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Getting Started: Making Backups of Your CDs

Whether you own a collection of music CDs, video games, or just CDs filled with various forms of media, you know that they are not indestructible, and thus you need to make backups of them.

Your CD collection is a pretty big investment. Just look at how much money you spent on each of your music CDs, and each piece of computer software. From all of this money, don't you think you deserve to create backups of your investments?

Let's look at your investment. The average music CD is priced at fifteen dollars, while most commercial video game CDs can cost a price of fifty dollars. Now look at what CDs are. They are not the most durable things in the universe, as they can easily get scratched, smashed or destroyed.

Thankfully with the advent of the many wonderful cd burners available to consumers, the ability for users to backup their collection of CDs is now. The only major requirements for making backup copies of your CDs are that you have a CD writer / burner, blank CD-R discs, and a software application designed to help users utilize their CD burners.

If you intend to make backup copies of your music CDs, be sure to use CD-R media and not CD-RW discs, otherwise you may run into some compatibility problems with your music CD player.

Remember that is is important that when you are making backup copies of your music CDs that you do not use CD-RW discs. The reason for this is because CD-RW discs are somewhat different than regular CD-R discs, and are not readable in most music CD players. While new CD players now have the ability to play CD-RW discs, if you are unsure whether your player allows you to play CD-RW discs, then it is best to just use regular CD-R media.

The equipment needed to make backup copies of your CDs is very inexpensive. CD burners can be purchased well under $50 for an entry unit, and packs of fifty or more CD-R discs can be had for less than $20.

Almost every new computer sold today ships with a CD writer / burner installed. If your computer does not have a CD burner, you can visit your local computer store and purchase an entry level drive for under fifty dollars. Blank CD-R media is ultra cheap, and if you shop around you will be able to find large spindles of blank discs for a very low sum of money.

Once you have the CD burner, the discs you wish to backup, and the blank CD-R media, you will have to get software that allows you to make copies (backups) of CDs. While a lot of CD burning software exists, it is highly recommended that you use a software package that is devoted entirely to duplicating cds.

Some of the best choices for duplicating CDs are the utilities found within the Nero CD Burning Suite, and a small shareware application called BlindWrite, which was given four out of five stars in a editor's review at Download.com

Remember that you are entitled to create backup copies of your CDs, no matter if they are software or music CDs. Please also keep in mind that it is not legal to redistribute these backup CDs to your friends, co-workers, etc.

James Fohl is a contributor at Free-backup.info -- the home of the best online backup software -- Back2zip. This article can be found at http://free-backup.info/getting-started-making-backups-of-your-cds.html