By Bob Toms
The technology of today makes it very simple for amateur filmmakers to create their own movies using a combination of camcorders and video editing software. When you have finished making your movies however, you will need to record them. Today you will need blank DVDs along with a DVD drive. You will also need to know the formats, disc capacity, and various recording speeds.
DVD Drive-A DVD drive is the device that records your movies to DVDs. Most modern computers and laptops already have a DVD drive built into them. You can purchase an internal DVD drive separately and install it into an available drive bay. External DVD drives are also available which typically connect to your computer through the USB port.
Blank DVDs - A Blank DVD will of course have no data, and when you go the store, it would be a good idea to ensure you are buying DVDs instead of CD's. DVDs obviously have greater capacity and work in DVD players. There are several different formats, so make sure you are getting a compatible format.
Software - If you have DVD software you will be able to format your movie and record it onto the DVD properly. This software often comes as the companion to a DVD player, or with a new computer. If you are buying a proprietary computers, such as an Apple, you will find that it has its very own set of DVD software. There are commercial third party applications however that will come with a typical computer.
DVD-R - DVD-R is a format that has been around since 1997. Having been developed by Pioneer, it is the most common DVD player format. Pioneer improved on their format in 2005 by releasing a dual layer version. DVD-R can only be recorded on a single time, and the single layer holds 4.71 GB. Dual Layer DVDs, in contrast, can support up to 8.5 GB.
DVD+R-The DVD+RW Alliance developed a competing DVD format known as DVD+R in 2002. The DVD+R format uses a variety of technologies that make it more reliable than DVD-R, such as Address in Pregroove. The error management system of DVD+R is also more robust. The capacities of the two formats are virtually identical.
Competition-These two formats are not directly compatible, which has resulted strong competition between the two formats. DVD drive manufacturers have responded to this format war by making hybrid drives that can use both types of DVDs. It is currently unclear as to which DVD format will eventually prevail.
Speed - Different drives have different speed ratings, the slowest being 1X. The 1X speed can record a single layer DVD fully in about one hour. The maximum of course is 24x which will do the same job in 4 minutes.
DVD Drive-A DVD drive is the device that records your movies to DVDs. Most modern computers and laptops already have a DVD drive built into them. You can purchase an internal DVD drive separately and install it into an available drive bay. External DVD drives are also available which typically connect to your computer through the USB port.
Blank DVDs - A Blank DVD will of course have no data, and when you go the store, it would be a good idea to ensure you are buying DVDs instead of CD's. DVDs obviously have greater capacity and work in DVD players. There are several different formats, so make sure you are getting a compatible format.
Software - If you have DVD software you will be able to format your movie and record it onto the DVD properly. This software often comes as the companion to a DVD player, or with a new computer. If you are buying a proprietary computers, such as an Apple, you will find that it has its very own set of DVD software. There are commercial third party applications however that will come with a typical computer.
DVD-R - DVD-R is a format that has been around since 1997. Having been developed by Pioneer, it is the most common DVD player format. Pioneer improved on their format in 2005 by releasing a dual layer version. DVD-R can only be recorded on a single time, and the single layer holds 4.71 GB. Dual Layer DVDs, in contrast, can support up to 8.5 GB.
DVD+R-The DVD+RW Alliance developed a competing DVD format known as DVD+R in 2002. The DVD+R format uses a variety of technologies that make it more reliable than DVD-R, such as Address in Pregroove. The error management system of DVD+R is also more robust. The capacities of the two formats are virtually identical.
Competition-These two formats are not directly compatible, which has resulted strong competition between the two formats. DVD drive manufacturers have responded to this format war by making hybrid drives that can use both types of DVDs. It is currently unclear as to which DVD format will eventually prevail.
Speed - Different drives have different speed ratings, the slowest being 1X. The 1X speed can record a single layer DVD fully in about one hour. The maximum of course is 24x which will do the same job in 4 minutes.
About the Author:
Thank you to Frank and WTS who provide blank dvd-r. www.wtsmedia.com is a supplier of blank and printed cd and dvd media. I've actually bought blank dvd-r from them since writing this article.