What is the difference between CD-ReWritable, DVD, MO, and PD drives?
Very simply, it is a matter of compatibility. CD-ReWritable drives can read CD-ROM discs, Recordable CD-ROM discs (CD-R) that can be read by any CD-ROM drive, and read & write CD-ReWritable media. The PD drive can only read CD-ROM discs (not write to them), and read & write to PD discs which in turn are only readable with PD and DVD-RAM drives. MO drives only can read & write to MO discs – and to make it more complicated only the specific types of discs that are compatible with that specific MO drive. The advantage of CD-R over other types of optical media is that you can read the discs with a standard CD player and CD-ROM drive. If you incorporate the various DVD standards, the entire process of compatibility becomes even more complicated. Briefly, a DVD-RAM drive for example, can read all CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, DVD-RAM, and PD discs, but can only write to DVD-RAM discs. DVD-RAM discs in turn cannot be read by CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, or PD drives. First, second, and thi
