Which DVD Burning Software?

[barrie]

Help please! I have never been able to get the dvd burner to work on my computer. I think I've narrowed it down to the fact that I need DVD burning software.

I used to use Roxio Easy CD Creator 5 to burn CDs so I thought I'd start there. Now they are version 10 and it works on DVDs. When I went to purchase their software there were a bunch of bad reviews from people saying that it was awful, that it crashed their computers and that installing it was a nightmare. So now I am lost.

Can anyone recommend some DVD burning software that is compatible with Windows XP. All I want to be able to do is back up my photos onto disks while I am in Europe.

Thanks much - Barrie

 

[Groucho]

I like Nero a lot, although it has gotten amazingly bloated over the years. But I still much prefer it over the Roxio software.

You can get a free trial from the nero.com site. It comes with a ton of bundled software, including backup, photo editing, sound editing, video editing, media player, media indexing, DVD shrinking (dual-layer to single-layer), home theater front-end, etc. They have various levels of functionality but most are pretty decent. You can add/remove portions of it at any time. The one thing I always disable is the Nero Scout, which is their media indexing service. Some people may like that, I prefer to manage where I keep my media myself. (I also don't use Google Desktop, etc.)

 

[MarkBarbieri]

You don't even need software to burn a DVD. Try putting one in the microwave sometime. That's way more exciting then burning.

I just use Nero, Roxio, or whatever I have on hand for normal burning. For backing up pictures, I like Archive Creator, although I just checked and it looks like they haven't been updating it.

 

[rtphokie]

If all you are doing is burning files to DVD, you might be able to do that with XP out of the box (or is it Vista that added that feature).

Put a blank DVD in the drive and try dragging files to it. If you get a dialog about burning the disk, you are in business, if not, consider this another vote for Nero. Get the cheapest version you can though, they like to bundle a bunch of junk that you'll never use for another $10-$20 more as a "special price".

 

[NostalgicDad]

I recently purchased Nero 8 Ultra Edition. As Groucho and rtphokie mentioned, it is super-bloated with various other apps you most likely won't need. During installation, you can deselect all the ones you don't want or need though but you have paid a bit more for them. If simple burning is all you're after, a basic version would suit you fine. As far as Roxio, I have experienced problems with it in the past so I won't be using it any time soon. I've been happy with Nero thus far.

 

[11290]

If all you are doing is burning files to DVD, you might be able to do that with XP out of the box (or is it Vista that added that feature).

XP = CD's only - Vista = CD's & DVD's

Roxio derivative software.

 

[Code]

Barrie,

Try CDBurnerXP, it is free and pretty nice.

Get it here:

http://cdburnerxp.se/

 

[Groucho]

One thing I forgot to mention - make sure to turn "verify" on. With Nero, this is a checkbox that is shown during the actual burn process. Check it, and it will stay checked unless you uncheck it again. Verifying is fairly quick and gives you some extra peace of mind. I had one of my DVDs that I burnt while on vacation fail verification; only one file was unreadable, but I knew immediately that it was a problem.

 

[barrie]

Thanks tons for the advice!

 

[crazydadguy]

From 18th century villages to 16Gb Dual layer DVD's, use Nero for all your burning needs!!!

 

[manning]

You don't even need software to burn a DVD. Try putting one in the microwave sometime. That's way more exciting then burning.

.

Better than sparklers, I bet!!!