My First Dual-Layered Burn

For a very long time, I have been using single-layered DVD+/-R blanks to burn all of my medias and files. However, some of the files I have go beyond the usual 4.5GB mark. Unfortunately, I cannot simply split them off and try to make two discs out of them. It doesn't seem all that practical to me. But I am starting to run low on space due to all the downloads and archiving of various files. Added to the fact that I'll likely be reinstalling Windows 7 come Monday (or later, depending on how quickly Microsoft dispatches the CD keys), I have to make sure that whatever data that sits on the drive is backed up. Otherwise, I'll be missing a lot of things in the event that something goes wrong or I had to reinitialize the RAID array that was supposed to be my gaming hard drive.

The first burn contain only one file. It's a movie of "The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly" that is encoded in 720p H264. Having watched this movie from start to finish a while ago, it was great being able to actually see this old classic in high-definition glory. I should try to watch the other movies such as "A Fistful of Dollars." Maybe I should try considering a quick run of Netflix since that seems to be a far simpler and easier solution than trying to find it at a local Best Buy or Blockbuster location.

The actual write to this dual-layered medium is already finished. However, I wanted to verify that the information sitting on the hard drive matches that to what's written on the disc itself. Hopefully, it's all good and well and I have no error. One unexpected issue came up, as I have tried to set the write speed to 2x in order to ensure the best writing quality possible. It borked at me and defaulted to 4x write speed, which is my drive's top speed for dual-layered writing to DVD+R DL mediums. The discs I purchased is able to go up to 8x but who knows how reliable that write speed is. I feel better knowing that taking it slow will guarantee that the data remains intact and the writing quality is top-notch. It's weird, though, because I have an old NEC drive that has served me very well for the past several years and it has performed admirably for writing and reading. It's quiet and it's reliable.

Perhaps when the verify process is done, I'll give the movie another view. Maybe...