The CD-ROM and Optical Disc Recording Systems

Book excerpt: With one million CD-ROM users worldwide, there is an urgent need to demystify the technology of compact-disc data recording and retrieval, which will eventually replace the floppy disk. This book meets that need. It will benefit students, engineers, and professionals from many disciplines whowish to understand and exploit the cost-effective potential of optical data storage and retrieval. The book provides a unique introduction to CD-ROM and other optical recording systems, and clearly describes how the two main competing systems--the magneto-optic and the phase change types--work.Topics include photodetectors, lasers, mastering, WORM media, and magneto-optic media, among others. Keep up to date with this superb new introduction to CD-ROM and optical disc recording systems.