DVD Burners
An Overview of DVDs and DVD Burners
DVD Capacity
DVDs can typically store 4.7 gigabytes of information, which is enough to hold a high-definition movie that is up to three hours in length, or the equivalent of 10 television episodes. DVDs can hold about 75 hours of audio in mp3 format or 15 hours of video in AVI format.
The two most common DVD formats are DVD-R and DVD-RW. The DVD-RW format is basically a re-writable version of the DVD-R.
A DVD commonly costs about $1 each, or even less if bought in large quantities. Like all digital data storage mediums, the cost of DVDs has drastically fallen throughout the years.
The term "DVD" initially referred to a digital video disc. However, given the fact that the media format can hold any type of data, members of the DVD Forumnow refer this optical medium as a "digital versatile disc".
The Inner Workings
A DVD has a recording layer covered with organic dye. The laser on a DVD burner, which has a higher intensity than a typical DVD reading layer, encodes patterns into the dye. The encoded data can then be read at a later date.
A rewritable DVD, or DVD-RW, uses a special metal alloy material instead of the organic dye used in standard DVDs. The alloy material can be switched back and forth between an amorphous and crystalline state with the use of a laser. This allows the rewritable DVD to be rewritten many times. However, overall data quality will decline if the DVD is rewritten excessively.
Burning DVDs
In order to burn DVDs, you will need DVD burning software. There is a wide variety of software available. Roxio Creator 2009 is strongly recommended for your DVD burning needs. Roxio Creator offers many features such as the ability edit and burn DVDs, synchronize audio files, and edit photos. Roxio Creator 2009 can be purchased for $79.99 from http://www.roxio.com/enu/products/creator/suite/overview.html. If you have a tighter budget and want a free alternative, I would suggest downloading Burn4Free CD and DVD from www.burn4free.com/.
Considerations
DVD burners have been linked to the piracy of copyrighted DVDs. Many people download movies using file-sharing programs like Limewire and then burn them to DVDs. Many DVDs are now protected by digital rights management, or DRM, software.
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- DVDs can typically store 4.7 gigabytes of information, or the equivalent of 10 television episodes
- The two most common DVD formats are DVD-R and DVD-RW.
- The DVD-RW format is basically a re-writable version of the DVD-R.