7.
Nov 5, 2008 9:38 PM
in response to:
unclew
Re: Do I need a special burner for dual-layer DVDs...
Okay, I went out today and bought a pack of Memorex DVD+R DL disks (before reading the three or four most recent responses).
My desktop is a Dell Dimension E521 running Vista Home Premium which I purchased last year. My laptop is an HP Pavillion Entertainment, also with VHP, which I bought this summer. How would I determine if either burner is capable of doing DLs?
For the Dell, that is kind of like asking "what kind of tires do I have on my Jeep?" Desktops computer manufacturer's will basically use whatever you 1) order (i.e. whether you ordered it with a DL drive or not...they might have still offered an option at that time) and 2) what they had on hand part wise for a good price.
Basically, you will have to determine the model of the optical drive...either by going to the System Information utility in XP (or the equivalent of it in Vista...don't know that without firing up my other computer) or going to Device Manager. Once you get a optical drive model number, you can look it up to find the spec.
Now, with a desktop that is about a year old and even more so with a laptop purchased this past summer, if they have a DVD burner, then they have a rather good chance of supporting DL disks...DL burners are more the rule than the exception these days. When I bought my Dell 8400 about 3 years ago, DL burners were the exception, not the rule.
[soapbox] Backup = good...No backup = bad!! [/soap box]
Nope, definitely a nono. 
