Replacing A Cd Drive With A Modern Dvd Drive

One of the easiest ways in which you can update and improve the versatility and usefulness of an older computer is by replacing the old CD drives for newer, faster CD drives, or better still, DVD drives. Not everyone realises this, but it is perfectly possible to play all your old CDs, whether data or audio, using a DVD drive. CD drives can only ever read CDs, but DVDs can read both types of disk, meaning that you instantly open up your computer to a whole range of new possibilities.

Many new software products, including popular computer games, are available only on DVD. Some games which used to occupy seven or eight separate CDs, requiring you to sit at the computer waiting for each one to finish and need changing, have now been replaced with a single DVD. This can be left to get on with the installation process with no requirement for you to sit around waiting to swap disks.

Needless to say, another advantage of replacing an old CD drive with a DVD drive is that you will very likely be able to play your DVD movies on the computer. If you have movies on DVD which you normally watch on your DVD player, you could now have the option of being able to watch those same DVDs on your computer.

Another thing to consider if you are planning or thinking about replacing an old CD drive with a newer DVD drive is to purchase a DVD re-writable drive. This not only allows you to play all your old CDs and play newer DVDs, but it will also let you record to both CD and DVD yourself.

This is particularly valuable when it comes to backing up your data. It is quite likely that you have a huge amount of important data on your computer. Think of all the photographs, documents, emails, letters and other files which are stored on your computer, but nowhere else. What would you do if one day your computer failed to switch on? What if your computer caught a virus and the data on your computer became irretrievably corrupted or lost entirely?

By having a DVD rewritable drive you will be able to very quickly and easily copy those important files from your computer and store them on a CD or DVD. CDs can store around 800 megabytes, but a DVD can store over 4 gigabytes, which is at least five times the amount of data. This means that you can easily make copies of those important files, and store them away from your computer. Even if your computer crashes beyond repair, or is even stolen, you'll still have all those important files saved elsewhere.

The advantage of using CDs or DVDs to backup data is not only that they save so much more data than floppy disks. In fact, a CD can hold four hundred times the mount on a floppy disk. This means that your backed up data will physically take up very little room, allowing you to keep several backups without having to worry about finding a spare drawer to save hundreds of disks.

By: Victor Epand

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for computer parts and suits & ties. Shop here to find DVD drives, Rewritable DVDs, formal suits & ties, and computer parts in Canada.