(FINAL RESULT) -- Need help, please, with burning DVDs

[Basil Chupin]

On 30/03/2011 00:24, Basil Chupin wrote:
> I am using 32-bit Ubuntu Maverick with all the latest updates.
>
> I have been using k3b for years to burn video DVDs both 4.7GB and 
> 8.5GB without any problems - until this week:'( . I am using a Pioneer 
> DVD-RW DVR-110 burner which burns the full range of DVDs (except, of 
> course, BluRay).
>
> My preferred DVDs are VERBATIM DVD+R DL, made in Singapore, and I have 
> had no hassles with them. However, I ran out of +R DL and over the 
> weekend had to buy a batch of -R DL; "this is when the fight 
> started".......well, there is more to it.....because I now also cannot 
> burn the +R DL discs (which I bought today seeing as how the -R discs 
> wouldn't "work").
>
> When trying to burn -R DL discs, the message Starting Write appears 
> which is then almost immediately followed by Closing Session but the 
> DVR activity light is still glowing, there is no buffer activity, and 
> after 8 minutes 45 seconds I get the error messages:
>
> Unable to fixate this disk
> cdrecord has no permission to open the device
> You may use k3bsetup to solve this problem
>
> Also (same thing occurs with +R DL discs), even though I close k3b the 
> disc activity light remains on, and the disc cannot be ejected - only 
> way out is to reboot the computer.
>
> When using +R discs all of the above is the same except for the first 
> error message which now states:
>
> mkisofs crashed.
>
>
> As I stated, I have never had hassles with k3b so its sudden inability 
> to burn DVDs is puzzling. The last time I burnt some DVDs (+R) was 
> about 2 weeks ago. It is probably something pretty simple but I cannot 
> see it because nothing has changed as far as I am concerned between 
> the last time I burned CDs and DVDs. [**]
>
> Does anyone have any idea what has suddenly gone haywire? And if k3b 
> is now dead in the water because of the cdrecord/cdrkit gooblydook 
> then is there another as easy to use DVD burner for Gnome/Ubuntu?
>
> Thanks.
>
> [**] Just to make sure, I just tried to burn a 47GB DVD (-R which I've 
> had no problems with in the past) and also a CD - all with the same 
> results: coasters with the same error messages as above.


OK, the final result of trying to figure out why suddenly I couldn't 
burn DVDs using k3b (in Ubuntu Maverick with all the latest upgrades).

There were 2 reasons for this:

(1) my DVDRW (a Pioneer 110) had a hernia and decided to take early 
retirement; and

(2) my new replacement DVDRW (a Pioneer 118) DOES burn CDs and DVDs 
properly using k3b *but* *with* *this* *exception*: k3b (ver 2.0.1 which 
comes with Maverick) *cannot* handle DVD -R DL discs - at least not for 
me. It has NO trouble with DVD -R discs (single layer) but cannot handle 
-R DLs.

With DVD -R DL discs what happens is that k3b will write the disc, and 
it is actually playable, but at the Closing Session stage it comes up 
with either one of the above 2 groups of error messages OR the disc 
starts to spin at full speed+ and the only way to stop this is to hit 
the reboot button because the drive and k3b are "locked" and cannot be 
stopped (you can try and spend time looking in ps aux for the PID to 
kill but it is easier, before your writer takes off into space, to reboot).

k3b, however, has no problems with DVD +R DL discs and, as I already 
mentioned, it has no problems with DVD -R discs (ie, single layer).

(I have Natty 11.04 installed on another set of HDDs and it has ver 
2.0.2 of k3b but I cannot test this hassle with -R DL discs 'cause I ran 
out of these discs - and have no intention to buy any more :-) :-) .)



But in fooling around with the above I now came across another problem 
which is the subject of a new post (to follow) which I will call, "HEADS 
UP: Check your devices' UDMA settings".

BC


-- 
Any experiment in life will be at your own experience.