Hal.  Yes to all except, cdrw in audio drives.  not all work.  Cdrs are much
better for audio cds.  Mp3's, burn just fine to a CDR and play in audio
cdplayers.  Yes data does back up on either cdrw or cdr , either one.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Hal Trachtenberg" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Friday, February 02, 2001 4:37 PM
Subject: Re: [PCBUILD] CD-RW Questions


> I have a REALLY important question I need help with. I am getting a new
> computer with a CD-RW drive and I am wondering a few things:
> 1)Can you record audio CDs on a CD-RW disc and will they play in any
> standard CD player?
> 2)Can you record audio CDs on a CD-R disc from a CD-RW drive and will they
> play in any standard CD player?
> 3)Can you download MP3's and burn them onto CDs with a CD-RW drive?
> 4)Can you backup data, like save files, onto CD-RW discs?
>
> Ok Sarah, here we go
>
> 1) It is no recommended to use CD-RW disks for audio. CD-RWs cannot be
read
> by your average stereo's CD Player.
>
> 2)Yes, CD-Rs are the standard for audio recording. CD-RW drives will
accept
> both CD-R and CD-RW disks.
>
> 3)Yes, but you will need special software that will convert the MP3 file
> into wave or CDA format, the latter being of higher quality.  The best
> programs for this purpose are MusicMatch Jukebox and Nero Burning Rom 5.0.
> MusicMatch is also a good MP3 player and it will also copy a pre-recorded
> store-bought CD onto your hard drive and convert the tracks into MP3
format.
> It is a free product ( www.musicmatch.com). Nero is a great all around
> burning program. It will burn both audio and data CDs, and it will allow
you
> to copy from CD to CD. It is not free however. The advantage of Nero over
> MusicMatch is that if you want to use the 80min./700Mb blank CD it is not
a
> problem, but with MusicMatch it is. MusicMatch Jukebox will not let you
burn
> a playlist that is longer than 74minutes. You can still use the 80 min. CD
> with MusicMatch, but you won't benefit from the extra space. You can check
> Nero at www.ahead.com .
>
> 4) Yes, that is what CD-RW disks are geared for. If  your CD-RW drive
comes
> with a program called DirectCD by Adaptec, install it. This program will
> format your CD-RW disks so that you can use them as you would you hard
drive
> or Floppy drive through your Windows Explorer. All the functions that are
> available for the hard drive and Floppy disks in Windows Explorer are also
> available for the CD-RW, but the disk has to be formatted using DirectCD.
>
>               The NOSPIN Group is now offering Free PC Tech
>                      support at our newest website:
>                           http://freepctech.com

               The NOSPIN Group Promotions is now offering
              Mandrake Linux or Red Hat Linux CD sets along
         with our NOSPIN Power Linux CD...  at a great price!!!
             http://freepctech.com/goodies/promotions.shtml