DVD-R conversions on my laptop

Hi,


Newbie here, apologies if this is a stoopid question .....


I've got a laptop that I watch DVDs on when I'm travelling. I just got
a DVDRW/VCR combo (an AKAI CBR-5800Di) delivered yesterday, and have
copied one of my favourite VHS tapes onto a DVD-R disc. It works fine
on the combo player, but when I put it into the laptop it seems to
think its an empty disc. Right clicking for properties reveals that
its knows that the disc is full, but suggests it still seems to think
that there are no files on it.

Can anyone suggest something I can do (either when copying or to play
the result on the laptop)?


Thanks,


Darragh

 

Silly question: you're *certain* it's a DVD-combo drive in the computer and
not just a CD-burner?

I had similar symptoms when I bought my notebook. Turned out to be a bad DVD
drive.
My system would burn and read DVD+R's but be unable to read DVD-R's that
were already burnt. (it reported the disc as a DVD-ROM disc when it was in
fact a DVD-Video)

Took it back to the store and they just swapped the drive with one from a
floor model that worked.

What's the computer and DVD drive model?

You might consider looking for a firmware update for the drive. Also, run
Windows Update and any brand-specific updating program that came with your
notebook.
My HP updater *actually found updates* not detected by Windows
Update...which I was shocked about but they improved stability and
performance of certain things.

Good luck and let us know how you make out.

C.

 

sorry, I wasnt clear enough. The combo isn't internal, its a
player/recorder that plugs into the TV. I got it because i've just 1
SCART into the TV and had to keep plugging and unplugging the DVD and
VCR depending on which I wanted to use. I was hoping to also transfer
my VHS collection onto DVD, but that's looking less likely now as a
result of my difficulties.

Darragh

 

You did "finalize" the disc you burned, didn't you?

Charlie Hoffpauir
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~charlieh/

 

It's possible that player does not support DVD-R.

 

very possibly not, as I don;t know what that means!

I just followed the instructions in the manual, the last of which is
"To stop copying, press the stop button to end recording". The combo
takes a minute or 2 to finish writing then, but I don't know if its
been 'finalised' (I presume that means converted to DVD as opposed to
DVDRW format, although my laptop can burn DVDs so I'd have thought it
should be able to play either?)

How would people usually finalise a disc with a combo drive (this
things remote has a zillion buttons on it...)?

Darragh

 

My standalone recorder tells me something like "finalize the disc to
make it compatible with DVD players" when I finish recording.... but
then thats for a DVD+R, I haven't used RW DVDs. There's a button on my
remote labeled "Tools" and one of the options under the Tools menu is
to finalize the disc. If yours has no such option, I guess either it
finalizes it automatically, or you don't need to do it. On my
recorder, if I don't finalize it, I can still play it on that
recorder, and add more to the disc later, until I do finalize it. Once
finalized, I can't add anything else to that disc.
Charlie Hoffpauir
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~charlieh/

 

That means..perhaps no matter what you do, the player simply will not
recognize the media as it does not have that functionality built in. Not all
players will read them.

 

There should be an option in one of the menus, possibly Edit, to
finalize your DVDs. Check your manual.