Using CDBurnerXP. Select from a list of actions (Figure 1) when you run CDBurnerXP.

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1 Introduction BurnerXP is a free /DVD burning program for Windows XP/Vista/7 included in the standard software suite for Staff PCs. This document explains the main features. You can also refer to the in-built help option or visit Choosing your project type Select from a list of actions (Figure 1) when you run BurnerXP. Figure 1 - Action Selection There are five actions on offer, and we will look at them all over the next few pages. Data disc This option burns files (e.g. documents, pictures, GW archive folders, etc.) to a /DVD. Audio disc Create audio s with this option. Burn ISO image With an ISO image of a /DVD, you can burn it to a real disc. Copy disc This option copies a data or audio disc. Erase disc Erase a rewritable /DVD (RW) with this option.

2 Data disc This is the option used for backing up files from your U drive or from any hard drives or memory sticks on your PC. A B C D Figure 2 - Data compilation Select 'Data disc' from the menu and BurnerXP shows a new window, split into four sections (Figure 2). Folders appear in the top-left corner (A) The contents of the currently selected folder appear in the top-right corner window (B) Folders added (dragged & dropped) to the current project are shown in the bottom-left corner (C) Files from the currently selected folder appear in the bottom rightcorner window (D). How to select your files for burning Insert a blank or DVD into your rewriter drive Browse in (A) to find the files you wish to burn to /DVD Drag & Drop entire folders from (A) or files from (B) to (C) ICT (November 2012) Page 2 v1.3r

3 A bar along the bottom will let you know how much space the files will use. An alert appears if the total exceeds the space available on the disc When you're ready, select the 'Burn' button. Audio disc Drag and drop your audio files (wav, mp3 etc.) into (D) BurnerXP will convert the audio files into audio tracks as part of the burning process. Burn ISO image If you have an ISO file of a or DVD (a file with.iso at the end of the filename) then this is written to a real or DVD using the 'Burn ISO image' option in BurnerXP. Set the burn speed to less than the maximum to avoid possible errors Figure 3 - Burn ISO image Browse to the iso file and then select 'Burn disc'. Extra choices (see Appendix 1) appear. Space permitting, the default settings allow additional data to be added to the disc in future. The data is checked after the burn has finished and the disc is ejected. Copy disc The Copy Audio or Copy Data options appear. Select the source and target drives and click on Copy disc to begin. Erase disc Insert a rewritable RW disc and then choose the Fast or Secure method for erasing. Finally click on Erase. ICT (November 2012) Page 3 v1.3r

4 Appendix 1 - /DVD basics Most University PCs include a or DVD rewriter drive, capable of burning data onto writable/re-writable DVDs and/or s. DVD-R/RW -R/RW BD-R/RE These read DVDs and write to DVD Writable (R) and Rewritable (RW) discs. There are two main types - DVD+R/RW and DVD-R/RW. Some drives can write to both types. Can read s and write to -R and -RW discs. Some drives can also write at High or Ultra speeds. Although not yet a common data storage format for computers, writable Blu-ray discs (BD-R/BD-RE) can hold 25Gb on a single sided single layer or 50Gb on a single sided dual layer disc. The main difference between DVDs and s is the capacity. DVDs store approximately seven times the amount of data compared to a (Figure 4). DVD Figure 4 - DVD vs. DVDs can store 4.7 GB (single-sided single layer) or 8.5GB (single-sided dual layer) compared to just 640mb for a typical (although some s can store more, e.g. 700Mb). Multisession Multisession allows you to add extra data files to the disc at a future date (space permitting on the disc). However, not all / DVD drives will be able to read the disc until you officially close it, and each time you write a new session, the overall capacity left for your data files reduces by approximately 13Mb. This is because a new 13MB Table of Contents (TOC) is written for each session, regardless of the amount of data the session contains. For example: ICT (November 2012) Page 4 v1.3r

5 Session 1 25Mb of data + 13Mb Session 2 250Mb of data + 13Mb Session 3 180Mb of data + 13Mb Session 4 45Mb of data + 13Mb Total = 500Mb of data + 52Mb = 552Mb (multi-session disc) Compare the above with: Session 1 500Mb of data + 13Mb = 513Mb (no multisession disc) Using BurnerXP, you have options relating to multisession after you select the 'Burn' button. Leave disc open Figure 5 - Burn disc options As the option explains (Figure 5), this adds data to the disc at a later stage (in another session). However, only the current session will be readable by a PC until the disc is finalised. Some PCs might not be able to read the contents of the disc at all until the disc has been finalised. Finalise disc With this option, you write to the disc once. The next time you need to burn any data files, you use a new disc. Thankfully, blank s and DVDs are now inexpensive. Advanced Settings Advanced settings allow you to amend the default settings, and choose whether to verify the data, eject the disc at the end, and so on. BurnerXP can also shut down your computer when it has finished. ICT (November 2012) Page 5 v1.3r

6 Figure 6 - Advanced burn options NB: Although a typical blank is stated as being 640Mb, you have to factor in the 13Mb required for the TOC, so in reality a 640Mb actually holds about 627Mb (maximum) of data. Many blank s these days hold 700Mb of data, so again in reality they can store 683Mb of actual data plus the TOC. Writing Speed If your /DVD writing application allows you to choose the speed that you write (or burn ) data, it is recommended NOT to choose the fastest speed on offer as errors are more likely to appear during the burn. Check the final disc Check that your newly written or DVD can be read in another PC s drive before you contemplate deleting the data off your hard disk (if required). Writing on a /DVD Only use -R pens for writing on DVDs or s, and never write on the underside of the disc. DVD or? If you have a blank writable or rewritable disc with no information on the disc label to indicate what type of disc it is, flip the disc over and look at the colour of the underside: DVD Yellow/Gold or Yellow/Green Purple Blank disc? You might also be able to see if data is on the disc by examining the underside (Figure 7). ICT (November 2012) Page 6 v1.3r

7 Data Figure 7 - Data written to disc (underside) You should be able to see a ring on the surface of the underside if data is on the disc already. Formatted RW Figure 8 - Formatted RW disc (underside) Note that this visual inspection is not reliable for RW discs (/DVD), as they have to be formatted before use and the disc will therefore look as if it has been written to even though it may contain no data at all. ICT (November 2012) Page 7 v1.3r

8 Appendix 2 - Problems BurnerXP tells me that I have no compatible drives! Check that you have a or DVD rewriter drive. If you have, then there's a chance that it could be a SATA drive (rather than IDE). If your rewriter is SATA, then you need to check the SATA settings in the BIOS on your computer. If you see AHCI enabled, please disable this and switch the settings to SATA. BurnerXP should then detect the drive correctly when you next boot into Windows. Burning ISOs regularly fail! Try reducing the write speed from the maximum to something slower. Select the speed button (Figure 3) before you start the burn, or choose the advanced settings (Figure 6) after you have clicked on the 'Burn' button. ICT (November 2012) Page 8 v1.3r