pctechguide.com

  • Home
  • Guides
  • Tutorials
  • Articles
  • Reviews
  • Glossary
  • Contact

DVD Recordable Formats

There are five recordable versions of DVD:

  • DVD-R for General
  • DVD-R for Authoring
  • DVD-RAM
  • DVD-RW, and
  • DVD+RW.

All writable DVD formats include a set of specifications that define a media’s physical traits and characteristics. This layer of functionality is the media’s physical layer, and a particular player or drive’s ability to play a disc depends on its ability to support its associated physical layer, regardless of what type of data is stored on it. The specification of the content itself is subject to a number of application layers, defined by the DVD Forum. Motion pictures are typically released on replicated ROM media (the physical layer) and authored using the DVD-Video format (the application layer).

The DVD-Video format is essentially a publishing format, intended for use in a one-time-only mastering process. However, DVD video recorders can also use another application layer, known as the Video Recording (VR) format. The VR format was created by the DVD Forum in order to offer functionality that is very similar to that of videotape recorders (VCRs). For example, consider the very common VCR function of randomly inserting a video segment anywhere on a tape. Attempting this on disc using a DVD Video application layer would likely be difficult and time-consuming, since the recorder would have to track and repair any unexpected changes in the navigational functions of the disc. The VR format was designed to make such functions simple, allowing tape-like flexibility whilst at the same time providing new features such as automatic location of blank areas and a visual table of contents of recordings on the disc.

All recordable drives can read DVD-ROM discs, but each uses a different type of disc for recording. DVD-R – which first became available in 1997, can record data once (sequentially only), while the rewritable formats – DVD-RAM, DVD-RW and DVD+RW – can all be rewritten thousands of times.

DVD-RAM was the first rewritable format to come to market, first appearing in the summer of 1998. It is the best suited of the writable DVD formats for use in computers, because of its defect management and zoned CLV format for rapid access. It is not compatible with most drives and players (because of defect management, reflectivity differences, and minor format differences).

The DVD-RW and DVD+RW formats are similar in that both represent a more evolutionary development of existing CD-RW/DVD-R technology – and to therefore provide better compatibility with the rest of the CD/DVD family of products. DVD-RW was first available in Japan in late 1999, but not elsewhere until 2001. DVD+RW has suffered a number of false starts and is not now expected to appear before late-2001.

Despite having a head start of nearly three years on its rivals, DVD-RAM has failed to achieve a critical mass in that time, and it is by no means certain that it will emerge as the winner in the battle of the rewritable formats. Assuming that DVD+RW drives match DVD-RW drives’ capability to write to DVD-R(G) and CD-R/RW media, DVD-RAM are likely to be significantly less versatile than both of its rivals. The DVD-RW and DVD+RW formats have so much in common that it is difficult to see how both can become successfully established. Perhaps the answer lies in market positioning. On the one hand, DVD-RW is criticised for its lack of either a defect management system or support for variable bit rate video recording. On the other, as of mid-2001 consumers were still waiting for the much-delayed DVD+RW format to reach the marketplace.

  • History of DVD development and birth of the DVD Forum
  • DVD Formats
  • DVDs – digital versatile disks – how they’re made and how they work
  • DVD OSTA
  • DVD File Systems
  • CDR-RW Compatibility Issues
  • DVD Encoding
  • DVD Content Protection
  • Regional codes for DVDs
  • DVD-ROM
  • DVD-Vdeo
  • DVD DivX Codec
  • DVD-Audio
  • DVD Recordable Formats
  • DVD-R – write once recordable DVDs
  • DVD-RAM
  • DVD+RW
  • DVD-RW
  • DVD+R
  • DVD Multi-Writers

Filed Under: DVD

Latest Articles

What is AGP and AGP Pro?

As fast and wide as the PCI bus was, there was one task that threatened to consume all its bandwidth: displaying graphics. Early in the era of the ISA bus, monitors were driven by simple Monochrome Display adapter (MDA) and Colour Graphics Array (CGA) cards. A CGA graphics display could show … [Read More...]

Maximise the Use of Group Chats to Brainstorm Advertisement Plans

With the advent of modern communication tools, you can now stay in contact with the people you work with even when you are not at the office or during the weekends. The use of group chats, for instance, is useful in sending messages to everyone in your team at once. You are saving time and energy … [Read More...]

Can IT Hurt Your Business?–4 Traps to Watch Out For

We all see technology as a way to streamline business and make it more efficient. It has been touted as the component of business that helps it grow at unprecedented rates. But, did you realize there are ways that technology can also hurt your business? Let’s go over some of the ways where IT can … [Read More...]

A Harsh Reality You Can’t Ignore About Network Information Security

We are becoming more and more connected to our lives with computer technology. They help to process data at work. We receive money using plastic … [Read More...]

What is the Best VPN for Gamers?

Of the 44% of UK Internet users who have used a virtual private network (VPN) at some point in their lives, approximately 39% of this demographic are … [Read More...]

Think About Headless Commerce as of a Modular System

In recent years, eCommerce has transformed to where consumers no longer handle purchases on conventional websites. Shopping is currently carried out … [Read More...]

Service That Succeeds: How To Build an Effective IT Service Desk

In today’s tech-forward world, building a capable IT service team is essential for businesses hoping to scale tech-related hurdles and soar past the … [Read More...]

A simple PC guide on keeping safe while using public Wi-Fi

Did you know that there is a cyberattack every 39 seconds? You are more likely to be a victim if you are lax about your digital security. This … [Read More...]

Motivating Students to Learn Computer Science

Computer science has been an important part of the educational curriculum for decades. Professor Seymour Papert, a mathematician from South Africa … [Read More...]

Guides

  • Computer Communications
  • Mobile Computing
  • PC Components
  • PC Data Storage
  • PC Input-Output
  • PC Multimedia
  • Processors (CPUs)

Recent Posts

WCDMA

WCDMA Definition: Wideband Code Division Multiple Access: a 3G wideband radio technique which makes highly efficient use of radio spectrum and is … [Read More...]

Intel’s 955X Express Chipset – Glenwood

Formerly codenamed Glenwood, continues this practice, essentially providing the same features as the earlier 925X chipset, plus support for … [Read More...]

CD-ROM Yellow Book

The Yellow Book was written in 1984 to describe the extension of CD to store computer data, i.e. CD-ROM (Read Only … [Read More...]

[footer_backtotop]

Copyright © 2022 About | Privacy | Contact Information | Wrtie For Us | Disclaimer | Copyright License | Authors