Introduction
For years a CD and DVD burner were standard on both desktop and laptop computers, and people can still find use for them today. Most people who have access to the Internet don't have a use for CD and DVD players on a PC because that can download songs and movies from various free and commercial websites. You would think that manufacturers would leave a CD and DVD burner off of newer computers, but some people still want and insist on having a disk job, if if they will hardly use it. Below are a few ways in which people use these burners.
Step 1
Use the DVD or CD burner to create recovery discs for your new computer. Traditionally, computer manufacturers have included operating system installation files on a disc that are separate from the installation of the operating system on the hard drive. If the operating system were to crash you simply install fresh copy of the operating system from the disc in order to get back up and running. Today, many manufacturers ask owners to burn their own recovery CDs and DVDs. Manufacturers even include a software program that facilitates the burning and creation of the recovery disc.
Step 2
Use the burner to create home movies. These movies can be burned to a CD or a DVD. If you burn the movies to a CD you may have to significantly reduce the size of the video file or change the format. However, many set top DVD players can play video directly from a CD if it is in a compatible format. For example, you can record a wedding or birth of a child from a digital video camera. Afterwards, you can transfer to the file to your computer's hard drive and then perform edits based on video editing software that comes with the camera, or the DVD burner. Finally, you burn the video to a disc.
Step 3
Use the burner to create musical CDs and DVDs. Again, set top DVD players can also play music that is on CD and DVD. You can use a music burning application, such as Nero or Roxio to burn the songs to the DVD disc. These applications might also include features that important album art. When you play the disc on your computer or using the entertainment center at home, the music plays from the speakers and the album art shows on the TV.
Step 4
Create a picture slideshow with the CD or DVD burner. Use a photo editing application, such as Windows Live Photo Gallery, to gather your photos as a project and organize them in presentation format. Some later version of the application also burn the photos to the disc in the slideshow format. You can then play the slideshow on your home entertainment center, sharing fun events, such as weddings and the birth of a child.
Step 5
Back your files on the hard drive using the CD or DVD burner. The Windows operating system includes a free utility that can burn your user generated files to these discs. You can even back up the entire operating system, which may take several discs to achieve, but at least you will have a back up copy for safe keeping.
Tips
Buy high quality CD and DVD discs to use in your burner.
