We tend to take CDs for granted these days. Twenty years ago, owning a CD player and going to the local store to pick up a CD was something special-and expensive. Now, it’s run of the mill and we’re used to buying music CDs at the local supermarket and putting the latest software and games onto our computers using the same silvery discs. We’ve also started to watch movies from a similarly sized disc called DVD.Getting hold of all this software (music, computer programs, and movies) for your equipment is easy, but what do you do if you want to write your own CDs with your own music selections, copies of your family photos, and the latest holiday movie?You can do all of that with CD-R technology and this book. It doesn’t matter whether you are a home user who wants to make music compilations and exchange files using CD or a business creating CDs ready for professional duplication, you should find everything you need to know. From choosing the right drive to recording audio for transfer to CD we take you through every step of the process.How The Book is OrganizedThe book is split into four distinct sections:Section 1-“CD-R Fundamentals” looks at the basics of CD-R, including how the technology works, the different formats we can use to store information, and details on how to choose and make the best use of your CD-R hardware.Section 2-“Writing CDs” covers the specifics of the CD writing process. In addition to instructions for creating data CDs for storing standard files, I also look at music CDs, using CD-R for backups and archiving, and also the best methods for laying out and organizing the information you put on CD to make it accessible.Section 3-“Writing CDs for Business” details the issues surrounding the use of CDs in a business, looking at the basics of verification and testing and mass duplication.Section 4-“CD Writing Software” describes the different software packages you can use to write CDs, create videos, back up your machine-all using the CD-R medium. Once it’s written, we even show you how to create suitable labels!Throughout the book, special attention is given to providing and supporting cross-platform solutions, and the book covers the CD writing process under Windows, Mac OS, and Unix/Linux.