[linux-help] Re: Burning music CD's

[Jeff Vian <jvian10@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

John Goerzen wrote:

>On Mon, Oct 06, 2003 at 09:34:36PM -0500, James Lancaster wrote:
>  
>
>>Actually as I understand the term, multi-session typically means multiple=
>>=20
>>data tracks.
>>    
>>
>
>Correct.  (I'm not sure if they are actually multiple tracks in the
>traditional sense, though.)
>
>Multi-session generally means that you can add more data to a CD-R even
>after it's been burned already.  Multi-session is a lot less common on
>CD-RWs.
>  
>
CDRWs are actually entirely multi-session.  The cdrw is used like a 
standard data disk and may get written  to once or many times before it 
is finalized, including the ability to edit files stored there, which 
cannot be done on a CDR disk.

>Multi-session requires support in the reading device (all modern CD-ROMs
>have this support) since the disk actually gets fixated more than once.
>Fixating is the process that finalizes a CD session.
>  
>
Multi-session CDs are usually burnt in different sessions.  The disk is 
not fixated until the last session is recorded, then when fixated the 
data becomes permanent and no additional sessions can be added.   A CD 
can only be fixated once. Multi-session CDs are left open until the last 
session is written, and most systems cannot use the cd (except int he 
burner) until after it has been fixated.

Multiple tracks and multiple sessions are DISTINCTLY different animals. 
 a single session CD may be one or many different tracks, and a 
multi-session cd may be one or many tracks as well.
    Sessions relates to the process of writing thte data,  all at once 
(single session) or some now and more later (multi-session).
    Tracks are discrete segments of the data being written, and in a 
filesystem can be compared to the individual files. On a music CD a 
track is actually a file in CDDA format.

>  
>
>>Audio cds are almost always written (well they used to be, as I recall, h=
>>ence=20
>>a 2 sec gap) as multiple track sessions. Now they are mostly DAO=20
>>(Disc-At-Once) mode.=20
>>    
>>
>
>This is confusing two different issues:
>
>1. The format of the data on the CD
>
>2. How that data gets written
>
>An audio CD does have multiple tracks but rarely, if ever, multiple sessions
>(I am unsure if this is even possible with audio CDs).
>
>Normally, when one writes data to a CD-R, the burning program tells the
>drive, in essence, "OK, I'm going to put down an audio track on the disk" or
>"OK, this session is done, fixate the thing."  The drive then is smart
>enough to know what it needs to do to put down an audio track or fixate the
>disk.
>
>In disk at once mode, the burning program takes over more control over the
>burning process, and essentially gives the drive a much lower-level
>instruction set.  This lets you do things like duplicate odd features of an
>audio CD ("hidden" tracks, tracks with no 2-second pregap, etc).  For
>general-purpose burning, this is not required.
>
>-- John
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>  
>
With xcdroast I often burn music CDs.  If the data is a wav file, and 
you select them in the order you want it will automatically create the 
music CD.

The options of how to write the disk allow multiple tracks with no gap 
(DAO),  multiple tracks with the standard 2 second gap (TAO), or even in 
data format.

Xcdroast has the option to write a cd or to master a cd.  Under write a 
cd, the wave file automatically becomes a cda file in cdda format. 
 Under master a cd, the wave file is put on the cd as data, and remains 
a wav file.

I use the latest version ( 0.98 alpha 14 ) and have had flawless 
performance on RedHat 9.0


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