CD-R or CD-RW for slideshows?

I have seen opinions that CD-Rs are the disks to use if you want permanence. The opinions are that CD-RWs are great for doing tests of burns and to use for taking stuff from office to home or vice versa, and for other non-permanent things. But if you want to save stuff forever, you'd better use a CD-R. What do you think? Thanks.

 

That analysis is based on a cost-effective method. CD-R's and CD-RW's will do the same thing. CD-R's can cost pennies and dimes while CD-RW's usually cost around a dollar.

CD-R's and CD-RW's are also a matter of personal preference. Some people like just having a spindle of a few hundred cd-r's and just take one when it is needed then throw it away. If it only cost's fifteen cents why worry keeping it. Other's like having CD-RW's so they can reuse and change the contents on a CD, but then keep it when they're done.

 

personally i prefer CD-R because i end up scratcing CD-RW's up which ruins them anyway. Also if you are recording music its not so good because it ends up not working in old cd players. Whats this got to slideshows, im sorry?

 

You ask what this has to do with slideshows. Well, I kinda forgot to mention in my message that I just got a new toy that allows me to burn slideshows on CDs and then use them in my DVD player to show on TV. And I thought I'd like the CD that I make to not lose its data over time, which I have heard CD-RWs will do. So far, I've just used CD-RWs so that I can erase afterwards if they aren't very good. Also, I'm told that more home machines can play RWs than can play Rs, and I thought I might be giving some of my slideshows to my adult children. Would the RWs last as long as the Rs? Thanks again!

 

I haven't heard anything about Cd-RW's lasting longer than CD-R's. I'll Have to check that out.

 

To Josh: It's the other way around. I've seen several posts on the Roxio CD burner message board that CD-RWs lose data over time, but that CD-Rs do not. Thanks.

 

I learn something new everyday.

 

All CD-R and CD-RW disks are made using a dye process, this is the organic layer on top of the disk under the label and reflective layer. The dye is a chemical that responds to the finely tuned 'writing' laser recording 0's and 1's or 'pits' and 'lands' that make up the data. It depends very much on the type of disk you use, for example these are the colours and the dyes used:

Cyanine Blue
Phthalocyanine Transparent
Metalised Azo Blue
Super Azo Blue
Advanced Phthalocyanine Transparent
Formazan Light Green

The actual colour makes no difference to the effectiveness of the disk and there has long been an argument about the longevity of different dyes. Accepted wisdom dictates that the gold reflective base used by Kodak in conjunction with the transparent dye has the best longevity whereas the same gold reflective base when used with the green dye is not as good. Blue dye with a silver reflector is said to last and read better BUT will work properly only in recent burners and readers.

The difference between R and RW is that RW uses a crystalline alloy rather than an organic dye. The patterns created are less distinct than a CD-R and are harder to read, which is why many audio and CD players and some CD-ROM and DVD drives can't handle them.

Hope it all helps... regards