Need help, please, with burning DVDs

[Basil Chupin]

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.


BC

-- 
"Aaah....another pointless day when I've achieved nothing."
                   Bender, Futurama.