CDR/DVDR/CDROM Rolled Into One

[wolfmann1]

How do the new DVD-R drives incorporate the ability to not only read DVD's, CD-ROM's, CD-R's, CD-RW, but also write CD-R's and CD-RW's...I take it the drive has either multiple lasers, or a variable phase laser?


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[wolfmann1]

So can anyone answer my question?

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[mjc]

Well basically your question has been bugging me for a couple of days now, it seems to have something to do with the laser, I haven't been able to find anything specific other than the drives have but one laser. The disks use a phase change recording alloy so to me that implies a different laser than in CDR but I haven't been able to find out what the difference is. Maybe someone else will come along who will know a little more about this format, just hang in there.

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mjc
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[hiredgoonz]

The drives use a single laser head that accomodates both short and long wavelength laser frequencies...the longer wavelengths are power modulated to perform cdr/cdrw functions and to read cdroms, while the shorter wavelengths are used for the dvd functions (need smaller beam for denser data)...

[hiredgoonz]

And when you get right down to it, it's not really that amazing a technology...DVD drives can read cdroms/cdrs/cdrws in addition to dvds and CDRW drives can read cdroms/cdrws/cdrs in addition to burning them...

So really all you're doing is adding a write capability to a dvd drive, or adding a dvd read capability to a cdrw, depending on how you want to look at it...

BTW, I think the smaller wavelength is about 4 nanometers, while the longer is about 6...

[mjc]

Thanks Hired,

I knew it was something with the laser but just couldn't quite pin down what it was.

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mjc
Links list:Computer Links (http://www.fortunecity.com/skyscraper/highrise/11/index.htm)

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