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David J Taylor wrote:
>
> John Turco wrote:
> []
> > Hello, David:
> >
> > DVD-RAM has the aforementioned, extra error correction, and can be
> > accessed as readily as a hard drive or floppy disk, without the need
> > for any "packet writing" software kludge. These things combine to
> > give it a decided edge over the other DVD formats.
> >
> > As to CD-R\CD-RW, it's no contest! They simply lack DVD's storage
> > capacity; end of discussion.
> >
> >
> > Cordially,
> > John Turco <>
>
> Thanks, John. I /never/ use packet writing, so that wouldn't interest me.
> Do DVD-RAM still come in caddies and require special drives to write them?
>
> David


Hello, David:

For data storage, caddies are highly recommended, to protect the
discs from dust and scratches. However, they don't appear to be widely
available, today, and my own DVD-RAM's (all purchased locally, at
Wal-Mart) are of the "bare" variety.

Drivers, you ask? Microsoft Help and Support <http://support.microsoft.com>
explains, here:

Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 283588 -
Windows XP Supports the DVD-RAM File Systems
<http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;283588>

Quoted, from above:

"The support technology for DVD-RAM uses the file allocation table32
(FAT32) file system for read/write operations and enables the use of
the Universal Disk Format (UDF) file system for read-only operations."

The following PDF document, at Dell <http://www.dell.com>, also mentions
this topic:

Windows XP - Sept. 2001 update.fm
<http://www.dell.com/downloads/global/vectors/2001_windowsxp.pdf>

Quoted, from above:

"Windows XP does not support recording UDF-formatted information
on a DVD-RAM disc. UDF is the file system used in the DVD-Video
specification."

With previous Windows versions (I'm running Millennium, currently), the
drive manufacturers supply the necessary drivers.


Cordially,
John Turco <>