very n00b dvd burner question

[hdeck]

i feel like such an idiot for asking this, but i'm years behind on the whole DVD burning thing. i recently purchased a dell (since i couldn't fix my other computer and didn't want to hassle with it anymore) and upgraded the drive to a DVD burner. it's listed as:

16X DVD+/-RW Drive

so yeah, so that mean it will do both dvd-r and dvd+r? if so, is there any real difference between the 2?

 

[cmdrdredd]

Both. The difference is that the +R disks can be set to read as a DVD-ROM and increase compatability with stand alone players (for movies etc). A -R cannot be set this way. It's called setting the Book Type and Nero as well as a variety of other programs allow you to set the book type.

For this reason alone, I will only buy DVD+R disks.

 

[Quiksilver]

Heres something that can help clear up any more things you may want to know:

http://www.anandtech.com/guides/viewfaq.html?i=118

 

[hdeck]

this is a late thanks, but i appreciate it🙂

 

[ForumMaster]

Originally posted by: QuiksilverX1
Heres something that can help clear up any more things you may want to know:

http://www.anandtech.com/guides/viewfaq.html?i=118

wow. good link. a bit outdated by now, but great. anyway OP, yes you can burn all types of discs. to know exactly which ones, i suggest you use the Nero Infotool you might have.

otherwise, go to device manager, find the actual name of your drive and google it. you will then know all the formats that your drive supports.