Appending Archive to DVD-RW

[paulmj]

If I create an archive on a DVD-RW and later I want to add to this archive because space remains on the disk, can this be readily done? If so, how would I go about doing it?

[MichaelT]

No. This would require the burn to be a multi-session burn which we do not consider a reliable archive. Since this is an RW, just burn the RW and then if you have a larger Archive redo it. It would have to be done that way in order for the index to be correct anyway.

And then when you have enough files, you should make a burn to a -R or +R (not an RW) so that you have reliable archive that cannot be accidentically erased and also has the integrity that an RW does not have. The RW should be considered your interim or incremental archive.

[paulmj]

Thanks for the response.

Your final comment about the relative integrity of a re-writable disk vs. a permanent one is something I never heard before. I can understand the issue of accidental erasure, but how would an -RW disk have less integrity than an -R? How would it (the reduced integrity) manifest itself?

I have been avoiding -R disks because they aren't that much cheaper than an -RW and there is the danger of screwing up a burn and no opportunity to re-do it without discarding the bad disk.

I just bought 15 Memorex DVD-RWs on Ebay for $31 including shipping. Hard to beat.

[MichaelT]

It is different technology that allows a -R or +R to be written. It is my understanding that an RW does not have the long term data integrity that a permanant -R or +R does. In my research, I have noted that it is sometimes stated that RW is not as good as a long term archival storage media. This is an example of such a statement from Verbatim...

"Pressed media (DVD-Video, DVD-ROM) is most easily read by all DVD drives and players. Write once media, DVD-R and DVD+R, is the next most easily read. The rewriteable formats - DVD-RW, DVD+RW and DVD-RAM are more difficult to read, but -RW and +RW still have good compatibility because their formats closely resemble that of pressed media."

The full article is here....

http://www.verbatim.com/products/images/dvd-rtechnologyupdate.pdf