DVD burners: Work with older computer? Or stick with CD-RW?

Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

On 4/01/2006, posted this:
Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

My immediate (I mean instant!) thought is that you should save the cost
of the DVD burner and put in into your fund for a new (up-to-date)
computer instead. For one thing, any new one is likely to come with a
DVD burner.

If you disagree, then yes, I think you will enjoy the DVD burner,
assuming that it will work with your Win 98SE system. However, 10 GB is
not much disk space these days. You couldn't do much video with that.

On the other hand, a 10 GB drive could be backed up with three DVDs
even if it's full, and with room to spare :-)

HTH,
Gino

--
Gene E. Bloch (Gino)
letters617blochg3251
(replace the numbers by "at" and "dotcom")

.. --------------------------------------
Mike Richter, were you born with
"Scam Artist" emblazoned on your face?
--------------------------------------

wrote:

Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

Get a BenQ, NEC, or LG. Don't think you will have problems burning data
DVD at 4x max, but if it doesn't pan out, you can always use it as
CD-RW/DVD-ROM.
'

================================================== ======
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================================================== ======
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wrote:
Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

It makes perfect sense to get a DVD writer even if you use it primarily
for writing CDs and reading DVDs. You'll find it fine for writing
DVD-ROMs and for some functions of DVD-Video, though you're likely to be
frustrated waiting for your machine to render video if you want to burn
your own.

The problem for either CD or DVD is finding software which can be
installed on such a limited machine. In a word, if you can shoehorn the
program in, it will work fine, but if it demands a P4 or above or won't
run with less than ME or 2K, you have a problem.

Mike
--

http://www.mrichter.com/

.. --------------------------------------
Mike Richter, were you born with
"Scam Artist" emblazoned on your face?
--------------------------------------

Mike Richter (The Slimiest Friggin ****) crapped:

It makes perfect sense to get a DVD writer
You'll find it fine for writing DVD-ROMs

No crack about "quirky", "anomalous" or "trickier", Mikey?

================================================== ===========
Mike Richter (The Slimiest Friggin ****) splattered (3/5/06):

One of the differences between +R and -R is a bit which has different
values for DVD-ROM. I am told that it's academic for modern drives, but
older ones fail to recognize that the disc is DVD-ROM at all.

(No crack about Europe or Universe?)

================================================== ===============
Mikey, whatever happened to "quirky", "anomalous" or "trickier"?
================================================== ===============

Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin ****) crapped (8/22/05):

For DVD-ROM, the minus formats are a little better; there's a flag to be
set on the plus media to provide readability across all drives.

I've found that there is a slight advantage in DVD-Video to -R in the
U.S. and to +R in Europe; I've too few data to judge in the rest of the
world

(Any data in the Universe, Mikey?)

Mikey, whatever happened to "quirky", "anomalous" or "trickier"?

================================================== ======================
Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin SOB) splattered (5/1/05):

Briefly, you may regard +R and -R as equivalent. At this point,
dual-layer is available on on +R; -R is more likely to be compatible
(especially for DVD-ROM, but also for DVD-Video) with different readers
in the U.S.

(My experience is that +R is somewhat more likely to be
compatible with European drives, but that may be an effect of the
historic role of Philips there.)

Impressed with the tidbit about the "European" stuff.

But whatever happened to "quirky", "anomalous" or "trickier"?

================================================== ==================
Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin SOB) crapped (2/17/05):

Which one should I buy when my drive can read and write both?
Compatibility, durability, speed in writing, which one is better
for my drive?

in my experience (which is limited),
+R is more likely to work in Europe.

Impressed with the tidbit about the "European" stuff.

But whatever happened to "quirky", "anomalous" or "trickier"?

================================================== ==============
Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin SOB) barfed (2/12/05):

Which one should I buy when my drive can read and write both?
Compatibility, durability, speed in writing, which one is
better for my drive?

+ is slightly more quirky

Is it now "quirky"?
Whatever happened to "anomalous" or "trickier"?

================================================== ==========
Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin SOB) screeched (12/30/04):

DVD-ROM on + media can be anomalous

Is it now "anomalous"?
Whatever happened to "trickier"?

-------------------------------------------------------
Mike Richter (Slimy Friggin ****) splattered (10/21/04):

DVD-ROM is a bit trickier on the + media.

Sounds like you have extensive experience in DVD burning.

What do you mean by "trickier"?

Did burning to the + media require you to use a needle,
a magnifying glass and a cigarette lighter?
-------------------------------------------------------
================================================== ==========

================================================== ==============
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================================================== ======================
'
-------------------------------
Wow! What a slimy friggin SOB!
-------------------------------

----------------------------------------
Mikey, you are the Slimiest Friggin SOB!
----------------------------------------
Mike Richter, were you born with
"Scam Artist" emblazoned on your face?
--------------------------------------
(Mike Richter, any Material Connection w/ Roxio?)

wrote in message
oups.com...
Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?


I wouldn't spend too much upgrading your PC. You can get a new one for
as little as $300-$500.

You have 2 limitations with your system. The first is 128MB of memory. I
would increase it to at least 256MB or more. The second is your 10G HDD.

I picked up an NEC ND-3550a for $39.00 for a system I'm building for a
friend. I've used only Plextor burners myself but I'm really impressed
with the NEC drive.

Win98SE works fine regardless of what others say!

Chas.

Gene E. Bloch wrote:
On 4/01/2006, posted this:
Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

My immediate (I mean instant!) thought is that you should save the cost
of the DVD burner and put in into your fund for a new (up-to-date)
computer instead. For one thing, any new one is likely to come with a
DVD burner.

This is true, but for my rather limited purposes Old Bessy is perfectly
adequate...
anyway those cheap PCs look kinda, well, cheap to me, but I could be
wrong.


If you disagree, then yes, I think you will enjoy the DVD burner,
assuming that it will work with your Win 98SE system. However, 10 GB is
not much disk space these days. You couldn't do much video with that.

On the other hand, a 10 GB drive could be backed up with three DVDs
even if it's full, and with room to spare :-)

Hmm...if I copied all my digital photos and mp3s and stuff onto DVDs,
then I would have about 9 GB free probably...would that be enough to
burn a dual-layer DVD image? Or at least a single layer? I don't really
know how this works...

Additional random question: If name brand (ie Pioneer, Sony) computer
DVD-RWs are selling for c.$40, why do plain DVD players for the TV cost
so much more, at least for a decent one?


HTH,
Gino

--
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letters617blochg3251
(replace the numbers by "at" and "dotcom")

Mike Richter wrote:
wrote:
Hello,
I was going to get a new CD burner, and I noticed that the DVD burners
didn't cost a lot more, so I figured I'd get one of those instead. My
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB, although I'm probably
going to get a new one. Would this be a problem? My *main* use would
be burning CDs, but DVD would be a nice bonus...

Also, brandwise, I'm thinking either NEC, Sony, or Lite-on. Any
thoughts?

It makes perfect sense to get a DVD writer even if you use it primarily
for writing CDs and reading DVDs. You'll find it fine for writing
DVD-ROMs and for some functions of DVD-Video, though you're likely to be
frustrated waiting for your machine to render video if you want to burn
your own.

Will it just be really slow (I'm patient, and don't mind having to
close all other programs and stuff), or will it just seize up and not
work?


The problem for either CD or DVD is finding software which can be
installed on such a limited machine. In a word, if you can shoehorn the
program in, it will work fine, but if it demands a P4 or above or won't
run with less than ME or 2K, you have a problem.

Would getting slightly older software be a solution? I take it the
drive model itself isn't much of an issue?


Mike
--

http://www.mrichter.com/

wrote in
oups.com:


Mike Richter wrote:
wrote:
computer, however, is old- a 600mhz Pentium III with 128 MB RAM and
Windows 98SE. Also the hard drive is only 10GB,
....

Will it just be really slow (I'm patient, and don't mind having to
close all other programs and stuff), or will it just seize up and not
work?

From my own experience I can say your machine is plenty powerful enough to
write DVDs at 4x speed, and possibly even 8x. The main limitation is going
to be your aging hard drive which will need to be able to supply a
sustained 4.3GB data stream at a rate of about 5MB/sec for 4x burning or
11MB/sec for 8x burning. (4x is quick enough though - about 20 minutes to
burn a 4.3GB DVD, and the same again to verify it.)

The real problem though is, with a hard disk that size, where are you going
to find enough data to burn onto more than a couple of DVDs? As someone
else said, you do not want to burn DVDs a bit at a time (multisession), I
found out the hard way that under Win98, only the first session can be
read, the others disappear into a black hole.

As to permanently removing your picture collection etc from HD onto DVD to
free up space, the best solution to a full hard disk is to get a second
hard disk. DVD-Rs/CD-Rs are not a good substitute - some have been known to
go bad inside a year - I would not remove important data from a hard disk
except after backing it up to two different brands of DVD, in case one
developed bit rot.

Would getting slightly older software be a solution? I take it the
drive model itself isn't much of an issue?

Most drives seem to ship with Nero which is fine for Win98 - to the extent
that it's fine at all (I don't like Nero, but it's ubiquitous so I put up
with it's annoying quirks).


--
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Sweater, n.: A garment worn by a child when its mother feels chilly.
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