direct cd freeware wanted

[L.D.]

I just got a new computer with windows XP home. I had direct cd and easy
cd creator on my old windows 98 computer. I installed it on the new
computer and got a message that it had known problems on windows XP, and
sure enough it won't work. What I really like is the ability to use it
like a floppy.
Any freeware that will do the same thing?
L.D.

 

[Mel]

I just got a new computer with windows XP home. I had direct cd and easy
cd creator on my old windows 98 computer. I installed it on the new
computer and got a message that it had known problems on windows XP, and
sure enough it won't work. What I really like is the ability to use it
like a floppy.
Any freeware that will do the same thing?
L.D.

No!

 

[Habidasher]

I just got a new computer with windows XP home. I had direct cd and easy
cd creator on my old windows 98 computer. I installed it on the new
computer and got a message that it had known problems on windows XP, and
sure enough it won't work. What I really like is the ability to use it
like a floppy.
Any freeware that will do the same thing?
L.D.

Instead of using CDs or DVDs you could drag and drop your files onto a
USB Pen Drive. These compact units come in a range of sizes from 28mb up
to 4GB, and have become relatively inexpensive. It is just like using
your floppy, just way more storage.

 

[AAH]

May be better of with a plug in hard drive
comparing the price and storage capacity.
London stores are selling these 40GB usb
hard drives under £60.

I just got a new computer with windows XP home. I had direct cd and easy
cd creator on my old windows 98 computer. I installed it on the new
computer and got a message that it had known problems on windows XP, and
sure enough it won't work. What I really like is the ability to use it
like a floppy.
Any freeware that will do the same thing?
L.D.

Instead of using CDs or DVDs you could drag and drop your files onto a
USB Pen Drive. These compact units come in a range of sizes from 28mb up
to 4GB, and have become relatively inexpensive. It is just like using
your floppy, just way more storage.

 

[Ivan Tisljar]

I just got a new computer with windows XP home. I had direct cd and easy
cd creator on my old windows 98 computer. I installed it on the new
computer and got a message that it had known problems on windows XP, and
sure enough it won't work. What I really like is the ability to use it
like a floppy.
Any freeware that will do the same thing?
L.D.

Windows XP has the built-in CD recording ability. Open My computer,
and then open CDR/CDRW or DVDR/DVDRW drive you have, and on the left
you will notice option to burn the files on CD. Recording is very
simple: just drag'n'drop, or copy/paste files you need onto that
drive, and later select an option to burn the files. Burning is
wizzard-driven, so no errors can occur, except if you have bad media
or broken drive.

Ivan.

--

"Ego autem quia veritatem dico non creditis mihi."
visit me/posjetite me @ http://hlloyge.cjb.net/
-=delete _system_ to mail me=-

Foobar is not active ;-)

 

[Frater Mus]

Windows XP has the built-in CD recording ability. Open My computer,
and then open CDR/CDRW or DVDR/DVDRW drive you have, and on the left
you will notice option to burn the files on CD. Recording is very
simple: just drag'n'drop, or copy/paste files you need onto that
drive, and later select an option to burn the files. Burning is
wizzard-driven, so no errors can occur, except if you have bad media
or broken drive.

I was thinking that built-in Roxio function was writing multiple
sessions (at a 13MB penalty per session) rather than the
variable-length packets (DirectCD) the OP appears to be asking about.

Then again, I haven't looked very hard.

 

[lugnut]

Windows XP has the built-in CD recording ability. Open My computer,
and then open CDR/CDRW or DVDR/DVDRW drive you have, and on the left
you will notice option to burn the files on CD. Recording is very
simple: just drag'n'drop, or copy/paste files you need onto that
drive, and later select an option to burn the files. Burning is
wizzard-driven, so no errors can occur, except if you have bad media
or broken drive.

Ivan.

I have used the Direct CD/ Drag to Disc packet writers for
several years. I may have a setting wrong somewhere but,
the DCD/D2D allows me to add files to a disc at any time
until it is either full or closed. This allows me to add
more files to a CD-R anytime in the future or close the disc
for use on other systems. The Windows CD burner closes the
disc and does not allow adding files later making the CD of
no use for adding archives. My use is to archive data for
client files that I produce. These files are frequently
updated or added to which requires a new disc every time if
I use the Windows burner. The DCD/D2D avoids this problem.
I also wish there was a compatible freeware but, there does
not appear to be one. The NERO InCD is similar but not
compatible with either.

If the OP is using Creator v4 or earlier, it will not work
with WinXP. If he is using v5, there is an up-date that
makes it compatible with the exception of the backup
portion. Creator v6 and up is completely compatible with XP
and the D2D is backward compatible with the earlier DCD
versions.

HTH
Lugnut

 

[Helen]

I was thinking that built-in Roxio function was writing multiple
sessions (at a 13MB penalty per session) rather than the
variable-length packets (DirectCD) the OP appears to be asking about.

Then again, I haven't looked very hard.

Direct-CD by Roxio WAS the best...they sold out...then that stopped
the ability to use Direct-CD. Prior to the sell-out, Roxio's update was
garbage. The version 5 worked fine, was user-friendly and now it's gone.
Even if you have the program, the latest and greatest PROHIBITS its install.
;( .

 

[Kittie Spit]

I wonder what version of Adaptec, now Roxio, you have. If it is after
Easy CD Creator 5.x I *think* you can upgrade that version to the
latest Roxio for that version. Me, on my olde Win98SE, I have Adaptec
DirectCD vers 4.something. Apparently, they no longer have updates for
this vers. Upgrade info is burried on their site somewhere. Don't know
if upgrades are free or not if you're upgrading the same vers. You
should also know that if you want to keep your old Win98, then Roxio
7.5 [most current] won't run on it. Don't know how far back you have to
go to find one that will.
Note: just checked their website -- now I don't know if you can
actually update anymore. It you can, it's really well hidden. So, am
guessing downloading an update is not an option.

A couple of tools you might want to add to your Adaptec/Roxio Easy
CD/Direct CD toolbos that can read the UDF "Universal Disk Format" that
Adaptec/Roxio uses:

ISOBuster [freeware/shareware] does an excellent job recovering files
from UDF formatted CD-DVD's. IMHO, no other tool comes close. This is
esp useful if you are trying to get files off an older version of
Adaptec that's no longer supported, or if you don't have it installed
to begin with. A bit cumbersome, obviously, if all you want is just to
get files on your UDF-formatted CD-DVD's.
www.isobuster.com

You can still download [do a Google search] Adaptec's old UDF Reader
Driver. Haven't used it.

Another tool, also freeware, is from Nero [I haven't used it.] It's
Nero InCD Reader, a UDF reader, NOT a burner. NOTE: it is NOT
compatible with Adaptec/Roxio's UDF, so if you try to install, you will
get a warning that A/R needs to be uninstalled first. Obviously, use
with caution, esp as you have to uninstall something that came with
your PC.
http://ww2.nero.com/enu/index.html

I'm not sure Nero's InCD is the tool I'm thinking of, but either it or
another similar freeware tool supposedly easily allows you to disable
either Adaptec/Roxio or Nero InCD, so you can switch back & forth.

Shareware wise, about the only UDF burner I've seen is Jet Storage UDF.
http://skifsoft.com/
Here's the descrip from the site:
"Jet Storage UDF - burns rewritable discs (CD-RW, DVD+/-RW, DVD-RAM)
using UDF format. Rewritable discs can be used in the same way as you
use with hard disc or floppy disc. It means that you can write, open or
edit files on RW disc using any application (MS Office, PhotoShop,
CorelDraw etc.)."
It's around $20, which ain't freeware, but isn't bad, either, if you
want UDF and don't want to spring for the latest Roxio. NOTE: Jet
Storage UDF doesn't run on Win9x.


The only freeware UDF burner I'm aware of is Easy Burning [I just got
a copy and noticed that it has a UDF option, but haven't tested it yet.
I also cannot speak to it's compatability with Adaptec/Roxio's UDF.
http://cdr.dpaehl.de/
or direct link to EB:
http://dpaehl.dd6338.kasserver.com/cdr/easyburning.php
Now, this IS one UDF burner that will work on Win98 [as well as XP].
This site has some other freeware I believe for working with UDF. a
good idea here is to register and read/post to the forums if you decide
to try Easy Burning.

Shareware-wise, the only burners that I can think of besides
Roxio/Adaptec & Nero are: Grab&Burn, MagicUDF, and [maybe, not sure]
NTI File CD. Haven't tried any of these.

Another possibility: if your burner is HP, you can download HP DLA & HP
Sonic. Again, haven't tried either, so don't know if they'd be
compatible with your setup.

Be sure you don't compromise your situation by trying out too many UDF
CD burners/readers. You can get into a situation where installing one
app can defeat another. Be careful, and be sure to track the
installed/modified files and esure a full uninstall if you don't need
it. From the above it should be obvious that UDF burners are a special
breed and are not necessarily compatible with one another.

Another possibility of getting an update or earlier vers of
Adaptec/Roxio would be to go to eBay or similar auction site.

If you cannot find a solution for UDF burning, two excellent CD
burners, both freeware that are highly recommended are: CDBurnerXP
[also works on Win98] and BurnAtOnce. I believe with both you can get a
maximum filename length of 207 characters [ISO Level 4]. As always, be
sure to check burn options/settings before using.

Goog luck!

 

[Kittie Spit]

Sorry, make that "Good Luck."

 

[L.D.]

I have used the Direct CD/ Drag to Disc packet writers for
several years. I may have a setting wrong somewhere but,
the DCD/D2D allows me to add files to a disc at any time
until it is either full or closed. This allows me to add
more files to a CD-R anytime in the future or close the disc
for use on other systems. The Windows CD burner closes the
disc and does not allow adding files later making the CD of
no use for adding archives. My use is to archive data for
client files that I produce. These files are frequently
updated or added to which requires a new disc every time if
I use the Windows burner. The DCD/D2D avoids this problem.
I also wish there was a compatible freeware but, there does
not appear to be one. The NERO InCD is similar but not
compatible with either.

If the OP is using Creator v4 or earlier, it will not work
with WinXP. If he is using v5, there is an up-date that
makes it compatible with the exception of the backup
portion. Creator v6 and up is completely compatible with XP
and the D2D is backward compatible with the earlier DCD
versions.

HTH
Lugnut

I have ver. 4.02
Now I have uninstalled it but left something on my computer. I get a
window message saying drivers have been changed and I need go to Roxio
to get a fix. I can't find anything. What should I do now?
L.D.

 

[lugnut]

I have ver. 4.02
Now I have uninstalled it but left something on my computer. I get a
window message saying drivers have been changed and I need go to Roxio
to get a fix. I can't find anything. What should I do now?
L.D.

It looks like you are in the same fix I was after upgrading
to WinXP. I had already updated to EZCD5 with Win98 which
did allow me to do the XP update. Soon after, My burner
died and the new one came with EZCD v6 with Drag to Disc
which replaced the DCD. If you look around on ebay a bit,
you can find the v6 for as little as $3 + $3 shpg. Other
than D2D, I use the package very little preferring one of
several freeware packages when a disc is to be burned and
closed with no further writing. BTW, this discussion is
getting (probablt has been - my apologies) OT. You can
check ebay at the following link if interested. I have no
other ideas.

http://tinyurl.com/ary9v

Lugnut

 

[bud]

I have ver. 4.02
Now I have uninstalled it but left something on my computer. I get a
window message saying drivers have been changed and I need go to Roxio to
get a fix. I can't find anything. What should I do now?
L.D.

You need roxiozap. Get it here,
http://softwareupdates.roxio.com/gm/support/tools/roxizap.exe

 

[lugnut]

I have ver. 4.02
Now I have uninstalled it but left something on my computer. I get a
window message saying drivers have been changed and I need go to Roxio
to get a fix. I can't find anything. What should I do now?
L.D.

I was looking at the Roxio site that bud referred you to.
If you are in a pinch to read your cd's, you may have to d/l
the udf reader that is post at the below link. You should
be able to use this free utility to read and copy the
contents of the cd to your HD so you can make another CD in
WinXP for use. This may be all you need since WinXP has
it's own burner and there are several good freeware ones
around. Check back here for recs if you need to do that.

http://tinyurl.com/bzpox

Good luck
Lugnut

 

[David]

I have used the Direct CD/ Drag to Disc packet writers for
several years. I may have a setting wrong somewhere but,
the DCD/D2D allows me to add files to a disc at any time
until it is either full or closed. This allows me to add
more files to a CD-R anytime in the future or close the disc
for use on other systems. The Windows CD burner closes the
disc and does not allow adding files later making the CD of
no use for adding archives. My use is to archive data for
client files that I produce. These files are frequently
updated or added to which requires a new disc every time if
I use the Windows burner. The DCD/D2D avoids this problem.
I also wish there was a compatible freeware but, there does
not appear to be one. The NERO InCD is similar but not
compatible with either.

If the OP is using Creator v4 or earlier, it will not work
with WinXP. If he is using v5, there is an up-date that
makes it compatible with the exception of the backup
portion. Creator v6 and up is completely compatible with XP
and the D2D is backward compatible with the earlier DCD
versions.

HTH
Lugnut

Do not close the disk. Use DirectCD to format the disk, then use the
drag and drop functions in Windows Explorer. When finished eject the
disk without closing it. Those CD-RWs that you have closed can be
reformatted using DirectCD. The disks will be unable to be read unless
you have a UDF packet TSR (DirectCD) running.

If you are not using CD-RW disks then Adaptec will write it as a
multi-session disk without using DirectCD at all.