can dvd's be erased

[Steve M Hostetter]

Hello,,, I know this may sound dumb but,,, can a dvd be erased so that I can re-use the space for new images ? thx

[Gene McCluney]

The simple answer is NO. DVD-R and DVD+R discs are write once. These are the inexpensive discs you find at mass retailers.

However,

You can purchase DVD-RW discs (note the "RW") which allow you to erase and reuse.
They are considerably more expensive, and "may" not be as archival.

My opinion is that, when purchased in 50 or 100 disc pancakes, at discount stores, the unit cost of a record-once DVD is about 25 cents, or thereabouts. To me this is a trivial expense. I sometimes use DVDs just as a transfer medium to get files from one computer to another, then I throw the disc away (break it first).

[Steve M Hostetter]

thank you Gene,,, It's the RW I don't know how to erase

[Scott Knowles]

thank you Gene,,, It's the RW I don't know how to erase

You can't record over them as with some media (tapes). There should be a "format" option with the hardware or software which clears the disc. I use these discs with my DVD-RW since I can simply reformat to reuse them. While they're not archive, I haven't seen any degradation on the ones I've recorded over half a dozen times or more.

[Sevo]

As far as Windows 2000/XP is concerned, you usually cannot erase DVD-RW from the Windows desktop, but would have to do so from the packet writing utility that came with your drive (which should have a icon in the utility bar). YMMV with more dedicated DVD-RAM drives - these sometimes come with enhanced drivers that allows for transparent erasing on both -RAM and -RW. Vista, OS X and Linux usually come with more DVD management built into the OS, but drives and drivers may override that, so you can face similar issues (and need similar workarounds) there.

In any case and on all OSes, you can always use a dedicated CD/DVD writing application for erasing.

Oh, and DVD-RW is considered about the least reliable among archival media - for archival purposes, only DVD-RAM is considered acceptable, and even that is not entirely safe and needs a multiple backup policy.

Sevo

[Gene McCluney]

As said above, what you should be looking for in your CD/DVD writing software is a "format" option, which would wipe the previous data from the disc.

[Steve M Hostetter]

thx you guys

[aphexafx]

thx you guys

Hey Steve - you should always use your verify option whenever creating optical discs, but this is especially important for RW media as they will eventually fail to record. Eventually...as Scott indicated, they are pretty durable in general. And, as Gene mentioned, it is often cheaper and safer to just burn and toss standard -R discs. If the intention is archival, don't rely on -RW media...my opinion.

[Steve M Hostetter]

thx Matt,,, I'm just transfering files from a mac to PC ... I found the erase feature in the menu in toast but it takes forever and the computer ends up crashing

[Joanna Carter]

I'm just transfering files from a mac to PC

PMFJI but why not use a network cable?