs to be transferred onto a DVD+recordable? If not, are you able to advise what discs I should be using, or alternatively, what I am doing wrong! Appreciate any help! Many thanks. Marnie. Posted by: Marnie at August 6, 2007 7:16 AMHi Dave, Maybe you have the answer. I connected to a G4 Mac via a usb connection a Samsung DVD writer/player...it will burn a DVD with Roxio but I cannot get DVD player to recognize the player and play a movie on the thing. I have Patchburn installed. Thank you. Posted by: Barbara at August 29, 2007 4:22 PMDave, maybe you can help, I've been at it for 4 days. I bought a DVD+R/+RW, from craigslist. It came with no software. It is manufactured by Philips and was manufactured in 2003. I cannot, for the life of me, find a driver so my computer will recognize the drive. I am unable to use it until I can get this accomplished. Can you be of any assistance? Thank you in advance. Kathy Posted by: Kathy at September 15, 2007 8:52 AM
A friend of mind brought some movies back from overseas. There are 88 movies on 10 discs. What type of recordable dvds should I buy to record the movies? Posted by: crystal at October 11, 2007 11:35 PMHi @ all, I have the ambition of becoming a dvd authorer so like to pretend I know this kind of stuff and i have some answers to the questions asked. Mind you, I am not sure if all the information I have is correct. There is two main differences to make: I have never heard of compatibilty problems for dvd's for computers, so the dvd that is going to be used on a computer, you can decide what you like to use, keeping in mind if you want use(burn) the disc once, use +R or -R, if you want to use the disc more often(erase and re-use) as a temporary data storage, get +RW or -RW. A dvd player hooked to your tv will only play movie discs (some can read and display data-discs and even show pictures but they are not common and are way more expensive). A movie disc usually has a menu and videofiles in the mpg2 codec and is double layer. But there is a difference, the movie dvd's have 2 layers of each 4,3 gb: they have a smaller capacity. Now if you have a video that you want to play on dvd players, you need a programm that will let you create this menu and render your video in the mpg2 codec, these programs also have a burn option so you really cant do anything wrong. What I know of compatibillity if dvd players is that some years ago someone did a test on which dvd player would play which kind of disc, whith the outcome that the dvd-r disc was the most compatible and the dvd+rw disc the least. And if you have films you want to copy from oversees, it is important to know that differant parts of the world use diffrent formats. I think this answers a lot of questions and hope at least one person finds this info usefull Posted by: Tim at October 13, 2007 1:05 PMI think I forgot to add that if a dvd player does not have a competabillity problem it will also read movie dvd's burnt on the 4,7 gb discs and will play just fine. hi im mike i have a windows 98, i can copy a music cd on a ga1215l3al121a80 what ever kind of cd is this.I am having trouble coping music or movies on this and on a dvd+r what is this dvd used for .I do have a sony dvd Drive ? Both are sonies What do i need to use? mike writing thanks ps my email might be net Posted by: michael watson at October 17, 2007 11:49 PMOK,I wanna dvd -,+,rw,r .ect that i can put a dvd video in it and i want it to play on a dvd player wich type of dvd cd should i use? Posted by: Cristian at October 21, 2007 8:55 PMhi dave, okay so this may be a dumb question, but i have a dvd +/- combo RW drive and i have burned files onto a dvd+r disc and now my computer does not recognize the disc at all! what do i do to be able to access these files? Posted by: John at October 27, 2007 3:41 AMthanks i just needed to know the difference with minus and pluses now i know this is a top site keep up the good work mate from downunder Posted by: luckylill at November 5, 2007 12:05 AMHello, Hello, I am trying to create a DVD (using Pinnacle Studio) and the process fails at the burning stage on some DVDs. Specifically, if I use DVD-R 1-16x speed DVDs the process fails. My DVD re-writer is DVD-R/RW but is 8x max. Is this what is causing the problem? Can you advise on how to fix it? Thanks, Kevin Posted by: Kevin Baker at November 20, 2007 1:32 PMFascinating Info! Greetings to the Audience, reading & watching, right now! This, is a Recording... Posted by: Danny at November 23, 2007 2:43 AMI'm also new to this whole thing about writing with different kinds of DVD. But this has helped a lot. The only problem I really have is about the DVD+R discs. A while back I got a whole pack of them not realizing they were DVD+R discs and since then I haven't been able to use them for anything since I didn't have a DVD-Writer (Just got one yesterday). So now they finally work when I put them in, but I realize that everyone's mostly saying DVD-R's are the best, especially if you want them to work in your DVD Player. So now I'm wondering if the DVD+R's will work at all in my DVD Player, which is what I wanted them for. I know I could just try and if I failed, I could just buy DVD-R's but I've tried using Nero before to burn some videos onto a DVD-R with a menu and everything and it didn't work at all in my DVD player. So I guess I really want to know what's best for DVD Players, DVD+R's or DVD-R's? And is there a way for me to find out what format works for my DVD player? It's not old :P. Posted by: Mai at November 24, 2007 5:31 AMWHEN USING A DOUBLE SIDED DVD, DO YOU FINALIZE ONE SIDE BEFORE TURINING IT OVER TO UE THE OTHER SIDES? Posted by: TAMARA at December 22, 2007 8:32 AMI purchased a RCA DVD/VCR player/recorder. My plan is to convert my home videos (recorded on VHS-C30 tapes) to DVD. The user's manual lists the following to use for recording: DVD+/-R 2.4, 4, 8, 16, 32 and DVD+/-RW 2.4, 4, 8. How do I know which one to use? I have no clue. Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide! Posted by: Loretta at January 1, 2008 1:15 PMwhat's the big diffrence between the dvd-r media and the dvd+r media...??? which one is the best for movies copy....?? Posted by: eric at January 1, 2008 5:07 PMI can't burn DVD+r or DVD-r on my computer. I have a dimension 9100 dual burner. Is there any thing i can do to burn movies to DVD-r or DVD+r? Should i just put in another burner, that will burn all? Help before i buy new burner. Posted by: e.c at January 24, 2008 6:38 PMI have just copied a DVD onto a DVD-RW disc using a Pioneer 105D DVD writer and Clone DVD 3. I burned a movie to a DVD+R, and then tryed to play it in my dvd player and T.V. but it could not play this DVD. Can you help me out? Posted by: Erik at February 3, 2008 4:51 PM2 questions: 2. Since CDs have a much smaller capacity than DVDs, is it possible to record only audio on a DVD thus allowing for many hours of play since a DVD has much more time. if not, why, and why has no one developed a 4.7 GB dvd that will record music only? thks. Posted by: rudy at February 10, 2008 1:13 PMHi Dave Can you please tell me how i have a dvdrw installed in comp, i can burn dvds that will play on comp but not on my player that is connected to tv which is a samsung player, i am using dvd-rw but wont play on tv Posted by: BARRY at February 11, 2008 7:48 AMDave, Hiya Dave, Hi, It was nice tutorial to read and educate ourselves. I have one problem with my current DVD ReWriter. Its sony brand 109A. Thanks in advance. Posted by: imran rahi at March 12, 2008 11:19 AMMY DVD burner in my computer takes both DVD+ and DVD-. problem is there is no consistency in playback. i have used both formats to burn on the computer and to dub VHS to DVD. the results vary wildly, bottom line being that some will play ONLY from the DVD player attached to my TV and some will ONLY play on the computer. trial and error, hit and miss. i throw away a lot of ruined disks - what am i missing????? Posted by: Jen at March 19, 2008 2:44 PMI transferred some old home videos (VHS) to a DVD-R disc and can only play the disc on the player/recorder I used to transfer the videos. It is a Panosonic and less than two years old. The other player/recorder is an LC and is less than 4 years old. Help! Also, I cannot view these on my computer so I assume I need to transfer the videos in some other way. Please advise. Posted by: Sheila Plant at March 27, 2008 11:18 AMHi, why does my dvd player say bad disc everytime i try to play my recorded dvd? Posted by: Angie at May 5, 2008 11:29 PMHi Dave!! my burner is a DVD+R but it records on DVD-R disc and spits out DVD+R disc. Hi Dave, can I use DVD+R in my Max O SX ?... Posted by: Nina at June 19, 2008 3:21 PMFor most users, there is no difference between + and - as in 2008 pretty much all players and recorders have both formats. Posted by: Chris Dawes at June 26, 2008 2:57 AMI am so frustrated. Which is better to burn PC games DVD-RW or DVD-R? Posted by: Melvin at August 21, 2008 12:54 AMI have a dvd+rw that says that it is read only and won't let me delete files that I saved to it. I went to properties and unchecked read-only. When I say apply it gives me the following error: cannot delete file on this dvd drive are read only. You cannot copy or move files over to this dvd drive. how can I remove my files? Thanks! Posted by: Richard Morano, Sr. at August 21, 2008 2:57 PM"since your drive is a DVD-RW, you're effectively limited to DVD-R and DVD-RW format discs." I have a DVD-RW drive, but it's not acknowledging the fact that they're in there so i can't burn my cd's. The CD's i bought are TDK DVD-R, and they hold 4.7 GB. Could it be to do with a setting on my computer, or d i just need to buy the DVD-RW discs? Posted by: Ella Madden at August 24, 2008 2:34 AMI just got a DVD+R 16x 4.7gb disk with a Memorex brand. it *acts* Posted by: Alan at September 1, 2008 4:26 PMOne of my college questions is: What are the technical differences between Domestic and professional DVD formats? Explain the use of copy protection systems for these formats. I have no idea what to write for my answer as I have just started the course but i can't find any relevant information online. Could you help me anser this question please? If you could email me that would be great. Thanks. jammy_arsenal@hotmail.com
I have a question...I just bought my hubby some music recording software and I need to know what kind of cd/dvd/rw device to use- he will be recording and storing his music onto cd's and we have an older PC that doesn't include the ability to copy or write cd's. We have a dell demension 3000 and I'm buying him 2 GB of memory for his computer so it doesn't run out of memory- I'm totally confused by this whole dvd-rw stuff but I just need to know the cheapest place to get what he needs. (even online) It's software from Cakewalk and it's used to create edit and produce your own music. thanks! Posted by: cindy at November 1, 2008 6:30 PM-This is what the package says " "DVD-ROM, DVD+/-RW for installation / CD-R or CD-RW capability required for CD audio disc burning" sorry- I just found the info on the box ! :) continued from above question.... Posted by: Cindy at November 1, 2008 6:35 PMI just discovered this site. Great work Dave. Thank you for the effort. Joe. Posted by: Joe at November 10, 2008 3:35 AMhi dave what type of disc do i use to burn a movie and watch on my xbox360 Posted by: Nigel at January 27, 2009 8:48 PMI purchased some Sony DVD's at wal*mart, and the large letters on the right say "DVD+R". Beneath thatm, it says "120 min/4.7GB". Beneath that, it says "AccuCORE". Finally, beneath that, it says "RW". Finally, beneath that, in very small font, it says "DVD+R". Are you at all familiar with these, and if so, are they rewritable or not? Posted by: Ralph at January 29, 2009 12:54 PMwhat is the difference between copying a file to a cd or burning a file to a cd? In which instances would you do each one. Which way will more likely enable you to open the cd on other cd drives. Posted by: Sandy at March 4, 2009 2:36 PMHello there!!! I have also borrowed dvd's of friends and family, and some of the disc's have four to five movies on them. How do you do this??? Do you do this also using a normal 80min/4.7gb disc, or is there a disc you can buy with more minutes or gb on them. Please help me out with these inquiries. And thank you for taking time out to read this. Many thanks. i have an acer aspire 5515 with a dvd multi recorder----written on the dvd is: dvd+r dl and above that logo is RW--i'm new to this and need help--i've successfully dwnloaded movies and burned to MEMOREX 16X DVD+R discs which run on my laptop but when I try to watch them on my tv with stand alone dvd player i get error playback feature may not be available on this disc--WHAT AM I DOING WRONG????? PLEASE HELP? Posted by: mookieva at March 12, 2009 8:04 PMWhen I dut a disk in it asked me if iIwant to format it. What does that mean and how do I do it ? Posted by: jnne at April 10, 2009 8:57 AMHi just like to say that the DVD "minus" format is the official format from the DVD forum and thus would be the most compatible with DVD players while the "plus" format was created by a few manufacturers to avoid paying royalty fees to the DVD forum. Personally out of the two I use the "minus" format as it is the most compatible. Posted by: Mr Minty at April 25, 2009 4:35 AMhey um i bought a dvd-r and i was wondering if its the same as dvd rw and if i could use it the same way Posted by: jorge at May 4, 2009 9:19 AMwhat am i doing wrong when i burn a movie to a dvd+r and put it in my dvd player and it comes up and says disc error: I want to copy my pictures to a DVD+R disc. However, When I click on write these files to a CD, it lets me put the CD name, but it keeps on telling me to insert a writeable disc to continue. I already have the dic inserted. What am I doing wrong? Posted by: Chela at May 19, 2009 3:03 PMHello,lust thought I might save someone from the aggrivation that I had,I just bought a new canon camcorder DC410 ,I bought dvd+rw disc,fooled with that thing for hour's,could not get it to reconize the disc.It was sony brand.Iwas ready to call company tech.Idid some more shopping for disc.Hanging beside the ones i had bought,were some hanging that were a different color but the same letters,then I saw the difference. I try to copy photos out of Picasa but cannot. I right click on the photo in order to paste it in another program but am not enabled. Posted by: hoot at May 29, 2009 12:43 AMIn case anyone's still confused about dvd+/-R... I have a DVD-R put together by a cousin for a family reunion. On it are several rare family pictures I'd like to save to either my hard drive or a flash drive so that I may have hard prints made of them. The DVD-R is in jpeg video file format if I understand it. Is there a way to remove and save the pictures I want? Thank you for you help. Posted by: Joan at July 18, 2009 5:52 PMMy sister has scanned photos and put them on a disk. She has a MAC. I have a PC. I haven't been able to read what she put on the disk. What kind of disk do I need in order to view and modify (if necessary) these photos? Posted by: Karen at July 21, 2009 11:17 PMIm at a loss..here. I own a few old VHS flicks I watched growing up as a kid... i want to watch them on my DVD players now.. so i purchased a magnavox to burn them onto DVD -R discs. But a few of them indicated error message that "this can not be copied" Thanks Tony Posted by: lovesbfilms at August 1, 2009 6:45 PMI have a movie i purchased and put on a flash drive, i burned the movie to a dvd-r which i looked up information on my player and it does support dvd-r format, when i try to play the movie in the dvd player it saids disc error. Please Help Thanks Posted by: Sue at August 2, 2009 2:53 PMto burn movies for your own private use or as a back-up, download the following demo programs from slysoft.com AnyDVD and CloneDVD2, both programs run together, AnyDVD tricks your computer as if you are viewing the movie while CloneDVD records it. You need about 6-8GB of free hard drive space to record, the file will be compressed to fir on your regular DVD at 4.7GB. The temp file on your computer gets erased once it is burnt to DVD, my recommendation is use a DVD-R since most players read this format. These programs also work for Blueray. Please don't copy and distribute movies, every DVD & CD burner, burns its serial number onto each DVD, therefore they can trace where it comes from. Posted by: Mike at August 10, 2009 11:20 AMusing real player I have a movie in my library and I am trying to burn it using my tower, what kind of cd/dvd do i have place in my tower to burn a movie. thanks Posted by: frank herrera at August 14, 2009 6:54 PMAnother guide about "What's the Difference between DVD+R, DVD-R" I notices a few people asking about what a "DVD+R,+RW" was and to my suprise no body had the answer. THe new +r+rw is the ultimate format in my opinion and many industry leaders are moving in that direction. If you have a RW drive then you can still record onver i, but its also compatible with +R and almost everything else. I posted some official info below DVD+R/+RW: The World Standard that Puts the User First I am currently working with a DVD reproduction company - should I burn my master video to a DVD'minus'R or DVD'plus'R?? Hi, you should consider revising parts of your article, as there is technically no such thing as "minus" R discs. This system, the original writable and re-writable DVD format, was and is simply known as (and pronounced) "DVDR" or "DVD DASH R". @James Taylor: I've worked with some companies that use DVD-RA (for authoring) for masters, but I can't say I've seen them in use recently. If you are talking about consumer level masters then any good quality disc should do (I currently use genuine Taiyo Yudens). BTW, the single most important thing someone can do to ensure good bit-for-bit burns is to use good quality discs. This means paying attention to the disc's MEDIA CODE (which refers to the manufacturing process and provenance) as opposed to focusing on whether it's -R or +R. The format itself was much more of an issue 2 or 3 DVD player generations ago, when compatibility was more of an issue. Any player manufactured in the last 5 years or so will practically handle anything. So, if you want to have a disc that lasts a while and is likely to play in whatever player you throw it in, just pay attention to what you are buying. Google around for the concept of "disc/dvd media codes" or go here: http://www.digitalfaq.com/reviews/dvd-media.htm for a good overall primer. Bottom line: as someone who has burned well over 5,000 discs, the only good brands available in the U.S. right now are Sony, Verbatim, and the aforementioned Taiyo Yudens. If you stick to those brands, and assuming your DVD drive's firmware is up to date and you are using decent software, you'll get a good quality burn 99.99% of the time, regardless of whether you use + or -R & RW discs. Posted by: Robert Garofalo at September 14, 2009 10:11 PMDave - I have burned CD's on my computer all the time and it has only taken about 10 minutes tops. I am burning a CD tonight and it has been about 4 hours and it is still burning the CD and doing it very slowly. I haven't done anything different and I didn't know if you had any suggestions for me. Thanks! Posted by: Amber at September 22, 2009 8:50 PMi am a 71 y.o. tyro.this site answered all my questions about dvd types ta very much Posted by: ernest rawson at October 13, 2009 2:26 AMi want to transfer my VHS tapes to DVD's. The software I am going to purchase is a product of a company called Honestech. It stated that my DVD writer must support dual layer disc, which according to my spec on my computer it does. I have a Single drive 16xCD/DVD burner (DVD+/-RW) w/double layer write capability. Does this mean it takes special discs? I have DVD-R 4.7 GB 120 minutes. please advise thank you, your site is very informative. I just replaced a dvd drive with a new Samsung SH-S222L. It is a lightscribe, DL,and covers all formats. When I put a disc in that I have previously recoreded on such as dvd-r or dvd+r it tells that it is inaccessible. How can I pull up information that is stored on a disc if it just won't recognize it or accept it? I'm frustrated. Good day.! Im confused with the drive i have.. its a DVD-RAM drive,, this is what i see in its properties Name is What type of DVD's does it read and it can write? Completely newbie with multimedia.. I have burned photos to dvd-r using roxio, however when I put it in my dvd player it says wrong disk. Why is it doing that. I want to be able to view them on the tv. PLEASE HELP Posted by: michel at October 31, 2009 8:47 PMI have a lot to say, but ...
I do have a comment, now that you mention it!
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