Guide to CD-ROM Writing using Ahead Nero Burning ROM v5.5

Guide to CD-ROM Writing using Nero 5.5

Anni Hsia

Ahead Nero Burning Rom v5.5 is a CD-ROM creation program for the Windows platform. Nero 5.5 has many new features including a wizard which provides a very straight forward interface.

General Information

NOTE: Unless you are making a straight copy of another CD from the internal CD-ROM drive on the machine, you should copy all of the data you want into the available space on the computer's hard drive. There will either be a CD Staging Area or at least one drive reserved as a workspace on all PCs in the VMIL.

When you open Nero Burning ROM, you will most likely see the Nero wizard:

If the wizard is not open, the button labeled "Wizard" should bring you there if you choose to use it. If there is nothing open inside the Nero Burning ROM window, the first icon from the left in the tool bar (at the top of the window) will open wizard up.

Nero can write the following CD-ROM formats:

CD-ROM (ISO)
Audio-CD
Data + Audio (Mixed Mode)
CD-ROM (Boot)
CD Extra

CD-Copy
Video-CD
CD-ROM (Hybrid)
CD-ROM (UDF)
CD-ROM (UDF/ISO)

In using the wizard, you will not have to choose between any of the formats. The wizard will do that for you. However, if you would like to personally choose your settings, closing wizard will allow you to do so.

Formats

ISO 9660 can be used for multiple platforms (not limited to only Windows), but file names are limited to 8 characters plus 3 in the extension and can only be capital alphanumeric characters in addition to the underscore.

Joliet is mainly supported by Windows systems and allows filenames up to 64 characters. It is not ISO 9660 but can be read in "normal" ISO 9660 format by operating systems that do not support Joliet.

A Mixed Mode CD contains a data track and one or more audio tracks written in a single session. Mixed Mode CD's do not always operate properly on an audio CD player because the player cannot read the data track. However, some newer audio CD players are able to skip the data track.

Hybrid is a combination of 2 file systems, usually ISO 9660 and HFS.

CD Extra records the data and audio tracks in separate sessions, overcoming the problem presented in a Mixed Mode CD.

CD Copy will make a direct copy of another CD. You can check the equipment page to see which disc drive is not the CD Writer, and can therefore be used as the source drive. There is an option (copy on the fly) to copy directly from the source drive, that is Nero will not first copy all of the data onto the computer's hard drive first if you check this option.

A Video-CD contains mostly full-motion video compressed in the MPEG format.
Super Video CD

UDF (Universal Disc Format) is the standard format for packet writing which was originally used for DVD-ROMs.

HFS (Hierarchical File System) is used only by Macintosh OS.

*Now, Nero 5.5.4.0 also supports DVD burning.

You can chose to either burn the CD without testing it first, burn the CD after testing it, or only test it, without burning yet. While testing as a precaution is usually safer, it is not necessary, especially while just making a copy of another disc. Next, on the lower right side of the wizard, you can chose the speed at which you want to burn the CD. The options presented in the menu are what the CD-writer is capable of. On your blank CD should be written what the disc is compatible with.

Imaging Technology Group
Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
405 N. Mathews, Urbana, IL 61801

Date Issued: 16 December 2001