CD-R Burning Bible
Extraction
Extraction is the most important part of copying a cdr. Most people have a
misconception or just don't realize how important proper extraction really is.
If you don't extract error free information from a disc, then you will simply
be copying flawed information in the burning process.
First off, the only program you should EVER be using to extract is Exact Audio Copy (EAC) or Digital Audio Extraction (DAE) if you are a mac user. I'm going to explain EAC in great detail. It's very important that you properly use this program to get error free extractions.
However, first of all I must explain why other programs are unacceptable for trading. Programs like Audiograbber or Adaptec (the extraction portion) are not capable of secure mode extraction. Basically, whatever they read on the first shot is what they will copy to the hard drive. EAC and DAE will read every sector more than once and compare the results. If there are any inconsistencies EAC will read that sector over and over again until it gets confirming results. So basically it ensures that the extraction process was error free while other programs can't.
The first step is downloading EAC. http://www.exactaudiocopy.de. Get the latest version. Once you've installed the program you need to set it up properly. When first installed, it is set to it's default settings which are not secure. The first order of business is to change that.
Select the 'EAC' menu and then select 'Drive Options'. Click the detect read featured button. (NOTE: If you have more than one CD Drive, make sure you have whatever one you will be extracting from selected in the main window.) This will see how your drive extracts digital audio. If you drive does audio caching, try and avoid that drive. That makes secure audio extraction more difficult. If your drive supports C2 error correction (lucky you!) then put in a really scratched cd and click detect C2 error features. C2 error recovery makes the process much faster!
So now that you've detected your drive, make sure secure mode is selected and NOT burst mode. Burst mode is not acceptable for trading purposes. It is just like any other program and not secure. I only use burst mode when I absolutely can't get a secure mode extraction and then I normally would listen to the extracted audio for audible errors.
One final thing you should do is, still under the Drive Options menu, click the 'Gap Detection' tab. Select secure mode detection. If you do this and method A doesn't work, simply switch to B or C. They all work securely.
So now you are all setup for secure mode extraction. (Note: I have omitted offset because it is not necessarily necessary, just desired or recommended. I have included a link in the Miscellaneous section covering offset.)
When you are ready to extract a disc, insert the disc and then go under the 'Action' menu. Select either 'Copy Image and Create Cue sheet' (best option) or manually select the tracks you want to extract and click 'Copy Selected Tracks'. The extraction will begin. If there are errors on the cd, you will see the little red box marked 'Error Correction' begin to light up. It usually will light up even on a perfect disc. That just means it didn't read it correctly the first time. If for some reason it should take an excessive amount of time to extract a disc (like 24 hours) then forget it and try burst mode. That means there is an unrecoverable error on the disc and it's hopeless for secure mode extraction.
At the end of the extraction EAC will give you a report. It should say quality around 99% or 100%. If there were any errors or suspicious positions it will let you listen to that spot. Do so!!!! Check for audible errors. Sometimes there won't be anything and sometimes there will be.
Now, if everything has gone alright you are ready to begin
the burning process!!
--------------
Burning
Burning is where the greatest misconceptions are. Many people will tell you to
burn at 1x which is nonsense. Most people seem to think this is where most of the
errors occur. Wrong again. As long as you take the proper precautions and
aren't an idiot, burning is very easy to do correctly and safely.
First, get the proper burning program. Adaptec is NOT a good program to use for audio. I know if comes bundled with nearly everything on the market these days but that doesn't mean it's a good program. It is not designed for audio and you will also be more prone to making mistakes (like mixing track orders) just because or its layout and design. Stay away from Adaptec and save yourself trouble in the long run!
A good program would be either CDRwin (my fav), Nero, EAC,
or Feurio!. CDRwin is the easiest and most idiot proof program. Feurio! is the
most robust program but doesn't support cue sheets 
.
Nero is a great program but I haven't had much luck with it and I've heard
driver issues and ASPI layer problems are more frequent with it. EAC is just
like CDRwin only it also supports write offset (yay!). I'll write this for
CDRwin (or nero because it supports Cue Sheets).
Install CDRwin and configure it to your system. Just select burn speed and DAO is set by default. Make sure if you are using another program to select DAO!!!!!!!!! A MUST!!!!!
Okay, so now you're ready to burn. There are just a few things you need to do before you click burn cd. Let me try and explain this. The problem with burning is buffer underruns. This means that the hard drive cannot feed the data in a continuous fashion the burner. Basically, the hard drive can't keep up. When this happens your disc is ruined. Why does this happen? Well, if you are on a slower older system then that may be the reason. However, the biggest factor is if you are putting a load on your computer while burning. If you're doing anything on your computer while burning or if any program tries to access the hard drive or CPU (even a screen saver) then you are taking resources away that are meant to feed data to the cd burner.
What you need to do to avoid this is shut down all non-essential programs. Everything from your Quake III to your screen saver should be shut off. I also reboot my computer before I start burning. It's a good idea to have defragmented your harddrive recently and to make sure that your computer is ready. Don't be stupid and burn at 16x and play Quake III at the same time. You're just asking for a mailbomb from a disgruntled trader!
So now you're ready to burn. Pretty much all that's left is to pop in the cd, load the cue sheet or tracks and hit burn. When selected your burn speed, just make sure your computer can handle whatever you select. There's nothing wrong with burning at 12x as long as you don't encounter buffer underruns or errors. In the past, people including myself and published in the trading faq it said that you should always burn at 1x or 2x or whatever. There was a reason for that but not what most people believe.
Most people think that that means there are less errors on a cd or something. Wrong. The reason this was done was to idiot proof trades. There are so many morons out there that burn at 16x and do play quake III (I ain't joking. I have friends that do it!). Basically, if I was trading with somebody that I didn't know for sure knew how to burn cdrs properly, I would have a greater chance of getting tradable cdrs rather than coasters. There is nothing wrong with burning at higher speeds as long as your computer can handle the higher speeds. Here is my proof. http://www.emedialive.com/EM2000/starrett5.html.
That's pretty much it for the step-by-step explanation. Good
Luck and enjoy!!!
---------------
Miscellaneous
- Use good cdrs. Some errors during burnning or extraction are cause by poor
quality cdrs. Some cdrs won't work with burners and some loose data at a very
high rate. A little hint, the spindle of 100 for $10 at your local Best Buy
aren't the best cdrs to get!
- Always extract to the hard drive and tthen burn in a separate process. NEVER
copy directly cd > cd or burn in On-The-Fly mode. You will die a horrible
death if you do.
- Only use burst mode if secure mode abssolutely won't work
- Burning is about consistency. Some traaders say listen to every disc you send
out. That's crap. If you have consistent methods and consistently good results
on the cds you burn then you shouldn't have a problem. If you do, then nut up
and just resend any bad discs.
- Use Cue Sheets if possible. They're muust more user friendly
- Configure your read offset if you plann on seriously trading. It's something
good to have. Here's a helpful link. http://www.ping.be/satcp/eacoffsets02.htm#-
- If your burner supports it, also confiigure write offset and then you can burn
with EAC. Here's a link for write offset : http://www.ping.be/satcp/eacoffsets03.htm#-
- This site is the greatest. It explainss everything I've just typed in far
greater detail for EAC. Check it out for any setup help you need or other
things. http://www.ping.be/satcp/
- There's one rule of thumb for copying cdrs. Don't be a dumbass and use your
head a little. It's much easier that way!
EOF
pzane
The Smashing Pumpkins Trading FAQ
http://www.spfc.org/tradingfaq.txt