CDBurnerXP Pro: the best and easy to use FREE CD burning software

We are now used to have music in our house or work using the internet and PC but, why we do not burn our CDs? CDBurnerXP Pro is one of the most complete applications to burn CDs and DVDs in different formats.

With CDBurnerXP Pro you can create audio-CDs from Mp3, WAV, and WMA files, burn any data on CD-R/CD-RW/DVD R/DVD-R/DVD RW/DVD-RW and use either the internal browser to add your files or the intuitive drop-box to drag and drop files directly from any Windows Explorer window. It also includes the feature to burn and create ISOs, as well as a Multilanguage interface.

You can also add single or multiple tracks from existing audio-CDs directly to your new compilation without ripping tracks before, burn ISO files to CD, convert BIN and NRG files to ISO and save CDs/DVDs as ISO file to disc.

CDBurnerXP Pro installation process is simple and you only need to follow the steps. When using it, you will find a screen and an organized interface that will help you to locate files or folders you want to burn by only dragging the mousse.

Regarding CDBurnerXP disadvantages we can say that many users claim to have problem when burning and others are fun of it. Without a doubt, this software has all the variants and options we might require but its burning engine might not be the effective one.

CDBurner XP is a highly recommended application to burn CD and DVD. It´s freeware license take advantage over Nero, one of the most used software to carry out this kind of tasks.

R-Drive Image

Create backup data from images in ISO format has became the easiest task thanks to software like R-Drive Image. Supported under an interface more than attractive and offering us several tools to keep our files save.

When thinking about the security of our computer, the security of our data also takes an important place. The most reliable option is to create backups or backup of a hard drive in an external support as it can be CD-R, DVD or the ZIP discs.

R-Drive Image is an optimal solution for the backup creation from the images´ method, that is to say, that uses ISO extension for the creation of files that are the duplicated image of the original file. R-Drive makes exact copies of a partition or a unit, byte by byte, so we can recover later the operating system or our data in case we loss them.

R-Drive Image features a user-friendly and practical interface, remarkably innovating in the visual aspect. Although we must say that is small, is doesn´t offer difficulties to the users that are not familiarized with the creation of ISO images. In fact, it is probable that this interface might sometimes act as a friendly tutor to help us with the backup.

At startup, we can see that their functions are not exhausted with the creation of the previous mentioned backups. The software features interesting new features, as the possibility of creating a system´s startup disc, or to plan tasks as the creation of images and checking its integrity with an internal software special for diagnoses. On the other hand, R-Drive Image also has a restoration function of the created images, thanks to it; we will not need an additional application when recovering our information. We can also set up the option “copy disc to disc” to be done automatically.

Perhaps the most interesting options of R-Drive Image is the possibility of using an image as if this was a virtual logical drive and this way manages its files from the inside. This way, we will be able to place it as another unit within our computer if we use Windows Explorer or any other similar application.

Regarding the creation of images, the process is developed in a series of brief steps for a wizard or assistant that set up the adjustment parameters that will give the shape to ours backup. Without a doubt R-Drive Image is considered by effectiveness, simplicity and functionality an interesting option between the many alternatives we have to create backups.

DAEMON Tools

If you are tired of burning disc to see ISO files content (many of the internet download, for example Pc games), then DAEMON Tools is the perfect option for you. This tool enables you to use your CD/DVD images as if they were already burned to CD/DVD.

With DAEMON Tools you can back up your physical CD/DVD/HD DVD/Blu-ray discs into “virtual discs” or so called “disc image” files, which run directly on your hard drive. You can also work with images created by other burning programs! DAEMON Tools supports variety of image types (ISO, NRG, CCD, CUE, CDI, MDS, B5T, B6T, BWT, ISZ o PDI).

When installing DAEMON Tools it will be run on resident modality and its icon will appear on the task bar located on the right of the Windows menu. Its icon can be recognized as a thunder inside a circle. By clicking the right button a menu will be opened to access its functions.

The first thing we need to do is to create a virtual unit; “Add a new virtual ID drive” by clicking on the icon that has a plus sign located in the central part of the tool bar. Once created, we will be able to access an image file by searching it from the window that will appear when clicking on the first button to the left of the top bar. After finding it, click on open and it will be loaded as a virtual content. Other options that DAEMON Tools offers, is the possibilities of see “recent image files use” and a catalogue of image files. We will be able to recognize our files by the logo of DAEMON Tools.

Once you have the file loaded, it will be ready to use. If we open a window form windows explorer to visualize our units, we will find our virtual disc among them. We can access it by double clicking on it and work with it as if it were any other unit on our pc.

We can now manage our files, copy, eliminate them, remove, compress, etc. We can also access those auto-run files without burning a CD.As long as we have DAEMON Tools enable, our virtual disc will be as drive unit.

DAEMON Tools allows offer another functions as the image file creation to burn them in a CD. The process we need to follow is basically to access its most important option: access the image file content from a virtual disc without creating a physical disc.

Five programs to make the most of your music

There’s no doubt about it – music is a passion that moves millions of people all over the world. And now, thanks to the Internet, it’s possible to get access to an endless amount of music that would otherwise have been impossible to get hold of. For this reason, it’s essential to have a number of different programs that allow you to efficiently manage all of your music, edit it, play it, burn it to CDs, change its format, and even create it.

The applications that we’re going to look at here will let you do all of these things, along with some more things that you probably hadn’t even thought of. They are: Winamp, Mp3 Wma Converter, Nero Burning Rom, Audacity and Virtual DJ.

Winamp

To start with, you’re going to need a multimedia player that will let you listen to all the music that you have on your computer. Winamp is guaranteed to be able to play practically any audio or video file, and can do so whilst using few system resources. It offers support for most file formats and has a user-friendly and very easy-to-use interface.

Among its tools, Winamp has an equalizer, a “Library” into which files can be imported, a web browser, and more applications, all of which help to make this a really great program.

In a nutshell, the most important things about this player are how easy it is to use, its versatility, the fact that it allows the user to adapt it to their personal tastes, and the advantage it has over other players in that it can play a huge range of different formats.

Mp3 Wma Converter

Although Winamp has support for many file formats, the vast number of these that are currently in existence mean that it’s still essential to have a program like Mp3 Wma Converter. This application lets you change the format of your audio files, allowing you to enjoy listening to them on whatever player and device you like.

You can convert your audio files between the four most popular formats around: MP3, WMA, WAV and Ogg, as well as between many, more obscure ones. This application also stands out for its ease of use. With just a couple of clicks you can start the automatic conversion process. Among the various features offered by the application is the CD Ripper application, for ripping any audio CD.

Summing up then, thanks to its versatility, speed and ease of use, this is a very good choice for a file conversion program.

Nero Burning Rom

Another problem that you will surely have come across if you have a large amount of music stored on your computer, is that sooner or later the machine’s performance can start to suffer. For this reason, you need Nero Burning Rom, which allows you to create all sorts of CDs and DVDs to save your music away from the PC. It also comes with various extra utilities such as Nero Covers and Nero Tools.

An important feature of this program is its ability to record CDs even with defective sectors, allowing you to enjoy listening to your old CDs that have become a little bit worse for wear over the years. Another of its many features is the ability to record audio CDs directly from MP3 files. You can also create VCDs and SVCDs, album sleeves, compile statistics, and more.

Yet another characteristic is the ability to create slideshows that combine music with photos. The app can also convert several formats of audio files.

So here we have another example of a highly versatile program, providing you with various options for copying CDs and storing your favourite music.

Audacity

Audacity lets you edit your audio files, using simple Cut, Copy and Paste features. It also allows you to mix tracks and apply effects to recordings. Plus, with Audacity Free you can record sounds, play them back, and import and export WAV, AIFF and MP3 files.

Audacity also provides tools for more advanced users, such as an amplitude envelope editor, an adjustable spectrum mode, and a frequency-analysis window for audio analysis applications. With regards sound quality, it lets you alter it in different ways, including using the Bass Boost, wah wah, and noise remover effects. It also supports VST plug-in effects.

The fact that Audacity can be used by beginner and expert users alike makes it a very tempting option for all music fans, whether they simply want to learn how to edit audio or are looking for a more advanced set of tools.

Virtual DJ

Last but not least is Virtual DJ, which lets you live out your dream of being a real DJ and pull off mixes that are nearly up to scratch with those on your favourite records. It combines a simple interface with a wide range of advanced options, meaning that you’ll no longer need to gaze longingly at expensive professional consoles.

Simply load a song into the program and you can immediately start experimenting, changing the BPM, creating loops, scratching, applying effects, adjusting the sound, and much more.
Thanks to its simplicity, this is a great application for learning to make music at home.

Here we’ve presented a list of programs for doing a variety of things with your favourite music tracks. Now all that’s left to do is download them so that your PC is ready to take advantage of all they have to offer.

The video´s software your PC need

The change from analog to digital had a significant influence on the video, by having a PC you can see movies before its opening, complete series seasons, home videos made by digital or mobile phones, music videos and many more. The only requirement needed to take full advantage of this possibility is having the proper software that supports the multiple options the video files has (format, compression, codec used, etc).

We will show you here different applications so you can play any video you have (VLC Media Player) solve any format compatibility problem (Combined Community Codec) avoid DVD protection (DvdFab HD Decrypter) and burn discs with your favorite videos (CdBurnerXp).

VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player is a multimedia player very easy to use that also features a user-friendly interface. This software has many options to play files in multiple formats, including DVD and streaming video.

VLC Media Player includes its own codec pack being able this way of playing a wide range of video formats without depending on the Windows codec. One important feature to mention is that it is able to play the incomplete videos we are downloading from Emule, allowing us to see if we are downloading the video we want.

This software is useful to play videos and audio but has being developed to the video side adding new options like the subtitle reproduction and the capacity of playing several audio tracks on a movie.

Combined Community Codec Pack

Combined Community Codec Pack is a complete codec pack which was initially designed for the reproduction of anime videos, and now it has become one of the most popular codec packs in the world. Unlike other packs, Combined Community Codec only installs on our system the necessary codecs, taking a minimal disk space while avoiding compatibility issues with other codecs on our system.

Before installing Combined Community Codec, the installer detects possible codec issues with your system -previously installed codecs that is – avoiding further codec troubleshooting. Combined Community Codec includes among its features two complete multimedia players: Media Player Classic and Zoom Player Standard. With these players you can take full advantage of the codecs included in the package, such as: Haali Media Splitter (DirectShow filter for MKV, MP4, OGM and AVI), VSFilter (for SSA/ASS, SRT y VOBSUB subtitles), Ffdshow CCCP (for H.264/AVC, DivX and vid) and WMV9VCM (for Windows Media). Apart from having standard codecs such as Divx, Xvid and AVI, CCCP offers free audio and video players and an application for making movie subtitles.

DvdFab HD Decrypter

This useful tool allows ripping all kind of DVD movies and videos to the PC to play it, share and burn it later in other disc. Besides offering the possibility of having on our computer any DVD we want, it rips incredible fast and easy.

DvdFab HD Decrypter offers many options to rip, between them we can choose to do it to the entire disc, only on the main part of the movie, on some episodes, with a particular language and subtitle and more. It stands out by doing the rip beyond any protection the disc might have being these CSS, RC, RCE, APS, UOPs or Sony ARccOS.

CdBurnerXp

CdBurnerXp is another amazing burning tool. CdBurnerXp supports CDs and DVDs both DVD and DVDRW, as well as the possibility of creating ISO files. It also allows users to rip audio CDs.

The interface is very easy-to-use, It´s divided into several modules allowing you to drag and drop files. Another important aspect of this burner is that it consume very little system resources. You can also create boot disks and includes a bin/nrg to ISO converter.

Without a doubt, the popularity of Nero suite makes of CdBurnerXp unknown software, nevertheless, its low resource consume and stability makes it highly recommended.

Any Video Converter

Any Video Converter is really useful to convert our movies or videos to the different formats present nowadays, since it can convert video files between many formats.

This tool has many features worth mention: it allows converting a great amount of formats, between them, the popular “mpg”, “avi” and another formats for complex devices. In addition to this, it offers the preview option for the videos we are going to convert and select the segment or part of the video we want to convert in case we do not want to convert the whole video.

It´s use is very simple as it features a user-friendly interface, but despite this, we must say that this software presents some disadvantages. Compared with other software, Any Video Converter does not offer any option to modify the output video qualities, though this does not interfere with its performance.

As we could see, with these software you can make any action regarding videos. They are a good choice when dealing with videos and taking full advantage of our computer.

If you are fan of the films, and you are used to download them from the Internet and record it on DVD, you will have noticed that if you want them, to be identical as the original ones, they should have the start menu. This menu is very useful if you copy more than one video on the DVD, since it will allow you to choose which one you want to play.

How to record a video DVD with a menu included

Creating a menu manually can seem complicated, but with ConvertXtoDVD is not. Next, we will show you how to convert any video to DVD format, create a start menu and finally record it to a disc.
When running the software we will see an interface divided in two. The right part shows the option “preview videos”, and the left one shows the directories we select. The first thing we need to do is to choose the video we want to record, next go to File -> Add Video. We will repeat the process and after doing that, will have added two files that will appear on the Vista Directory module.

Now we will click on the small box located at the beginning of the list of files. A drop down menu with different options will appear between them and we will select “Menu Title” and two new variants will appeared. If we double click on the first one we will see that it changes, and the button “Adjustments when editing the style of the text” will appear. Select it and a new window will appear where we will be able to modify the aspect of the title. Now we will see the second variant of the menu, “Miniature”, in which we will be able to assign an image to the title.

After finishing modifying the title as we want and having chosen an image, we will do the same with the other video we have previously selected. This way we will see it on the right module of the window the menu as we have created.

How to record a video DVD with a menu included

We already finished the menu and now we need to convert the video and record it. Click on convert and the process will start. When finalizing, ConvertXtoDVD will open the tray so we can insert a blank DVD in the driver. Click on Burn after placing the DVD and the process will start immediately. When finish, you will have your DVD ready with a menu to play it wherever you want.

Create a menu for our DVD can seem something complex at first sight, but it in fact, it is a very simple process. Just by selecting the videos and assigning them different values from the title and also adding images, we will have a DVD similar to the original one.

The hottest CD and DVD burners

With the possibility of downloading a great amount of music, movies, and any sort of file from the internet, users needed CDs and DVDs to backup their data and free up disk space. In view of this increasing need numerous CD/DVD burners started to pop up. We will now review some of the most popular CD/DVD/Blu-ray burners and pointing out the pros and cons of: Nero Burning Rom, CDBurnerXP Pro, CloneDVD, Alcohol 120%, ConvertXtoDVD.

Nero Burning Rom

When Nero Burning Rom comes to mind, we know that Nero is the most popular CD/DVD burner. It features a series of application such as Nero Covers and Nero Tools that simplify the burning process.
Nero also allows user to burn audio CDs from MP3 files and also burn multimedia slideshows combining music and images, and some other important features.
The interface is user-friendly and very easy-to-use. Burning a CD or DVD can be done in just a few steps, anyone can do it.
The only con is the trial which lasts for 30 days, other than that there is nothing to complain about regarding Nero Burning Rom.

CDBurnerXP Pro

CDBurnerXP Pro is another amazing burning tool. CDBurnerXP Pro supports CDs and DVDs both DVD and DVDRW, as well as the possibility of creating ISO files. It also allows users to rip audio CDs. The interface is very easy-to-use, It´s divided into several modules allowing you to drag and drop files. Another important aspect of this burner is that it consume very little system resources.
You can also create boot disks and includes a bin/nrg to ISO converter.

CloneDVD

Even though this software burn CDs and DVDs, on focuses primarily on DVDs offering three burning possibilities: Copy DVD Titles allows you to back up a part of a DVD; CloneDVD creates a copy of an entire DVD, and Write Existing Data allows you to write a DVD disc image or a VIDEO_TS folder containing a DVD movie. CloneDVD features a burning wizard that guides you through the whole process featuring an extremely easy-to-use interface.
Overall the software is stable. Our test machines did lock up on one instance; however after we re-started the machine we were unable to reproduce the error.

Alcohol 120%

Alcohol 120% -as well as any other burner nowadays- burns CD and DVDs, but most importantly, it´s known for the possibility of creating multiple virtual CD/DVD drives, which can be used to mount CD/DVD images from the hard drive without needing to burn them. It also offers a search box to look for every CD/DVD image on your PC.
The only issue encountered with Alcohol 120% is that it may cause troubleshooting with other emulation tools such as Daemon Tools.

ConvertXtoDVD

ConvertXtoDVD is another outstanding CD/DVD burner featuring a powerful multimedia converter with support for multiple formats, enabling you to convert and burn DVD quickly and easily.
ConvertXtoDVD has a series of tools for recoding DVD movies. You can add and customize subtitles, choose the output format, creation of menus and more.
Of course, conversions are not always as good as you would expect. Sometimes you get improper video playback or sound is out of sync.

Each of these burning applications has their pros and cons. All of them can burn CDs and DVDs without issues, but if you have to choose one of them, you probably want to pick Nero Burning Rom. All features and it´s user-friendly interface is all we need when it comes to burning discs.
On the other hand, if you need a software that burns and converts multimedia files, ConvertXtoDVD is very easy-to-use and will be able to convert and burn your favorites videos in a DVD with just a few clicks.

Having trouble copying files from to PC to another? Do you want to copy a DVD movie and have no idea how to do it? Need to copy a music CD? Nero was developed with this idea in mind, which is way it´s the most popular burning software up to date.

Burn CDs and DVDs wiht Nero

The best solution is to install a program that can guarantee stability and fool-proof use, providing you with a practical, efficient tool rather than a new puzzle game. As such, Nero meets all of the requirements. Let’s take a look at how it works.

Once the program is installed, run the Nero Express module, which you’ll find in Start->Programs->Nero . A series of recording options will then appear, among which you should choose the one that meets your needs. Here, we will choose to record a DVD.

In the second step, add the elements that you want to record to the disk. To do so, click “Add” and a new window willopen within which you can browse to the files or folders that you want to include. You can repeat this step many times until everything you want to record is shown on the screen.

It’s worth mentioning a couple of things at this point. Firstly, by selecting an element and pressing the delete key, you can remove that element from the list of items to be recorded, just in case you add something to the list and then decide not to include it after all. Secondly, there is a coloured bar in the lower part of the screen that will fill up as you add new content. This is your guide to the space taken up by the files and folders you have already added, and how much space there is remaining on the disk.

Once you’ve finished making your selection, go on to the third step, in which all you need to do is click “Burn”. By default, Nero sets all the necessary parameters for a successful operation.

Before the recording process begins, a message may appear asking if you wish to record the disk as multisession or not, also offering you the option to cancel. At this point we recommend that you choose the “Burn without multisession” option, since this will ensure that the disk will also be able to be read on other operating systems different to your own. The only downside to this option is that you won’t be able to add additional data to the disk at a later date.

After that, all that’s left to do is wait whilst the recording process runs. This will take more or less time depending on the speed of the machine and the amount of information that you are copying to the disk.

At the end of the process, a message will appear on screen and the drive will automatically open. At this point your disk should be ready to use. However, remember to pay attention to what it says on screen since if the program was unable to successfully record the disk, you will be told so in this message.

It may be difficult getting used to it the first time, but once we managed to burn a few CDs or DVDs, the whole burning process will repeat itself.

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