CD and DVD replication is a process that works by creating discs from scratch. Not to be confused with duplication (the act of burning information onto readymade, commercially-available blank CD-Rs and DVD-Rs), replication relies on the use of molds to produce actual discs that already contain digital data. It is the preferred and recommended mode of mass production for quantities in excess of 500 units.
Replication begins with a painstaking process called glass mastering. In this step, a laser is used to copy data onto a light-reactive glass plate. The plate's photosensitive glaze reacts to the heat of the laser, thus etching several gigabytes worth of digital information for permanent storage.
The data encoded on the glass master comes in binary form, a series of 1s and 0s. While these 1s and 0s may seem like gobbledygook to the average human, it is the language that CD and DVD players understand. Once scored onto the plate via laser, binary information appears as very tiny depressions of varying depths, similar to the grooves on a vinyl record.
Since a glass master cannot be altered once it is completed, great care must be taken when preparing one. As a quality control measure, it has to be made in a clean room environment. Any defects or impurities on the glass master will definitely compromise the integrity and playability of the final CDs or DVDs.
A glass master is considered too delicate to be used for heavy-duty and large-scale disc production. Instead, it is used to create several sturdier, more durable metal molds called stampers. In a process known as stamping or pressing, each stamper is injected with a transparent plastic substance called polycarbonate. The excess plastic is then removed, leaving an exact impression of the mold.
To make the polycarbonate disc suitable for playing, it is then finished with a coat of reflective material. Once the replication process is completed, the disc is finally ready for labeling and packaging.
Replication is considered to be superior to disc duplication. As such, it is regarded as the industry standard. This is because it offers greater consistency in production quality and disc playability than the burning process. In a sense, burning may be likened to photocopying while replication may be likened to cloning. Replicated discs are exact and faithful reproductions of their glass masters; duplicated discs, on the other hand, may differ from their source depending on the quality of the blank media used.
However, due to the complicated and tedious nature of CD and DVD replication, its turn-around or completion time is considerably longer than that of duplication. Depending on the number of copies, discs may be duplicated within a matter of minutes. In contrast, a batch of discs can take two to four weeks to replicate.
Replication is also best left to the experts. Owing to the need for clean rooms and special equipment, the startup expense and preparation can be costlier as well as resource-intensive. But in the long run, replication yields a lower per-unit-cost than disc burning.
For more information ond DVD duplication services, please visit http://www.easydvdburning.com/dvdduplication/index.html
Jasmine Ong is based in the Phillipines, she is a leading technology and software reviewer and has previously had articles published in Businessworld and other periodicals. She currently writes for http://www.easydvdburning.com, the best DVD software resource on the web.
licensed cleaning services Park Ridge ...Net Framework is a platform or development environment to seamlessly... Read More
Logistics automation is often considered as barcoding extension to Sales... Read More
If you have Microsoft Great Plains and support it for... Read More
Microsoft Great Plains, designed back in 1990th as database transferable... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions CRM and IBM Lotus Notes Domino, being... Read More
Are you one of those people that keeps track of... Read More
Looks like Microsoft Great Plains becomes more and more popular,... Read More
Are you ready? SQL Server 2005, the next-generation data management... Read More
If your company has regional and worldwide operations, you might... Read More
Did you ever give a thought to the number of... Read More
When you buy a computer, it most likely comes with... Read More
Fortunately one of the most common reasons cited for the... Read More
Microsoft Great Plains - Microsoft Business Solutions accounting and ERP... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions offers several ERP applications: Great Plains, Navision,... Read More
COMMAND LINE FUNCTIONA powerful command line script processor has been... Read More
Think of this, first we had the HAM Radio, then... Read More
Trying to figure out a stream in banning one email... Read More
Microsoft Great Plains serves majority of US based horizontal and... Read More
Do you want to get quality software at a reasonable... Read More
Since technology changes so quickly, it is hard to begin... Read More
Since Version 8.0 Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains & Great... Read More
If there still are few unprotected computers left, I haven't... Read More
Professional services firm cuts costs and improves productivity with integrated... Read More
In the new era of internet marketing the problem of... Read More
Corporate ERP/MRP selection might be tough one, especially considering very... Read More
on demand house cleaning Arlington Heights ..In the new era of internet marketing the problem of... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions Small Business Manager is Great Plains Dexterity... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains is mid and even corporate... Read More
Microsoft CRM and IBM Lotus Notes Domino seem to be... Read More
Software Engineering is the Systematic Approach for analysis design implementation... Read More
Former Great Plains Software Dynamics/eEnterprise, and currently Microsoft Business Solutions... Read More
Remember nice and prosperous Clinton era? When you implemented innovative... Read More
C/SIDE (Client/Server Integrated Development Environment) - The core of... Read More
NOTE: Please take time to read on - it may... Read More
Linux essentials:It's free for download but you have to pay... Read More
I like my software simple. If it's too complex or... Read More
Once a business idea is selected, it is highly recommended... Read More
Does Microsoft care for WebmastersIt's always been a problem with... Read More
What is 'adware'?Adware is basically software or scripts that are... Read More
The world of small business accounting software can be a... Read More
If you would like to pick something from Microsoft, or... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains as new ERP for multinational... Read More
C++ Function templates are those functions which can handle different... Read More
Microsoft CRM customization techniques are very diversified and based on... Read More
Now that spyware is the single most dangerous threat to... Read More
If you copy something from a Web site or elsewhere...... Read More
Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains is marketed for mid-size companies... Read More
Microsoft CRM is new player on the CRM software... Read More
People often ask me: What image file formats will Photoshop... Read More
COMMAND LINE FUNCTIONA powerful command line script processor has been... Read More
Software |