CD and DVD Recording For Dummies

Book excerpt: Most new PCs and Macs today are equipped with the latest in recording and storage equipment: CD-RW and DVD-R/RW drives. Even if your computer is a little older, you can still join the revolution with add-on hardware and software. You can record music and movies, store photos and data, and organize things you want to preserve for posterity, safely and easily. CD and DVD Recording For Dummies®, Second Edition, takes the frustration out of choosing and using these cool recording systems. This easy-to-follow guide will help you find what you need and use it efficiently, and it covers all the newest equipment. You’ll discover how to Choose and install a CD or DVD recorder Pick the best software for your needs Store large data files safely on CD Use EasyCD and DVD Creator and Toast Record mixed media disks Create electronic photo albums, baby books, genealogies, and more Once upon a time, videotape, vinyl record albums, and floppy disks were state of the art for preserving movies, music, and data. The superior durability and capacity of CDs and DVDs have made these tools as obsolete as the washboard, but never fear. CD and DVD Recording For Dummies®, Second Edition, makes it easy to Transfer your favorite VHS movies to DVD Preserve those classic LPs on CD Archive records and data files, and safely store treasured family photos Ask the right questions when shopping for CD or DVD recording hardware and software Record original material, copy and erase rewriteable disks, and make backups of important data Add menus to your disks, label them, and care for them properly Record a bootable CD-ROM Today’s CD and DVD recorders can produce everything from superb sound quality to original movies you can play on your DVD player. CD and DVD Recording For Dummies® will get your recording career going in a jiffy.