One of my sons is a semi-pro musician, and I copy his own original CDs which he gives to his audience after a show.
These are readable on my other computers which have a much lower spec.. Other CDRs which contain data and/or audio are not readable at all. When I try to access them they show "full" in blue but no information.

I can only presume that they are "finishing"/"closing" to a different format.

How can I make data or mixed or CDWRs accessible to my other computers.

Thanks for your help

Ray Stainer

Which software are you using to burn data to the CD's that cannot be read on your 'low spec' systems?

Hi ski,

thanks for your reply. I use Toshiba multifunction package, which works very well and reliably. I am sure that I am to blame for the fault which I described, as I never get any burning problems except that the finishing is not closing the CD correctly.

The reason I asked is because there are data burning software programs, like Direct CD and In CD, which also have to be installed on the computer that's reading the CD.

The main reason I have heard for CDs not being readable on another system is that they were not actually closed out on the origin system. Make sure that you opt to close them completely so that no more data can be recorded and that might help.

A second option would be to try other recording software to see if they work better then.

This is a quite complex topic.
I slogged my way through the help files [in “Easy CD Creator” I think] and took notes, but still couldn’t get my mind around it entirely.
However:

Hewlett Packard integrated all the different programs in an opening window.

1. EASY CD CREATOR
a. “Make a data CD that is the most compatible with other CD-ROM drives. Choose this for example when you want to distribute your CD to a large number of people.”
b. “Make a music CD.”

2. DIRECT CD
“Make a data CD the easiest way: by dragging and dropping files in Explorer, or by choosing “File>Save” in any application. Choose this for example when you want to free up space on your hard drive, or to transport work between home and office. This type of CD is not compatible with all CD-ROM drives, so try it out in the drive you want to read it in to see whether it will be compatible.”

3. CD COPIER
“Copy an existing CD.”

“EASY CD CREATOR”
Copies DATA and WAVE files to CD-R & CD-RW
A. CD-R discs that have been closed can be played on any normal home or car CD player, but only the first closed session can be played.
B. CD-RW disks can only be played on PC’s.
C. “MIXED MODE” CD-R’s can be played on a modern home CD player but it’s NOT RECOMMENDED.
The first track is CD-ROM or CD-ROM XA & later tracks are audio and all this is done in ONE SESSION.
D. “CD EXTRA”: the 1st session has audio tracks. 2nd session has data in CD-ROM XA format. A multi-session CD-ROM drive is required to read these.

“DIRECT CD”
A. Writes to CD-R & CD-RW.
B. In applications use “Save” & “Save As”.
C. In Explorer use “Drag & Drop” or the “Send To” command.
D. Works in Windows 9x & NT v4.0 SP2 & above.
E. For the first write to a CD: FORMAT IT using “Direct CD”.
F. Only CD-RW disks allow DATA COMPRESSION.
G. Make sure “Direct CD” is running both when you enter and eject the CD.
H. For CD-R disks only: select “Organise the disk so it can be read in most standard CD-ROM drives” and THE DISK WILL BE CLOSED in “ISO 9660” format which uses 22MB for the first session and 13MB for each later session.
I. IF not already installed, the “UDF Reader” will be automatically installed from the CD when inserted into the drive of a PC.

CD COPIER
1. Will copy:
A. AUDIO: the reader must support “Digital Audio Extraction”.
B. DIRECT CD: “Mult-Read” drives will do ok. Some are unable.
C. MIXED MODE: data on the first track; audio on the others up to 99.
D. CD EXTRA: “Mixed Mode” 1st session (closed); 2nd to 99 can hold data.
E. PHOTO CD: CD-ROM XA drive required.
F. VIDEO CD: CD-ROM XA drive required.

2. Make a “Disk Copy” on the HDD if multiple CD copies are required, or if you do not have a separate CD reader. This will make an image file on the HDD.