Step 4: Burn CD

If you've never used Roxio's Easy CD Creator before, here is the procedure:

1. Remember to use only CD-R, and NOT CD-RW disks. The drives here don't seem to like CD-RW disks.

2. Place a blank CD-R disk in your CD drive. Remember that the non-labelled side ( the side that's blue-green or yello-green if both sides are unlabelled ), is the writable side and must face down. Use the same button you used to open the drive to insert the disk as well - don't just push the drive tray itself as this can damage the mechanism.

3. The Roxio CD Creator program opens. Notice that it looks very much like Windows Explorer.

4. In the upper left-hand pane, click on the My Documents folder. Find the folder called yourname_266, and drag the entire folder to the lower left-hand pane, directly onto the colorful CD icon.

5. Your files will be duplicated in the bottom left-hand pane. To personalize the CD, click on the long number immediately to the right of the CD icon; it becomes highlighted. You can now type in your name.

6. If you have all your files ready, you can now record. Click on the red "Record" button. A dialog box appears. The following steps will walk you through the options available:
   1. For "Write Speed", selecting a speed of 8, 12, 16, or 24 will probably yield a greater chance of successfully creating the CD - higher write speeds can sometimes cause problems.

   2. For "Record Options", leave the default, "Record Only" - choosing "Test and Record" will take twice as long.

   3. For "Record Method", also leave the defaults, "Track at Once" and "Finalize Session, Don't Finalize CD". This will allow you to create a multi-session CD, so you can add more files to the disk at a later time. When you've made all your choices, click OK.

7. The drive will begin recording, and you'll see a new dialog box on the screen with a gauge that measures the CD's progress.

8. If there are any problems with the CD, the drive will usually eject the CD immediately. Otherwise, it will record until it's finished.

9. While the drive is recording ( the light will be orange or red ), NEVER press the eject button. This will ruin the CD, but more importantly, if the drive opens and the laser is still on, you don't want to risk getting the beam in your eyes.

10. Once it's finished, Easy CD Creator will indicate the disk status in the box. That's it ! You can now close the program and remove your disk.

Now for the wrap-up - the presentation...

Preparation List