How dows one use DVD-RAM discs under XP?

CD, DVD and (Ultra HD) Blu-ray Writers
#1

Hi, I have an LG GSA-H55L DVD Burner drive which supposedly supports DVD-RAM. I have come across a Type I (Type 1) disc that according to Wikipedia is a “Double-sided one layer discs with a capacity of 5.16 GB” and is version 1.0 DVD-RAM.

It comes in an “unremovable” enclosure which didn’t work quite well as it was pretty easily opened and I took the DVD out.

Now, I never used a DVD-RAM media before, so I googled a bit and from what I read, DVD-RAM should work straight out of the box (no pun intended) with my OS which is Windows XP Pro SP3. However, that is not the case, because the DVD is not recognized at all, not by XP’s Explorer, ISOBuster, Nero etc. It just says "no disc in the drive.

Some notes that I’d like to point out: This DVD was used in a Mac computer and still works great there. It is probably formatted with a Macintosh partition but I tried to delete it with a utility called DVD-RAM tune-up in the Mac, I think I succeeded, too, still, can’t read the DVD in my PC.

Here is some info about my DVD drive:

Is there something I need to do in order to read DVD-RAMs on XP? Or maybe my drive simply does not support version 1.0 DVD-RAMs?

Any suggestion will be greatly appreciated.

#2

Hi and Welcome![QUOTE=Og;2475702]Hi, I have an LG GSA-H55L (…) I have come across a Type I (Type 1) disc that according to Wikipedia is a “Double-sided one layer discs with a capacity of 5.16 GB” and is version 1.0 DVD-RAM.
(…)
Now, I never used a DVD-RAM media before, so I googled a bit and from what I read, DVD-RAM should work straight out of the box (no pun intended) with my OS which is Windows XP Pro SP3.[/quote]That’s correct. out-of-the-box, Win XP supports reading and writing (FAT32 only). If you want UDF write support (you want this), you need 3rd party software like InCD or Panasonic’s DVD-RAM driver.

However, that is not the case, because the DVD is not recognized at all, not by XP’s Explorer, ISOBuster, Nero etc. It just says "no disc in the drive.

(…)
Is there something I need to do in order to read DVD-RAMs on XP? Or maybe my drive simply does not support version 1.0 DVD-RAMs?
I [I]guess[/I], your drive does not support that kind of discs. Unfortunately, there is no statement about that in the manual. :frowning:

Michael

#3

[QUOTE=mciahel;2475964]
I [I]guess[/I], your drive does not support that kind of discs. Unfortunately, there is no statement about that in the manual. :frowning:

Michael[/QUOTE]

Damn :frowning:

That’s really weird that this isn’t mentioned anywhere… I thought about writing to LG’s support but from my experience, official tech support people usually know a lot less than you forum experts, they’ll probably just reply that it isn’t supported without even checking… :confused:

#4

Well, it’s confirmed, Drive doesn’t support Type I DVD-RAM. This is how I confirmed that it’s not software related: The DVD-RAM drive from the Macintosh is a SCSI device, so I connected it to my PC with a SCSI controller and XP recognized the discs and I was able to view their contents with a special program and even format them and use them with XP’s explorer.

I’m really disappointed with LG, I thought highly of them. I’ll bet this is something that a simple firmware change will implement…

You know… I thought of something… This quote is from wikipedia:

recent DVD recorders can work with discs either with or without cartridge, and many devices do not support cartridges at all. Discs can be removed from cartridges for use with these drives.

I wonder if LG has a drive that can hold a DVD-RAM cartridge, if it’s a drive with similar hardware to mine, I’ll bet I can write it’s firmware to my drive and use a Type 1 disc…
Problem is, I don’t know how to look for a drive that supports cartridges… I tried to look at some photos and read tech specs of some drives but I don’t know what I’m looking for.

So does anyone here know of an LG DVD-RAM drive that accepts cartridges or can at least point to me to where I can find one?

#5

Hi[QUOTE=Og;2476310]Well, it’s confirmed, Drive doesn’t support Type I DVD-RAM. (…)
I’m really disappointed with LG, I thought highly of them. I’ll bet this is something that a simple firmware change will implement… [/quote]No modern drive supports these old discs. These disc require a drive that has a cardridge tray, and these went out of production many years ago in favour of the cheaper tray (and a few slot) solutions.
Type 1 media was designed to only work in these cardridges (“nonRemovable”), and no ODD manufacturer will spend a cent to develop a drive for using these discs in an out of specs (removed from cardridge by force) way.

You know… I thought of something… This quote is from wikipedia:
In the german version of the Wikipedia, they state that modern drives, don’t support type 1 discs.

I wonder if LG has a drive that can hold a DVD-RAM cartridge, if it’s a drive with similar hardware to mine, I’ll bet I can write it’s firmware to my drive and use a Type 1 disc…
The only manufacturer I am aware of, is Panasonic. And their cartridge drives are marked as “discontinued”.

Problem is, I don’t know how to look for a drive that supports cartridges…
There is none, apart from ancient Panasonic drives off ebay.

If you are able to connect the ancient apple drive to your computer (and you were if I remember correctly), then backup the stuff to your HDD or other modern media and simply forget these old discs.

Michael

#6

Thanks Michael. I’ll take your advice.