How to archive files on DVD?

[KarylFStein]

I'd like to copy all our family photos to DVD in case we ever lose them on the computer. I thought it would be as easy as drag-and-drop like I do for writable CDs. However, it doesn't seem to work with DVD media. Do I need some sort of special driver software? I don't want to buy a full-blown DVD authoring package because I'm not interested in making video DVDs with menus, etc. (I do have Adobe Premier Elements if that helps any.) I just want to archive data on DVD. What's the easiest and least expensive way to do this? It looks like MCE2005 has this functionality, but I'm running XP Pro SP2.

[stevech]

I do backup my gigabytes of family photos frequently.
I do so by copying them to a second hard disk, because they don't fit on on CD. I use Acronis TruImage to image the whole drive partition once a week or so, to a file on another drive. Lots of folks do this these days. But this doesn't protect from theft or fire. Only offsite storage can do that.

I don't trust DVDs for really important stuff like these photos. The shelf life is suspect due to crummy DVD drives/burners. If you take the time to do a "read after write" verify of a DVD, my experience is a high fault rate.

To burn a "data" DVD, you'll need to use some DVD creation software. Windows' built-in support is for CDs only. Most PCs sold in the last couple of years come with something pre-installed - a "lite" version of something. There are also many freeware programs you can get off the 'Net to make data DVDs, if you dare.

I would backup photos to CD(s) on occasion, and backup to a 2nd hard disk very frequently.

[gplasky]

If you have a DVD burner it probably came with Nero or Roxio or some other such program. These will allow you to create Data DVDs just like CDs. You should be able to just copy the photos to a DVD using them. I have Nero and it also has Nero Back-up. It will back up any files to your DVD and if it's more than a DVD can hold it will automatically ask you for another DVD. And it will compress the files too. Some of your photo programs can also back up your photos and some can even burn it to CD/DVD.

Gerry

[KarylFStein]

I use rsync nightly to copy stuff to another hard drive, so am looking for an "offsite" solution. I used to use a tape drive and take a tape over to my in-laws every once in a while. But I've had two tape drives die and don't really want to sink more money into that. I figured since I had a DVD burner, I might as well put it to use.

The drive is OEM and didn't come with software.

I use Ulead Photo Explorer to manage photos and that can burn slideshows to a DVD. I guess that would work although I don't care if it plays a slideshow. Hopefully it doesn't process the picture files any...

Is a CD a better storage medium?

[gplasky]

I don't think a CD is any better than a DVD. Plus single-sided DVD can hold around 4.3 GB and a double-sided DVD can hold 8.4 GB but is more expensive. I use Picasa 2 for my photos (which is free) and it has a built-in backup that will burn to CD or DVD. You can define your backup sets and it will help you keep your backup curremt.

Gerry

[KarylFStein]

Ooo, I like the Picasa2 application. Thanks for the tip. The only reason I keep coming back to Ulead is because of their red eye fixer and the level of control you have with it. For example, Picasa2 doesn't let you zoom in while doing red eye reduction and doesn't let you control the levels / target color. So, I'm still getting some red rings and missed pieces. It's much better than the solution in Adobe Elements, though. That made all the eyes look oddly grey. I'm going to keep Ulead around for red eye reduction, but I think I'll be using Picasa2 for everything else.