----- Original Message -----
From: "Wilko Bulte" <wb(a)freebie.xs4all.nl>
To: asbesto <asbesto(a)freaknet.org>
Subject: Re: [TUHS] Recovering flaky CDs
Date: Wed, 31 Oct 2007 19:09:11 +0100
Quoting asbesto, who wrote on Wed, Oct 31, 2007 at 05:47:36PM +0100 ..
Wed, Oct 31, 2007 at 08:25:00AM -0800, James
Petts wrote:
> > > Is there anybody on this list who
knows a way of
recovering flaky CDs?
> > Easiest first step is try using
different kinds of
CD/CD-R/DVD-R drives.
> I
have found some 'unreadable' CDs could be read using a DVD drive.
I remember a very old SONY cd-rom reader capable of reading very
damaged cd! It was the SONY CDU-33A, it has his
own controller, so was not an IDE or SCSI drive. But it can be
Those CD Doctor
"cleaners" (they actually do a minor
resurfacing of the disc) have rescued several discs
for me.
A great problem I had some time ago was a sort of oxydation of the
cd material; this seem to happen using very bad cd brands. i had
Note that the reflecting layer in factory produced CDs is aluminium.
A thin layer of lacquer is protecting the reflector.
As an interesting eye opening experiment I dumped one of these AOL promo CDs
we used to be bombarded with in a bowl of lukewarm water. Plain water, 25
degrC. Within a day the aluminium layer had holes in it the size of dimes.
Apparantly the protective lacquer was very substandard.
El-cheapo CDR can have similar characteristics.
And it is the top side (label side) of the CD that is most
fragile, not the reading side. There is about 0.5 mm of
plastic that can take some pretty fearsome scratches and
still be readable, or at least resurfaceable (is that a
word?).