User manual NERO BURNING ROM 7

User Guide Nero Burning ROM 7 Nero AG Information on copyright and trade marks The Nero Burning ROM 7 user manual and all its contents are protected by copyright and are the property of Nero AG. All rights reserved. This user manual contains material that is protected by internationally valid copyright. This manual may not - in whole or in part - be copied, transmitted or otherwise reproduced without the express written permission of Nero AG. All trade names and trademarks are the property of the respective owners. Nero AG rejects any claims that transcend the legal guarantee rights. Nero AG does not undertake any liability for the correctness of the content of the Nero Burning ROM 7 user manual. The contents of the software supplied, as well as of the Nero Burning ROM 7 user manual, may be changed without prior warning. The trademarks mentioned here are only listed for information purposes. REV 7.0 Unless you own the copyright or have the permission of the copyright holder, the unauthorized copying of discs can represent a violation of national or international laws and may result in serious penalties. Copyright © 1995 - 2006 by Nero AG Contents 1 For users in a hurry ............................................................................................ 6 1.1 1.2 Five easy steps to a finished CD/DVD ............................................................ 6 Copying a disc in four easy steps................................................................. 12 2 General information about Nero Burning ROM 7 ........................................... 15 2.1 2.2 2.2.1 Media supported by Nero............................................................................... 15 Nero Express 7................................................................................................ 15 Differences to Nero Burning ROM 7 ................................................................. 15 3 Creating a CD .................................................................................................... 17 3.1 3.1.1 3.1.2 3.2 3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.3 3.3.1 3.4 3.4.1 3.5 3.5.1 3.5.2 3.5.3 3.5.4 3.6 3.6.1 3.6.2 3.7 3.7.1 3.8 3.8.1 3.9 3.9.1 3.10 3.10.1 Data CD............................................................................................................ 17 Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)................................................................................ 17 Background information for advanced users .................................................... 18 Audio CD ......................................................................................................... 23 Creating an audio CD ....................................................................................... 23 Extracting audio files from a CD and then burning them .................................. 25 Background information for advanced users .................................................... 26 Mixed Mode CD ............................................................................................... 40 Creating a Mixed Mode CD .............................................................................. 40 CD EXTRA ....................................................................................................... 41 Creating a CD EXTRA ...................................................................................... 41 Bootable CD and DVD .................................................................................... 43 Conditions......................................................................................................... 43 Background....................................................................................................... 44 Template for making a bootable CD ................................................................. 44 Making bootable CDs ....................................................................................... 45 Video CD/Super Video CD.............................................................................. 46 Creating a Video CD......................................................................................... 46 Creating a Super Video CD .............................................................................. 48 miniDVD........................................................................................................... 50 miniDVD erstellen ............................................................................................. 50 Hybrid CDs ...................................................................................................... 51 Creating a Hybrid CD........................................................................................ 51 CD-ROM (UDF) ................................................................................................ 52 Creating a CD-ROM (UDF)............................................................................... 52 CD-ROM (UDF/ISO) ......................................................................................... 54 Creating a CD-ROM (UDF/ISO) ....................................................................... 54 4 Copying a CD .................................................................................................... 56 4.1 4.2 4.3 Direct copy or copy of an image file?........................................................... 56 Copying using an image file .......................................................................... 56 Copying using a fast copy (on the fly).......................................................... 58 Nero Burning ROM 7 Contents · 3 5 DVD erstellen .................................................................................................... 61 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 DVD-Video erstellen ....................................................................................... 61 Creating a DVD-ROM (ISO) ............................................................................ 62 Creating a bootable DVD-ROM ...................................................................... 62 Creating a DVD-ROM (UDF) ........................................................................... 62 Creating a DVD-ROM (UDF/ISO) .................................................................... 62 Copying a DVD................................................................................................ 62 6 About burning ................................................................................................... 63 6.1 6.2 6.2.1 6.3 6.3.1 6.3.2 6.4 Choose Recorder............................................................................................ 63 Burning a disc................................................................................................. 64 Viewing a log file............................................................................................... 66 Additional information for advanced users ................................................. 67 The Burn tab ..................................................................................................... 67 Book Type bestimmen ...................................................................................... 69 Use Multiple Recorders.................................................................................. 71 7 Image file ........................................................................................................... 72 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.4.1 7.4.2 What is an image file? .................................................................................... 72 Creating an image file .................................................................................... 72 Burning an image file ..................................................................................... 73 Nero ImageDrive ............................................................................................. 74 Installation of Nero ImageDrive ........................................................................ 74 Activating drives using Nero ImageDrive.......................................................... 74 8 Setting options for Nero Burning ROM 7........................................................ 76 8.1 8.1.1 8.1.2 8.1.3 8.1.4 8.1.5 8.1.6 8.1.7 8.1.8 8.1.9 8.1.10 8.1.11 Tabs ................................................................................................................. 76 Compilation....................................................................................................... 77 Cache ............................................................................................................... 77 Language.......................................................................................................... 77 Sounds.............................................................................................................. 77 Audio................................................................................................................. 77 Expert Features ................................................................................................ 77 Database .......................................................................................................... 77 Ultrabuffer ......................................................................................................... 78 File Browser...................................................................................................... 78 Mics .................................................................................................................. 78 LightScribe........................................................................................................ 78 9 Saving tracks using Nero Burning ROM 7...................................................... 79 9.1 9.2 Saving audio tracks........................................................................................ 79 Saving data tracks .......................................................................................... 79 10 LightScribe ........................................................................................................ 81 10.1 10.2 Nero Burning ROM 7 LightScribe System requirements ................................................................ 81 Printing LightScribe labels ............................................................................ 81 Contents · 4 10.3 10.4 Creating a compilation, and burning and printing LightScribe labels....... 82 LightScribe FAQs ........................................................................................... 92 11 Miscellaneous ................................................................................................... 95 11.1 11.1.1 11.2 11.3 11.3.1 11.3.2 11.4 11.4.1 11.5 11.5.1 11.5.2 11.5.3 11.6 Virus Checker.................................................................................................. 95 Updating the database...................................................................................... 95 Nero Burning ROM 7 level indicator ............................................................. 95 Overburning .................................................................................................... 96 What is overburning?........................................................................................ 96 Overburning a CD............................................................................................. 97 Automatic system shutdown at the end of the burning process ............... 98 Activating automatic system shutdown............................................................. 98 Verifying compilations with Nero Burning ROM 7....................................... 99 Writing data to a CD or DVD involves more risks than writing data to a hard disk. .................................................................................................................. 99 Using the Verify option...................................................................................... 99 How the Verify option works ............................................................................. 99 Erasing data from rewritable discs ............................................................... 99 12 FAQs ................................................................................................................ 101 12.1 12.1.1 12.1.2 12.1.3 General questions about Nero Burning ROM 7 ......................................... 101 Can Nero Burning ROM 7 burn and copy CDs on the fly? ............................. 101 How do I create a CD image file? ................................................................... 101 I have entered my serial number, but I cannot open Nero Burning ROM 7. Why is this?............................................................................................................. 101 12.1.4 How can I avoid 'Buffer underrun' errors? ...................................................... 101 12.1.5 I can't select any language other than English. .............................................. 102 12.1.6 Since I installed Nero Burning ROM 7, my computer is behaving unpredictably. What is the cause of this?............................................................................... 102 12.1.7 I can read the CD/DVD that I have burnt in my recorder, but not in all CD/DVDROM drives. Why is this? ............................................................................... 102 12.1.8 How do I remove the irritating 2-second pause between audio tracks? ......... 103 12.1.9 The audio CDs which I have burnt have sound interference such as crackling, humming or rustling. Why is this?................................................................... 103 12.1.10 One of the following error messages appears during the burning process. Why is this?............................................................................................................. 103 12.2 12.3 Context-sensitive help ................................................................................. 104 Contact .......................................................................................................... 105 13 Glossary .......................................................................................................... 107 Nero Burning ROM 7 Contents · 5 1 For users in a hurry 1.1 Five easy steps to a finished CD/DVD With Nero Burning ROM 7 you can quickly and easily create your own discs and copy (non-copy-protected) discs. With Nero Burning ROM 7, you have a powerful burning software which enables you to easily burn data, music and videos onto discs. Nero Burning ROM 7 is the ideal software for power users - making it possible to work individually to a large extent. You have full control over the projects you want to burn and you can specify the file system, the length of the file names and the required font. You want to change the name of the disc? No problem, Nero Burning ROM 7 will assist you and provide you with several options. Even if you want to burn projects with unusual formats, Nero Burning ROM 7 assists you and enables you to create discs which can be read by both Apple and Windows computers. UDF format discs are also no problem. You can customize the tool bar and change the shortcuts of Nero Burning ROM 7 - in other words, you have a program which is as individual as you are. Despite the scope and the vast ability of Nero Burning ROM 7, it remains an easy-to-use burning program which creates your own discs in just a few easy steps. First select the disc type (a type supported by your device) to be burned (CD / DVD / Blu-ray / HD DVD), then select the type of project before adding the required data, and then you are ready to start burning quickly and reliably, in proven Nero quality. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 6 Step 1: Launching the program Start Nero Burning ROM 7 using the command sequence 'Start' >'All programs' > 'Nero 7 Premium' > 'Audio' / 'Data' > 'Nero Burning ROM'. The program starts with the window in which you select the media type and specify the compilation type. Step 2: Selecting the media type If you have installed a recorder that can burn a number of media types (e.g. CDs, DVDs), then click on the drop-down list box and select the media type to be burned. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 7 Step 3: Specifying the compilation type Select the desired compilation type. The window in the compilation area will display the possible compilations for the media type selected. For example, to burn an Audio CD you must use the media type 'CD' and to burn a DVD-Video you must use the media type 'DVD'. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 8 Step 4: Running a compilation Compiling the files is child's play: Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. Click on the to switch to the burning area. icon The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser is configured as standard to show the file structure of your PC on the right-hand side and the files to be burned on the lefthand side. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 9 If there is no file browser open yet, you can repeat this step by clicking on the icon. You can tell whether the data will fit on the disc or the disc will be too small by the color of the full-o-meter. If the color of the full-o-meter is green, the data will fit on the disc. If the color is yellow, the data might fit on the disc. This depends on the disc inserted. Commercially available CDs, for example, are available with a capacity of 650 MB and 700 MB, i.e. in the example shown the data would fit on a CD with 700 MB, but not on a CD with 650 MB. If the color is red, the data will not fit on the disc unless you have inserted a special size of disc, for example a CD with 800 MB. Step 5: Starting the burn process Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 10 On the 'Burn' tab you can make the final settings before the burn process. Note, however, that all of the settings are preset as standard to the most suitable value. Insert the disc and click on the 'Burn' button. The burn process is started; while it is running you can specify whether the files burned onto the disc should be verified and/or the PC shut down after the burn process (provided this is technically possible and you have the administrator rights required for this). Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 11 The outcome of the burn process is displayed once it is finished. Click on 'OK' to finish or on 'Burn again' if the compilation should be burned again. 1.2 Copying a disc in four easy steps Step 1: Launching the program Start Nero Burning ROM 7 using the command sequence 'Start' >'All programs' > 'Nero 7 Premium' > 'Audio' 'Data' > 'Nero Burning ROM'. The program starts with the window in which you select the media type and specify the compilation type. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 12 Step 2: Selecting the media type If you have installed a recorder that can burn a number of media types (e.g. CDs, DVDs), then click on the drop-down list box and select the media type to be copied. Step 3: Specifying the compilation type Select the compilation type 'CD Copy' or 'DVD Copy' according to the media type selected. Step 4: Starting the burn process Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 13 A: Direct copy (only for systems with two drives) Insert the disc to be copied in the source drive and the empty disc in the target drive and close both trays. Click on the 'Burn' button to start the copy process. B: Copy via image file (for systems with one drive) Insert the disc to be copied in the drive and close the tray. Click on the 'Burn' button to start the copy process. The burn process is started; while it is running you can specify whether the files burned onto the disc should be verified and/or the PC shut down after the burn process (provided this is technically possible and you have the administrator rights required for this). The outcome of the burn process is displayed once it is finished. Click on 'OK' to finish or on 'Burn again' if the compilation should be burned again. Nero Burning ROM 7 For users in a hurry · 14 2 General information about Nero Burning ROM 7 2.1 Media supported by Nero Nero Burning ROM 7 is able to burn different types of media. Both DVDs and CDs can be burned with a DVD recorder. Only CDs can be burned with a CD recorder. The following table shows the possible compilations for the various media types. CD CD-ROM (ISO) Audio CD Mixed Mode CD CD EXTRA CD Copy Video CD Super Video CD miniDVD CD-ROM (Boot) CD-ROM (Hybrid) CD-ROM (UDF) CD-ROM (UDF/ISO) DVD DVD-ROM (IS0) DVD Copy DVD-Video DVD-ROM (Boot) DVD-ROM (UDF) DVD-ROM (UDF/ISO) 2.2 Nero Express 7 2.2.1 Differences to Nero Burning ROM 7 Nero Express 7 is an assistant-driven application based on Nero Burning ROM 7. You can switch from Nero Burning ROM 7 to Nero Express 7 at any time during compilation of a project if the compilation in question is also to be burned using Nero Express 7. If the If the icon is activated, you can switch to Nero Express 7. icon is deactivated, you cannot switch to Nero Express 7. Nero Burning ROM 7 General information about Nero Burning ROM 7 · 15 Even though Nero Burning ROM 7 can burn a greater number of compilations than Nero Express 7, there are also compilation templates that are found exclusively in Nero Express 7: ! MP3 CD and MP3 DVD ! WMA CD and WMA DVD ! Nero Digital Audio CD and Nero Digital Audio DVD You can still burn these compilations using Nero Burning ROM 7. To do so, simply select Data CD or Data DVD as the compilation and add MP3, WMA or Nero digital audio files. With Nero Express 7 you can burn all of the compilations marked with an X in the following table. CD Data disk Audio CD MP3 disk WMA disk Nero Digital Audio Video CD Super Video CD DVD-Video Copying a disc Image file Saved compilation X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X DVD X You will find further information about using Nero Express 7 in the manual written especially for Nero Express 7. Nero Burning ROM 7 General information about Nero Burning ROM 7 · 16 3 Creating a CD 3.1 Data CD You can save all kinds of data on a data CD, i.e. these compilations can be used for all file types and every kind of original file can be burned. You can burn a data CD using the following compilations: ! ! ! CD-ROM (ISO) CD-ROM (UDF) CD-ROM (UDF/ISO) A special feature of data CDs is the option of creating a multisession CD. This means that the CD does not have to be written in one session (as with audio CDs and DVD videos, for example), instead it can be written in a number of sessions until it is full. 3.1.1 Creating a CD-ROM (ISO) 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. If you have installed a recorder that can burn a number of media types (e.g. CDs, DVDs), then click on the drop-down list box and select the media type to be copied. 3. Select the 'CD-ROM (ISO)' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Multisession' tab to the foreground. Select the desired multisession option. Start Multisession disc: A multisession disc will be started, i.e. you create the first session and can burn further sessions later once the first session has been burned. All of the burned sessions are visible later in the drive and you can access all of the data. Continue Multisession disc: A further session will be burned onto a disc already burned with at least one session. All of the burned sessions are visible later in the drive and you can access all of the data. If you select this option, there must be a multisession disc in the recorder. No Multisession: A multisession disc will not be created. This option still enables the disc to be written until it is full. Note, however, that only the last session will be visible then and you will only have access to the data from this last session. Creating a CD · 17 Nero Burning ROM 7 Additional information on the multisession options and the other tabs can be found in the chapter 'Background information for advanced users'. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready 6. Click on the to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.1.2 Background information for advanced users This chapter describes the tabs not explained in the previous chapter (see the relevant subsections) as well as providing additional information on multisession CDs and describing the ISO and UDF file systems: Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 18 3.1.2.1 Additional tabs for data CDs On the 'ISO' tab you can toggle between Mode 1 and Mode 2/XA format as required. You should not need to verify the format ­ in the past there were problems with CD drives that could not read Mode 1 CDs, but very few of these drives will still be in use today. If these options are grayed it means that selection is not logically meaningful at present. Mixing Mode 1 and Mode 2/XA tracks on a CD would result in an unreliable and potentially unreadable CD format. In the 'File/Directorynames length` section you can specify the ISO level for the length of the names. Up to 31 characters are permitted for Windows 95 and higher. Names cannot be more than 11 characters long for Windows 3.1 (8 for the name and 3 for the extension). ISO Level 2 will be best in most cases ­ if you know that the CD must also be readable on a Windows 3.1 system then you should select Level 1. On the 'Label' tab you can give your CD a name and overtype the default name 'New'. You can use letters A-Z, digits 0-9 and the underscore character (_) ­ diacritics (accents) and spaces are not supported. On the 'Dates' tab you can specify the date of the compilation and of its files. The current date and time are entered for the compilation as default, also the creation date of the files. Use the 'Misc' tab to specify which files will be buffered in the cache. Files that are on slow media (floppy disks and network drives) and are very small are moved to the cache by default. You specify the location of the cache on the Cache tab in the File menu (Preferences option). 3.1.2.2 How are Multisession CDs structured? This chapter explains the background to Multisession CDs and is pretty technical ­ it is intended mainly for users who already have some experience of CD burning and want to know a little more. The 'normal' user who just wants to create a Multisession CD with Nero Burning ROM 7 can skip this chapter. The ISO file system has a very useful feature that helps us to create Multisession CDs: The way files are stored in ISO tables of contents is that the absolute start block of each file and the file's length in blocks is given. Absolute means that all blocks in all CD tracks are numbered sequentially. So what happens when a file's start block belongs to a different track than the one where the TOC you want to create is located? No problem! CD-ROM drivers and recorders will simply read the file from another track. CDs are written session by session and track by track, so of course only tracks that have already been written can be addressed. This is why a reference track must be specified first when creating Multisession ISO CDs with Nero Burning ROM 7. Nero Burning ROM 7 reads this track in and remembers the positions of the files that are on it. At the next write session these positions are then re-written for unchanged files. Additional Multisession information on the CD When a new Multisession CD is started, Nero Burning ROM 7 saves not just the files and folders but also their source location on the hard disk. When a Multisession compilation is updated, this additional information is used to automatically replace, add or delete modified files. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 19 Multisession CDs can still be created even if there is no additional Nero Burning ROM 7 information on the reference track. The disadvantage of this however is that the references to the hard disk which we mentioned above will not be known to Nero Burning ROM 7 and so there can be no automatic update. 3.1.2.3 Creating a data CD (not multisession) The procedure for creating a data CD without multisession is identical to the procedure described in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. You simply have to check the option 'No Multisession' on the 'Multisession' tab. Please note that when a CD is burned without a multisession, a table of contents (TOC) for the CD is created at the end of the burn. If the 'Finalize CD` option is selected the CD is write protected and no further burning is possible. If this option is not selected then further sessions can be burned but only the last session is visible, so the CD looks like there's nothing else on it ­ not so! We suggest that you use the 'Creating a data CD (with multisession)' option when creating a data CD with several sessions. 3.1.2.4 Creating a data CD (with multisession) The procedure for creating the first session of a data CD with multisession is identical to the procedure described in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. You simply have to check the option 'Start Multisession disk' on the 'Multisession' tab. The procedure for creating the second and each subsequent session of a data CD with multisession is identical to the procedure described in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. You simply have to check the option 'Continue Multisession disk' on the 'Multisession' tab and insert the CD containing the existing sessions in the recorder. If you want to create a data CD that consists of several sessions, we advise that you create a Multisession CD. Every complete write process with Nero Burning ROM 7 on a CD, from inserting the CD you want to write to the CD being ejected, generates a session on the CD. A session in turn contains one or more tracks. All CDs with several sessions are 'Multisession CDs'. There are basically two types of Multisession CD: ! Multisession CD for linked files, e.g. for backups ! Multisession CD for independent files Multisession CD for linked files Multisession CDs are advisable, say, when making a weekly Backup of a number of folders on a CD. When an ISO compilation is created the required folder is written to the CD in every new session. Since only a few files may have changed, writing the entire folder again would have the following disadvantages: ! Burning would take an unnecessarily long time because redundant data are being written each time. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 20 ! Valuable CD space would be wasted as the same data is copied a number of times. With a CD-R, data can only be written to a CD but cannot be deleted or changed, so the following procedure is used with Multisession CDs: Instead of writing the unchanged data again with every session (i.e. every backup procedure), Nero Burning ROM 7 only writes cross-references to a previous CD track which contains the unchanged file. Only the changed files are completely re-written. By activating the two checkboxes 'Replace files in compilation' and 'Add new files to compilation' in the 'Options' section you will ensure that this actually happens. Of course when individual sessions are linked to one another there must be some way of ensuring that the tracks (which have a definite connection to an existing CD) are not written to another CD by mistake. This would make all files with references outside the tracks unreadable later on! For this reason Nero Burning ROM 7 checks that the correct CD has been loaded for burning. If it hasn`t, then the CD that has been loaded in error is ejected. Multisession CD for nonlinked files If the files in the file session you wish to burn are so small that further files can be added, and if you want to use all of the space on the CD, you can create a Multisession CD. By clearing the two checkboxes 'Replace files in compilation' and 'Add new files to compilation' in the 'Options' section you will ensure that Nero will not search for links to existing files on the CD. 3.1.2.5 The ISO file system Nero Burning ROM 7 normally writes ISO data in the CD sector format Mode 1. However Nero Burning ROM 7 also supports the so-called 'XA-Format' for ISO data. The XA format is an extension of ISO structures and can only be burned onto the CD in 'Mode 2' (another CD sector format). 'Normal' ISO Mode 1 tracks behave just like Mode2/XA tracks when read under DOS/Windows and using modern CD-ROM drives. The latest CD-ROM drives can easily read Mode 1 and Mode2/XA-CDs. However there are still some CD-ROM drives around that cannot read the Mode 1 CDs correctly. Owners of these older drives are advised to write data in the Mode2/XA-format. ISO9660 ISO9660 is a file system that was designed with the aim of creating a file system that is as system-independent and so as compatible as possible. Discs with ISO9660 as the file system can be read on all operating systems. ISO9660 supports filenames in 8.3 format in Level 1 (8 characters for the filename and 3 for the extension) and directory names 8 characters long. Only characters A-Z, 0-9 and the underscore (_) are allowed. The maximum interleaf depth is restricted to 8 levels (including root directory). A total of 31 characters are allowed in Level 2 and can be read by Windows 95 and higher, whereas DOS and Windows 3.1 usually have trouble handling the long filenames. Creating a CD · 21 Nero Burning ROM 7 ISO9660:1999 ISO9660 is a file system that was designed with the aim of creating a file system that is as system-independent and so as compatible as possible. The advantages of this file system lie in the length of possible file names (the ISO9660:1999 file system supports file names with a length of up to 207 characters) and the fact that restrictions on directory depth have been lifted. 3.1.2.6 The UDF file system The UDF file system was developed when it became increasingly obvious that the ISO9660 file system used on CDs was no longer meeting the needs of rewritable media and DVDs. It was optimized mainly to accommodate large data volumes and to make it easy to modify an existing file system. Nero Burning ROM 7 can burn UDF and so-called 'UDF Bridge CDs', which contain both a UDF and an ISO9660 file system. The UDF file system can be read by, say, Windows 98 and Windows 2000 with no special drivers. In case of doubt, Windows 2000 and Windows 98 also read the UDF file system if both an ISO9660 and a UDF file system are detected on the medium. Writing in UDF format is particularly important when burning DVDs because UDF is the preferred operating system for these media. 3.1.2.7 The UDF/ISO file system The big advantage of a UDF/ISO Bridge CD is that the data comply with both the UDF standard and the ISO standard. The data are only added to the compilation once and Nero Burning ROM 7 automatically creates a UDF and an ISO table of contents. These two tables of contents allow the CD to be used as a Bridge CD. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 22 3.2 Audio CD 3.2.1 Creating an audio CD An Audio CD is a CD that contains music files and that can be played with any regular CD player which you can buy in a store ­ the songs on the CD must either be in CDA format or be converted to this format. 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'Audio CD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Audio CD' tab to the foreground. On this tab you can make certain settings. General' area Normalize all audio files: This check box activates a filter that equalizes the volume of the audio tracks to be burned. This is particularly recommended if the audio tracks to be burned are from different sources, as the differences in volume may then be significant. No pause between tracks: This check box defines whether there should be a pause of 2 seconds between the tracks on the audio CD or whether the tracks should transition from one to the next without pause as is the case with live recordings. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 23 CD Text' area Write on CD: This check box activates the option for writing CD text. CD text is additional information on an audio CD that displays the name of the CD, the individual songs and the artist on CD players that support this function. Title: The name of the CD is entered here. Artist: The name of the artist is entered here. Edition' area Here you can enter additional information. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the audio tracks to be burned. 5. You have a number of options for adding the audio files. Option 1: You can insert audio files that are on a (non-copy-protected) audio CD. Option 2: You can insert audio files in the various formats (e.g. MP3, WAV, WMA) found on your PC. Select the desired audio files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step for all of the audio files. If you have added audio files, you can listen to the individual tracks. To do so, click on the 'Play' button. If you have added audio files that are on the hard drive, you can edit these tracks. To do so, click on the 'Edit' button to open the Nero Wave Editor 3. Additional filters and other options are available to you if you double-click an audio track. For further information, see the chapter 'Special audio filters'. icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready 6. Click on the to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 24 3.2.2 Extracting audio files from a CD and then burning them If you have (non-copy-protected) audio CDs and wish to extract individual tracks from them to burn as a new audio CD, you can do so using Nero Burning ROM 7. 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'Audio CD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Audio CD' tab to the foreground. On this tab you can make certain settings. General' area Normalize all audio files: This check box activates a filter that equalizes the volume of the audio tracks to be burned. This is particularly recommended if the audio tracks to be burned are from different sources, as the differences in volume may then be significant. No pause between tracks: This check box defines whether there should be a pause of 2 seconds between the tracks on the audio CD or whether the tracks should transition from one to the next without pause as is the case with live recordings. CD Text' area Write on CD: This check box activates the option for writing CD text. CD text is additional information on an audio CD that displays the name of the CD, the Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 25 individual songs and the artist on CD players that support this function. Title: The name of the CD is entered here. Artist: The name of the artist is entered here. Edition' area Here you can enter additional information. 4. On the 'CDA Options' tab you can define the strategy which Nero should use to handle the CDA files on an audio CD. This setting is for advanced users, for more information read the chapter 'Dragging & dropping audio track'. 5. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 6. Insert the first original CD from which you wish to extract audio tracks into your CD-ROM drive and open this drive with the File Browser. 7. Compile the CDA files for the first audio CD using 'Drag&Drop' editing by simply clicking on the required files in the File Browser and dragging them into the compilation window. Nero Burning ROM 7 now analyzes the source CD and the required CDA files and shows them in the File Browser. You will also see a small window in which you can enter a name for the source CD. This is for your own convenience so that when you select the reference strategy for writing Nero Burning ROM 7 can prompt you to insert the named CD that it needs for writing. 8. Now insert the second CD (the one with the audio files you want to burn) into your CD-ROM drive, select the File Browser and update the screen contents by pressing 'F5' (or select the 'Refresh' option from the 'View' menu). 9. Open the drive with the File Browser and compile the CDA files for the second Audio CD with 'Drag&Drop' as described above in Point 7. 10. Repeat the last three steps for each additional CD you wish to use. 11. You are then ready to burn the CD. For more information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. If your burned Audio CDs crackle, hum or hiss, you probably have problems with the so-called 'Audio Jitter Effect'. This is due to basic problems which the hardware has when reading audio data and has nothing to do with Nero Burning ROM 7. 3.2.3 Background information for advanced users Almost all CD players can only read CD-Rs, i.e. using rewritable CDs (CD-RW) is not recommended. Nero Burning ROM 7 writes the audio data to the CD-RW correctly but many CD players will not be able to play back the tracks. If possible, audio CDs should always be burned in the 'Disc-at-once' mode. This will make the most out of the features that Nero Burning ROM 7 offers and will avoid unwanted 'hiss and crackle` between individual tracks. A CD that contains music files in a variety of different formats (say MP3 or WMA) is strictly speaking an audio CD as well, but since a CD player cannot read these formats and play them back, these CDs are not referred to as Audio CDs. Nero Burning ROM 7 does not mind what audio format the files are in because compressed files (e.g. MP3, mp3PRO, WAV, WMA or AIF) are automatically Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 26 converted prior to burning so that they can be burned in CDA format. However decoding these files takes a certain amount of time and so the burning speed may have to be matched to the PC's power and computing processes. Although writing Audio CDs with Nero Burning ROM 7 is really simple, it is worth spending a few moments thinking about your source medium. There are basically two ways of creating Audio CDs. With one method the audio tracks come from an Audio CD and with the other the audio files are on a hard disk. ! To copy an existing Audio CD, you will find all the information you need in the chapter 'Copying a CD'. ! If you wish to use tracks from an existing Audio CD and/or tracks from a number of Audio CDs, then there are several strategies with which Nero Burning ROM 7 can handle the audio files. You will find further information about these strategies in the chapter 'Source medium is CD/DVD drive'. The information you require about burning will be found in the chapter 'Burning a disc'. ! If you want to use audio files that are on your hard drive, then the chapter entitled 'Source medium is hard disk' will explain the advantages of this option. The information you require about burning will be found in the chapter 'Burning a disc'. Music CDs with a special copy protection have been around on the market for some time now. These CDs cannot be played or copied with a normal PC. If you experience problems with copying, please make sure that you are not using CDs of this type. You can identify this from a note on the cover of the original CD. 3.2.3.1 Source medium is CD/DVD drive Dragging & dropping audio tracks When dragging & dropping audio files that are on a CD (CDA) the user has a basic choice of four different strategies with which Nero Burning ROM 7 can handle the CDA files. The strategy is selected on the 'CDA Options' tab. You will see this tab in the 'New Compilation' dialog box which opens when you create a new compilation. If a compilation is already open, select your required strategy or check the selected strategy in the 'File' menu with the 'Compilation Properties' option. The 'General Settings' section offers you a choice of four different strategies: ! Diskspace strategy (the default) With this strategy the CDA files are buffered in Nero Burning ROM 7's cache directory if sufficient space is available. If no space is available then a track reference is created. ! Tempfile strategy With this strategy the CDA files are buffered in Nero Burning ROM 7's cache directory if sufficient space is available. If no space is available, an error message is displayed. ! Reference strategy The CDA files are handled as track reference. The source medium can only be a CD/DVD drive, not a recorder. ! Device dependant strategy CDA files are handled as track reference where possible, otherwise the tempfile strategy is used. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 27 The diskspace and tempfile strategies can be used to burn in 'Disc-at-once' mode. We advise that you use one of these two strategies. The reference strategy can only be used for 'Track-at-once' burning and can only be read by CD/DVD drives, not by recorders. The reason why 'Track-at-once' must be used with this strategy (it is preset) is that when you use files that are on an interchangeable medium you may need to switch the source CD if the audio files come from different source CDs or if a track has to be approached at a remote read position on the source CD. This can mean a long wait between tracks however. In the 'Track-at-once' mode the wait between tracks can be any length of time without ruining the target CD. The burning mode that can be used with the device dependant strategy depends on the source medium, i.e. if the tracks are from a CD/DVD player, then only a reference is created and only 'Track-at-once' can be used. The chapter 'Extracting audio files from a CD and then burning them' explains how to burn compilations created with drag&drop editing. Copying audio tracks Copying CDA files to a hard disk offers the user more ways of using audio files. Unlike drag&drop, tracks can be converted to other formats. You will find full details about copying CDA files in the chapter 'Saving audio tracks'. 3.2.3.2 Source medium is hard disk The advantage of burning audio files that are on a hard disk is that the CD can be written using 'Disc-at-once'. This means that you can get more out of the functionality of many recorders. For example, you can write CD text, specify the pause length or set additional index positions - these capabilities are only available with 'Disc-at-once'. The disadvantage is that the audio files need storage space on the hard disk. Depending on the audio format, around 10 MB per minute is required (in WAV format). If the files are compressed, e.g. in MP3 format, then the space requirement is cut by 90%. You can test the advantages of MP3 compression with Nero Burning ROM 7: You can convert up to 30 audio files to MP3 format. The chapter 'Saving audio tracks' tells you how to do this. 3.2.3.3 Audio track properties Double click one (or more) audio files to open the 'Audio Information' dialog box. The tab offers you a wide variety of options. The main ones are: 'Audio Track Properties' tab If your recorder supports the writing of CD Text, you can insert information for CD Text on this tab. You will find further information about CD Text in the chapter 'CD-Text'. You can also specify the length of the pause between tracks ­ the default pause between two tracks is 2 seconds. Creating a CD · 28 Nero Burning ROM 7 You may feel that a pause between tracks is irritating, especially with live recordings. In this case set a pause length of 0 seconds. You can create a cross fade between two audio tracks, so the new number starts to play quietly while the current number is still playing. The current track will meld into the new track without a break. In this case activate the checkbox and specify the seconds for the fade. 'Indexes, Limits, Split' tab The top part of the tab shows the progress of the audio track as a graph. The 'New Index' button sets a new index position at the selected position. For a CD player this is the position from which a new number starts and the player can also jump to it directly. Not all CD players support this function. The 'Split' button splits the audio track at the selected position, i.e. the track is physically split and becomes two (or more) tracks. These split tracks behave just like two independent tracks, so they can be named and the pause between them can be specified. The 'Play button plays the track from the selected position. While the track is playing the button switches to a 'Stop' button. The 'Delete' button deletes a selected new index position or the position for a split track. 'Filter' tab You will see a number of filters on the left. The settings on the right change depending on the selected filter. To select a filter, activate its checkbox. The 'Test Selected Filters' button plays the audio track - this lets you check that you are happy with the result before you confirm the changes. 3.2.3.4 CD-Text CD-Text is an extra item of information on Audio CDs which allows newer style CD players to display the CD title and the names of the tracks and artists. Your CDs will be played correctly even if your CD player does not support CD-Text. This is possible because the additional CD-Text information is stored in the CD's so-called 'lead-in' area before the start of the audio data. Creating CDs with CD-Text is only possible when two conditions are met: Your recorder must support this function and the CD must be burned in the 'Disc-atonce' mode. Creating an Audio CD with CD-Text CD-Text cannot be written to a CD unless this function is supported by the CD recorder you are using and the disc is written in the 'Disc-at-once' mode. A CD Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 29 can always be written in 'Disc-at-once' mode is the audio files are on a hard drive. The use of 'Disc-at-once' for compilations of Audio CDs depends on the selected strategy. You will find full details about this topic in the chapter 'Dragging & dropping audio track'. You can see whether your recorder can write CD-Text by selecting the 'Choose Recorder' option from the 'Recorder' menu. Now highlight the required recorder and read the information. In the same way you can also check whether your recorder supports 'Overburn', 'Buffer Underrun Protection' and 'Disc-at-once'. Create an Audio CD as described in the chapter 'Extracting audio files from a CD and then burning them'. Please note the following points: ! First, create a new audio compilation and drag the audio tracks you want into the compilation. ! From the 'File' menu, select 'Compilation Properties' and on the 'Audio CD' tab check the 'Write CD-Text to the CD' checkbox. ! Enter the title of the CD and its artist. These entries should not be longer than 64 characters each. ! In the compilation window click an audio track and enter the track's title and artist on the tab. ! Before writing, make sure that the 'Disc-at-once' mode is active. ! Now click the 'Burn' button to write the Audio CD with CD-Text. Viewing CD-Text information You can view CD-Text on Audio CDs provided the selected read drive supports the reading of CD-Text. Recorders that can write CD-Text can do this. ! Insert an Audio CD into the recorder. ! Select the Save Tracks option from the 'Recorder' menu and choose the drive you require. ! Now view the information you want in the `Title' and `Artist' columns. Copying CDs with CD-Text information Burning ROM 7 automatically copies the existing CD-Text if the reading drive and the selected recorder both support CD-Text. This applies to both image copies and on the fly copies. 3.2.3.5 Special audio filters If you are unhappy with the quality of your audio tracks, Nero Burning ROM 7 offers a range of filters can enhance the quality of the music tracks or change the tracks. The tracks are edited 'non-destructively' which means that the actual recording is not affected and only selections are set. The big advantage of the non-destructive method is that editing steps can be undone at any time and no additional audio data are created as you work. The audio files are not actually changed until they are written. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 30 The filters are found in the 'Audio Information' dialog box on the 'Filter' tab. The window is opened by double clicking an audio track in the compilation window. Clicking the 'Test Selected Filters' button plays the audio track - this lets you check that you are happy with the result before you confirm the changes. ! Normalizing If the audio tracks you are burning come from different sources then the volume of the individual tracks can be matched with this filter. All audio tracks in the compilation must have been selected for this filter to function correctly. ! Declicking This is used to remove clicking noise when the audio file comes from a scratched vinyl. ! Hiss Reduction This filter reduces the hiss of an audio file by removing the frequency components that are below a certain value. ! Fade In This filter fades the audio track in from silence to full volume. ! Fade Out This filter fades the audio track out from full volume to silence. ! Stereo Widening This filter changes the intensity of the stereo effect with stereo recordings. ! Karaoke This filter removes those parts of a song that are equal on both stereo channels. This is usually the vocal so this effect can be used for karaoke CDs. Please also refer to the chapter: 'Creating a Karaoke CD'. ! Echo This effect provides a number of options for echo effects. ! Equalizer This effect opens an equalizer so you can change the volume in different frequency ranges. The Nero Wave Editor 3 program which is part of the Nero Burning ROM 7 package provides you with even more filters and different audio editing options. To locate this program, select Start > Programs > Nero > Nero 7> Nero Wave Editor. 3.2.3.6 Creating a Karaoke CD Creating a karaoke CD is rather complex because the karaoke filter must be set individually for each song. Create an Audio CD as described in the chapter 'Extracting audio files from a CD and then burning them'. Please note the following points: ! First, create a new audio compilation and drag the audio tracks you want into the compilation. ! In the compilation window, double click the song on which you want to set the karaoke filter. ! Activate the 'Karaoke' filter on the 'Filter' tab. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 31 ! Specify the strength of the effect, the vocal balance and the quality of the conversion. ! Click the 'Test Selected Filters' button to play the song and ensure that you are happy with the result. If you are not happy, change the effect strength and vocal balance, and test again. ! Now click 'OK' to confirm your changes and close the dialog box. The name of the filter will appear in the 'Filter' column in the compilation window. ! Now repeat the relevant points for each additional song. ! Burn the karaoke CD when you have converted the songs. 3.2.3.7 Recording records The Nero Wave Editor 3 lets you digitize records and save them on hard disk. You will find detailed instructions on how to do this in the quick guide and the program's online help. When a record is recorded, two tracks are created (one from the from and one from the back). When these two tracks are burned the songs would not be individually controllable with a CD player. The track has to be split to make this possible. The chapter 'Splitting tracks' tells you how to do this. 3.2.3.8 Splitting tracks Very long audio tracks can be split so that specific passages within the track can be triggered directly and/or become a separate track in their own right Long audio tracks are created, for example, when copying from record to hard disk, and they can be split before they are burned. 1. Double click the required track in the audio compilation and click the Indexes, Limits, Split tab. 2. Select the position where you want to split the track. 3. Click the Split button. 4. Click OK to close the window and confirm that you really want to split the track. 3.2.3.9 Encoding Encoding an audio file means compressing it. With Nero Burning ROM 7 you are able to convert audio tracks to the most popular formats such as MP3 and mp3PRO. When they are burned, Nero Burning ROM 7 treats these formats just like other audio formats, so they can be used to create Audio CDs without difficulty, i.e. the compressed files are automatically decoded before they are burned. MP3 and mp3PRO Because of its good audio quality and small file size the MPEG3 audio format (with the extension MP3) has become the format most used to transmit audio data on the Internet. This is why Nero Burning ROM 7 also supports the burning of the popular MP3 files - Nero Burning ROM 7 handles them just like any other audio files and they are automatically decoded before burning. Creating a CD · 32 Nero Burning ROM 7 You can test the Nero Burning ROM 7 mp3PRO encoder plugin as soon as Nero Burning ROM 7 is installed. You can encode up to 30 audio files or pieces of music from CD in the popular MP3 or mp3PRO format. mp3PRO files can be compressed to half the size of the conventional MP3 files with the same quality. These two file types have the same extension: mp3. MP3 Plugin The MP3 plugin uses the brand new and ultrafast MP3 encoder from the Fraunhofer Institut, the inventors of MP3. With the MP3 encoder you can condense your favorite pieces of music down to 10 % of their original size. And with virtually no audible loss of quality! Nero AG would like nothing better than to let its users create as many MP3 files as they want but we cannot do this for licensing reasons as the rights are held by Fraunhofer Institut and we would need to pay them fees. That's why you can only test the encoder 30 times. If after that you wish to continue using the encoder, you will find further information about buying the mp3PRO plugin in the Webshop. mp3PRO Plugin The mp3PRO plugin uses the brand new and ultrafast mp3PRO encoder from Coding technologies, the inventors of mp3PRO. With the mp3PRO encoder you can condense your favorite pieces of music down to 5 % of their original size. And with virtually no audible loss of quality! Nero AG would like to offer you the opportunity to create any number of mp3PRO files, but for licensing reasons this is not possible, because Coding Technologies owns the rights to the encoder, which means that license fees would have to be paid. That's why you can only test the encoder 30 times. If after that you wish to continue using the encoder, you will find further information about buying the mp3PRO plugin in the Webshop. The high processing power needed to decompress MP3 files means that the maximum possible burning speed will depend on the power of your PC. As a `rule of thumb` we can say that Pentium systems with a clock speed over 100Mhz should be capable of burning at twice the speed. Computers of Pentium II class and higher should be capable of burning 4 or even 8 times faster. Pentium III or IV PCs can achieve even higher burn speeds. MP3 files downloaded from the Internet may be damaged by transmission errors. Such problems may affect the sound. Nero Burning ROM 7 displays a warning telling you if damaged MP3 files have been added to an audio compilation. During writing, damaged files are logged with the warning message 'Lost sync within the MP3 stream`. The MP3 library used by Nero Burning ROM 7 only supports the MPEG Layer3 standard format at present. A similar error message appears if Nero Burning ROM 7 receives MP3 files for decoding and its MPEG3 library cannot process the file format. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 33 Audio CDs The encoding method described in this chapter is only suitable for tracks on Audio CDs. The encoding of audio files that are on hard drive is described in the chapter 'Encoding tracks that are on hard disk'. When you encode audio tracks you can save the encoded and saved tracks as an M3U playlist. You will find full details about this topic in the chapter 'M3U Playlists'. 1. Load the Audio CD with the tracks you wish to encode in a CD drive. 2. Select 'Save Track' from the 'Extras' menu. 3. Select the drive that contains the CD with the tracks that are to be encoded. 4. Highlight the audio tracks you wish to encode. 5. Select the output file format by clicking the dropdown button and highlighting the required format. 6. Click the 'Settings' button and specify the required encoding quality and bitrate. 7. Choose the path for saving the audio file. If the audio file has no meaningful name, you can click the button with the three dots on it and rename the file. 8. Click the Start button to start encoding - a window shows you how encoding is progressing. 9. When encoding is complete, click Close to close the window. Encoding tracks that are on hard disk The encoding method described in this chapter is only suitable for audio tracks that are located on a hard drive. If you wish to encode tracks from an Audio CD please refer to the chapter ' Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 34 Audio CDs'. 1. Select 'File Encoding' from the 'Extras' menu. 2. Click the 'Add' button and select the directory containing the audio tracks you wish to encode. 3. Highlight the audio tracks you wish to encode. 4. Click the 'Settings' button and specify the required encoding quality and bitrate. 5. Choose the path for saving the audio file. If the audio file has no meaningful name, you can click the button with the three dots on it and rename the file. 6. Click the 'Start' button to start encoding - a window shows you how encoding is progressing. 7. When encoding is complete, click 'Close' to close the window. Burning encoded files If the audio files you wish to encode are in a compressed format (MP3) then Nero Burning ROM 7 will decompress them automatically before burning. Just open an audio compilation and pull the compressed files you want into the compilation window with drag&drop. 3.2.3.10 Decoding Converting compressed audio tracks is called decoding. Unlike encoding, with decoding it makes no difference what medium the audio tracks are on. Decoding audio tracks 1. Select 'Encode Files' from the 'Extras' menu. 2. Click the 'Add' button and select the directory containing the audio tracks you wish to decode. 3. Highlight the audio tracks you wish to decode. 4. Click the 'Settings' button and specify the frequency, bitrate and channels. 5. Choose the path for saving the audio file. If the audio file has no meaningful name, you can click the button with the three dots on it and rename the file. 6. Click the 'Start' button to start decoding - a window shows you how decoding is progressing. 7. When decoding is complete, click 'Close' to close the window. 3.2.3.11 M3U Playlists Nero Burning ROM 7 supports lists of audio files in the ASCII text format which are labeled as playlists and are in M3U format. They can be edited using Windows Notepad, for example. If you drag an M3U file into the compilation window, Nero Burning ROM 7 will add all the files on the playlist to the audio compilation. A great additional benefit with M3U playlists is that you can also specify information about the artists and titles in an audio file. In this way you can even Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 35 import title and artist information if the audio tracks have been saved as WAV files. WAV files do not normally allow artists and titles to be saved. When an M3U playlist with title and artist information is read by Nero Burning ROM 7 however, this information is also imported. M3U files can also be created, for example with the help of one of the MP3 play programs that are available on the market. Once you are happy with your music compilation it can be easily added to an audio compilation by dragging and dropping the playlist. Creating M3U Playlists Playlists can be created with Nero Burning ROM 7 when you save or decode Audio CDs. 1. Insert the required CD into a CD drive. 2. Select 'Save Track' from the 'Extras' menu. 3. Select the drive with the CD inserted. 4. Click the 'Options' button at the bottom of the window. 5. Activate the 'Automatically generate a M3U playlist of stored audio` checkbox. 6. Highlight the required audio tracks. 7. Click the 'Settings' button and specify the required encoding quality and bitrate. 8. Choose the path for saving the audio file. If the audio file has no meaningful name, you can click the button with the three dots on it and rename the file. 9. Click the 'Start' button to start saving - a window shows you how the save is progressing. 10. When copying is complete, give the playlist a name and click 'Save'. 11. When the save is complete, click 'Close' to close the window. 3.2.3.12 The Nero CD database Unfortunately most Audio CDs contain no information about the tracks that are on them ­ only Audio CDs with CD Text do this. When an Audio CD is created this means that the titles and artists of the tracks usually have to be entered manually. However Nero Burning ROM 7 has a built-in CD and title database designed to locate the titles, artists and all the tracks on an officially released Audio CD. This is achieved with a kind of `fingerprint' on the CD. The information obtained in this way can be used or a range of purposes, such as: ! Generating meaningful filenames when saving audio tracks (see also: Encoding). These filenames make it easier for you to compile your own Audio CDs and also provide the information that is printed on the cover by Nero Cover Designer. Information about the title and artist is also saved in the audio file provided the audio file format allows this. This is possible with MP3 and WMA (MS Audio) files for instance, but not with WAV files. ! Automatic addition of CD-Text when copying Audio CDs. This makes it possible to create CD copies that are in a way better than the original because they get more information. With the added CD-Text, an audio CD player with the right equipment can display the title and artist on a CD. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 36 Importing the program database Depending on how your PC is configured, the database can take up to one day (!) of processing time to import! This is unavoidable because of the sheer size of the database and the large number of cross-references that Nero Burning ROM 7 has to create. Once imported however, read access to the database is very fast. You can cancel the download at any time but we do not advise this, as it CANNOT be resumed. The database would have to be imported again and this would create double entries. 1. Select 'Import Internet Database' from the 'Database' menu. 2. Select the drive that contains the unzipped directory. 3. Select the destination path for the database. 4. When the import is complete you will see a window asking you if you wish to use this database as the Nero Burning ROM 7 program database. Click Yes to confirm your choice. Creating a user database Unlike the program database which contains information about published CDs, the user database is suitable for your own CD compilations. Creating a user database will ensure that information about CDs you have created yourself is not lost if the program database is overwritten. 1. In Windows Explorer create a directory (target directory) to hold the user database. 2. Select 'Create a New User Database' from the 'Database' menu and highlight the destination path for the new user database. 3. When the import is complete you will see a window asking you if you wish to use this database as the user database. Click 'Yes' to confirm your choice. Configuring local Nero databases If when you imported the program database/user database you answered 'Yes' when asked if you want to use these as your new database(s), then the directories are entered automatically. However you can still review the settings on the relevant tab after you have imported the database(s). Before using the Nero database just take a little time to make sure that the settings are right. To configure these settings, select 'File' > 'Options' and then the 'Database' tab. You will see that there are three setting areas. Configuring the Internet database for reading As well as the local database, Nero Burning ROM 7 supports access to Internet databases with CD information that comply with the so-called CDDB standard. The free Internet CD database 'http://freedb.freedb.org' is preset as a preference - Nero Burning ROM 7 can access this directly on the Internet provided you have an Internet connection. ! Select 'Options' from the 'File' menu and click the 'Database' tab. ! Check that 'freedb.freedb.org' is preset as the read server in the 'Use Internet CD database' area. ! Check that '/~cddb/cddb.cgi' is set as the address. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 37 ! Check that '80' is entered as the port. Remember that errors made in keying these parameters are likely to cause network failures. When you change these parameters you must also make sure that correct spelling is used. If you are using a proxy server you should enter the data required to access your proxy server in the Proxy Configuration dialog box. If you don't have the necessary information, please ask your network administrator or Internet provider. If in doubt, try without a proxy server first. Configuring the Internet database for writing As well as downloading CD descriptions from the Internet database you can also make them accessible for other users. In this way you can help improve the quality of the Internet database when you own a CD that does not exist in either the local or the Internet database. This does not apply to CDs with tracks you have compiled yourself. However since it is unlikely that anyone else owns an identical CD, entries about such CDs should not be uploaded to the Internet database, as this would create meaningless CD entries. 1. Select 'Options' from the 'File' menu and click the 'Database' tab. 2. Activate the 'Submit E-Mail address' checkbox and check that 'freedbsubmit@freedb.org' is shown as the address. 3. Enter your email address and the name of the SMTP server in the boxes provided. Please ask your network administrator or Internet provider for the name if you do not have this information. 4. The 'Application Name' field shows the name and version of the program used to upload CD database entries ­ i.e. Nero Burning ROM 7 and the installed program version. When uploading CD entries remember that Internet databases are not normally updated immediately by the Internet database administrators as new entries must first be checked for plausibility. This means that if you upload a CD description today, it would probably not appear on the Net for several days. Configuring database settings Information from the CD databases can be used for a variety of purposes. You will find the necessary checkboxes in the lower section of the 'Database' tab: ! Open the database during 'Save Track': When this checkbox is activated Nero Burning ROM 7 opens the database dialog box when the 'Save Track' option is selected from the 'Recorder' menu. You can now save the necessary information when you convert audio tracks to audio files. See also: 'Saving audio tracks'. ! Open the database during 'CD Copy': When this checkbox is activated Nero Burning ROM 7 opens the database dialog box while the Audio CD is being copied. Nero Burning ROM 7 uses the information obtained in this way to create CD-Text. If you do not have a recorder that can write CD-Text, you can also use the information to create a cover for the CD with the Nero Cover Designer. The information about the audio tracks will be automatically added by Nero Burning ROM 7. ! Open the database during '*.cda Drag&Drop': When this checkbox is activated Nero Burning ROM 7 opens the database Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 38 dialog box while Audio CDs are being dragged and dropped. There is no need for you to enter a name for the CD and the tracks added to the compilation. The database dialog box and how it is used in Nero Depending on how Nero Burning ROM 7 is configured the database dialog box appears on many different occasions, such as when copying Audio CDs or saving audio tracks to harddisk. This is done to get information about titles and artists on the CD and its tracks. This is then used to create CD Text information or to generate meaningful filenames when tracks are saved. The database dialog box first tries to get CD Text information about the loaded CD from the source drive. If this information is available, the dialog box is not opened. If CD-Text information cannot be obtained (for example because the CD contains no CDText or the source drive does not support CD-Text), then the dialog box is opened. It now searches in the Nero CD database (if installed), in the user database (if installed) and in the Internet database if required. Another feature is that it searches through the database of the Windows CD player which can also manage a list of CDs that have already been detected. The search results are then shown in a list. The dialog box may find several different entries or none at all. There can be several different entries when different CDs have the same `fingerprint'. This 'fingerprint' is obtained from the start positions of the individual tracks, the number of tracks and the playing time of the CD. It is obvious that CDs with the same number of tracks, the same playing time and the same track start positions will also have the same 'fingerprint'. Neither Nero Burning ROM 7 nor the Internet database can tell them apart. There will be different entries for an existing CD. It will be down to the user to select the correct entry. Other errors can be caused by the fact that many older recorders did not have the `Disc-at-once' mode. Without this mode the start positions of the tracks on the CD can 'slip'. If an inaccurate CD copy like this is used for uploading, then there will be duplicates of CD entries, or CDs that are actually in the database will not be found. This is a problem you will unfortunately have to live with in the CD database. If there is no entry in the list of possible CDs and if no suitable entry can be found in the Internet database either ('Access Internet Database' button), then the only solution is to define your own entry. You can create this entry by clicking 'Create A New CD Entry'. Don't forget to enter the title and artist for every track. This is particularly important if you intend to upload your CD entry to the Internet at a later time. There is no sense in `burdening` the Internet database with incomplete entries. However we recommend that you only make newly created CD entries available to the general public on the Internet for purchasable original CDs. Likewise, there is no sense in uploading descriptions of CDs you have compiled yourself as they will only clog up the Internet database and in any case no other user should own this special CD. Please remember too that you can only upload entries in ASCII characters to the Internet database. This database does not support special characters such as German `umlauts` or special Asian characters. Special characters should therefore be written out in ASCII notation, e.g. 'Marius Mueller Westernhagen' instead of 'Marius Müller Westernhagen'. The selected entry is used by Nero Burning ROM 7 as a source of information for artist and title entries and entered in the user database where it can be used for future access to the CD. If you do not wish to use an entry, click 'Cancel'. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 39 3.3 Mixed Mode CD A Mixed-Mode CD is a CD with different file formats in a single session. A data track followed by one or more audio tracks (e.g. a soundtrack with PC games) is a typical example. Older audio CD players are often unable to recognize the data track as such and attempt to play it. The CD EXTRA format has been developed to combat this problem. Please refer to the section 'CD EXTRA'. 3.3.1 Creating a Mixed Mode CD 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'Mixed Mode CD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Iso' tab to the foreground. On this tab you can select the data mode and the file system, among others. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. The file browser contains a compilation area for audio tracks and for data files. Click on the 'Data' button if you would like to insert files. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find further information on adding data files in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. 6. Click on the 'Audio' button if you would like to insert audio files. You have a number of options for adding audio files. Option 1: You can insert audio files that are on a (non-copy-protected) audio CD. Option 2: You can insert audio files in the various formats (e.g. MP3, WAV, WMA) found on your PC. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find additional information on adding audio files in the chapter 'Creating an audio CD'. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 40 icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready 7. Click on the to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.4 CD EXTRA A CD in the CD EXTRA format (also known as an Enhanced CD) is a Multisession CD that consists of two sessions: the first session contains the audio files and the second session the data. Existing normal audio CD players play the first session as an Audio CD. The second session contains data files whose contents may relate to the audio track in the first session, for example with song lyrics and background information about the music, or they may just contain gimmicks in the form of video clips. The second session can only be used by PCs with a CD-ROM drive, it cannot be `seen` by a normal CD player. 3.4.1 Creating a CD EXTRA 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'CD Extra' compilation, thereby bringing the 'CD EXTRA' tab to the foreground. You can use the text boxes on the 'CD EXTRA' tab to specify the Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 41 album identification. This is particularly useful when the album is to comprise of several CDs. You can also specify the number of volumes in the album and the album set sequence number. The default for the number of volumes and the sequence number is 1. The Pictures button opens a dialog box where you can select two pictures to be saved on the front and back of the CD. You can also specify the color format for the encoding resolution for all of the pictures that will be written to the CD. A CD EXTRA can contain information in different languages. Click the Add beneath the 'Language' window to select these languages from a list of countries. You could enter the album title for each language, for example. You should specify at least one language. When you highlight a language you can enter a name in the 'Album Title' box. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. The file browser contains a compilation area for audio tracks and for data files. Click on the 'Data' button if you would like to insert files. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find further information on adding data files in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. 6. Click on the 'Audio' button if you would like to insert audio files. You have a number of options for adding audio files. Option 1: You can insert audio files that are on a (non-copy-protected) audio CD. Option 2: You can insert audio files in the various formats (e.g. MP3, WAV, WMA) found on your PC. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find additional information on adding audio files in the chapter 'Creating an audio CD'. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 42 icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready 7. Click on the to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.5 Bootable CD and DVD 3.5.1 Conditions A PC can only be booted from a CD when its BIOS supports this function (start sequence e.g. 'CD-ROM, C, A') or, if a SCSI CD-ROM drive is being used, the drive must be connected to a SCSI adapter with its own BIOS whose settings can be changed accordingly. (This will only work when there are no IDE harddisks present as these come before the SCSI adapter in the boot sequence.) If neither of these conditions is met then the PC cannot be booted from a CDROM. Even so, not every operating system can be booted from a CD. During booting, Windows/98/Me and Windows /2000/XP write to the medium from which they are being booted. This is not possible with a CD and so the process is cancelled and the PC cannot be started. No provision for booting from a ROM medium was made when these operating systems were developed. When booting from a CD therefore, you can only start an operating system that does not write to the medium, such as 'MS-DOS' or 'Linux'. Bootable CDs are created according to the 'El Torito' standard. The CD contains a boot image and an ISO part. When the read driver for the CD-ROM drive and the 'Mscdex.exe' file have been installed, MS-DOS can access the ISO part of the CD which runs the rest of the installation routine. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 43 3.5.2 Background Bootable CDs are created using the so-called 'El Torito' specification. This is an extension of the ISO Level 1, ISO Level 2, Joliet standard which controls the structure of Data CDs: A bootable CD consists of a boot partition and an optional ISO track. The format sees a boot section that contains the information needed to start the CD and a boot catalog. Such a CD can only be made from an existing bootable partition. The entire partition is copied to the CD so the CD must be smaller than 650 MB (or 700 MB). There are three basic types of Boot CDs: Floppy Emulation, Harddisk Emulation and No Emulation. ! With Floppy Emulation, a bootable floppy is needed to create the bootable CD. The size of the start data is limited by the capacity of the floppy disk (e.g.: 1.44 MB). When starting, the Boot CD is assigned Drive A and the actual disk drive is treated as B. ! Harddisk Emulation requires a bootable hard disk to create the bootable CD. The Boot CD is assigned drive letter C and the existing hard disks are incremented a letter, so C becomes D, D becomes E and so forth. During booting the CD behaves as if it were CD drive C. Up to 640 MB (or 700 MB) of boot data can be stored on a CD with this type of bootable CD. However this requires a harddisk partition with 640 (or 700) MB max. This partition must first be created if it does not yet exist. ! With No Emulation, the drive letters are not changed. This type is used for bootable installation CDs. 3.5.3 Template for making a bootable CD A 'template' in the form of a bootable drive is needed to make a bootable CD. There are basically three types of bootable CD: 1. Floppy Emulation: Floppy Emulation requires a bootable floppy to make the bootable CD. When it is booted, the CD behaves as if the floppy were inserted in Drive A. The drive letters increment, so that Drive A: corresponds to the bootable CD. Floppy disk drive A: can be accessed as B: after booting. The size of the start data is basically limited by the capacity of the floppy disk (e.g.: 1.44 MB). 2. Harddisk Emulation: A bootable hard disk is required to create the bootable CD. When booted, the CD behaves as if the CD were Drive C:. Its 'old' Drive C: becomes Drive D:, its old Drive D: becomes Drive E: and so forth. Up to 640MB of boot data can be stored on a CD with this type of bootable CD. Of course this means that the template drive must not be bigger than 640 MB or it will not 'fit' on the CD. So if you have a 200 GB hard disk with only one 200 GB partition for example, you will not be able to create a bootable CD from it without first re-partitioning your hard disk in a suitable way. This is a problem of principle and has nothing to do with Nero Burning ROM 7. 3. No Emulation: This feature is only intended for use by out-and-out experts who require no floppy or harddisk emulation and wish to install their own device drivers. 'Windows 2000 CD' uses this method, for example. For Nero Burning ROM 7 the template for making a bootable CD can be either a logical drive (e.g. the C: drive) or a so-called 'Image File' of a drive. Image files contain the contents of a drive sector by sector as a file. Image files can be Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 44 created with packages such as 'Norton Disk Editor' or 'WinImage' and are usually very large (as large as the drive from which they were created, obviously!). 3.5.4 Making bootable CDs You will find basic information about bootable CDs based on the 'El Torito' standard in the section entitled 'Background'; this section only describes how to create a bootable CD with Nero Burning ROM 7. 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'CD-ROM (Boot)' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Boot' tab to the foreground. 4. In the upper section of the Boot tab (Source of boot image data) you can specify whether the template data for the bootable CD originate from a logical drive or a drive image files (refer to 'Template for making a bootable CD'). If your preferred logical drive does not appear on the list of drives on this tab, this is because the drive is bigger than 650 / 700 MB. This amount of data cannot fit on a CD so Nero Burning ROM 7 does not display these drive in the list. Please note furthermore that for operating systems as of Windows 2000 you need to have administrator rights in order to be able to access drives 'directly', which you will need to do if you are to create bootable discs. This requirement for direct drive access for operating systems as of Windows 2000 is imposed by Microsoft and is intended to protect against hackers who could otherwise gain access to the confidential data of other users. 5. The lower part of the tab (expert settings) contains detailed settings for 'El Torito' standard compliant bootable CDs. These settings are normally grayed which indicates that Nero Burning ROM 7 makes the right settings for you automatically. When an image file is entered as the source of the boot image, Nero Burning ROM 7 cannot make the right settings automatically. If this is the case, or if you want to change the expert settings manually, you can enter all the parameters by hand. Activate the 'Enable expert settings' checkbox if required. You are of course now responsible for the CD working correctly later on. 6. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 7. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 45 You will find further information on adding data files in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready to 8. Click on the burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.6 Video CD/Super Video CD The program Nero Vision 4 is most suitable for the creation of Video CDs and Super Video CDs. We therefore recommend that you use this program. If you would nevertheless like to use Nero Burning ROM 7 to create these discs, please read the next chapter. 3.6.1 Creating a Video CD You can make Video CDs when the files are already in the MPEG-1 format or when other video formats are converted to it. Nero Burning ROM 7 contains a built-in MPEG-1 encoder with which MPEG-1 files can be created. 1. Starten Sie Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 46 3. Select the 'Video CD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Video CD' tab to the foreground. The 'Video CD' tab offers a number of options which you can use to tailor the Video CD to your specific requirements. The 'Create standard compliant CD' checkbox should be enabled to ensure that you make a Super Video CD that can be played in a DVD player. You specify the color format to which the video files will be converted in the 'Encoding resolution` section: Pal or NTSC. If you want to be able to add pictures to the video, then they can be copied to a separate directory. In this case check the `Store source pictures in' checkbox. The 'Use CD-i application' checkbox is only intended for users with experience of CD-i applications. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. The file browser contains one compilation area for video and picture files and one for data files. Click on the 'Data' button if you would like to insert files. These may be text files or even a software player for your PC. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find additional information on adding audio files in the chapter 'Creating an audio CD'. 6. Click on the 'Video/Pictures' button to insert video and picture files. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. If an MPEG file does not have the correct characteristics of a VCD, Nero Burning ROM 7 detects the incorrect format and the user has three options: 'Ignore Compatibility', 'Re-Encode the File' or 'Cancel'. Ignoring compatibility burns the file to the CD with no changes. This option is specifically aimed at experienced users. Re-encoding decodes the existing file, converts it to the correct resolution and Framerate and encodes it again. (Re-encoding is done before burning. This process requires both time and temporary memory space. Canceling interrupts the addition of the video file, i.e. it is not added to the compilation. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 47 icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready 7. Click on the to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.6.2 Creating a Super Video CD You can make Super Video CDs when the files are already in the MPEG-2 format or when other video formats are converted to it. The DVD-Video plug-in is required for decoding and encoding in 'MPEG-2' format. This plug-in is included in the retail version and the web version. If you own another version of Nero Burning ROM 7, you can purchase the DVD-Video plug-in on the Nero AG website (http://www.nero.com/). 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'Video CD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'Video CD' tab to the foreground. The 'Super Video CD' tab offers a number of options which you can use to tailor the Video CD to your specific requirements. The 'Create standard compliant CD' checkbox should be enabled to ensure that you make a Super Video CD that can be played in a DVD player. You specify the color format to which the video files will be converted in the 'Encoding resolution` Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 48 section: Pal or NTSC. If you want to be able to add pictures to the video, then they can be copied to a separate directory. In this case check the `Store source pictures in' checkbox. The 'Use CD-i application' checkbox is only intended for users with experience of CD-i applications. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. The file browser contains one compilation area for video and picture files and one for data files. Click on the 'Data' button if you would like to insert files. These may be text files or even a software player for your PC. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. You will find further information on adding data files in the chapter 'Creating a CD-ROM (ISO)'. 6. Click on the 'Video/Pictures' button to insert video and picture files. Select the desired files on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Repeat this step until all of the files are in the compilation area of the file browser. If an MPEG file does not have the correct characteristics of a SVCD, Nero Burning ROM 7 detects the incorrect format and the user has three options: 'Ignore Compatibility', 'Re-Encode the File' or 'Cancel'. Ignoring compatibility burns the file to the CD with no changes. This option is specifically aimed at experienced users. Re-encoding decodes the existing file, converts it to the correct resolution and Framerate and encodes it again. (Re-encoding is done before burning. This process requires both time and temporary memory space. Canceling interrupts the addition of the video file, i.e. it is not added to the compilation. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 49 7. Click on the icon to switch to the burning area. You are then ready to burn the CD. For information on how to do this, please read the chapter 'Burning a disc'. 3.7 miniDVD With Nero Burning ROM 7 you can burn a miniDVD if the DVD-Video title is already available. If, on the other hand, you would like to convert video files into a DVD-Video title, you can use Nero Vision 4 but not Nero Burning ROM 7. 3.7.1 miniDVD erstellen In principal a miniDVD is the same as a CD-R or CD-RW written in UDF format with a DVD structure. It offers the same technical options and qualities as a DVD, can create chapters or animated menus and support subtitles and multiple audio tracks (including real digital multichannel sound). While compatibility with all DVD players is not guaranteed, miniDVDs can be played by computers without any problem. 1. Start Nero Burning ROM 7. 2. Click on the drop-down list box and select the media type 'CD'. 3. Select the 'miniDVD' compilation, thereby bringing the 'ISO' tab to the foreground. 4. Click on the 'New' button to finish selection of the compilation. The Nero Burning ROM 7 file browser opens in which you select the files to be burned. 5. Select all available files of the DVD-Video title on the right-hand side of the file browser and drag them to the left-hand side. Nero Burning ROM 7 Creating a CD · 50