CompuServe Messages

There are anumber of subtle differences between CD-I format and CD-ROM XA format: 1. The first track (Track 0) of any Compact Disc contains a table of contents. This table lists all the tracks on the disc. On a CD-I disc, the data tracks are omitted from the table of contents. This can prevent a CD-ROM XA player from being able to read the data tracks of a CD-I disc. 2. The table of contents also contains a flag that says whether a disc is an ordinary CD (CD-DA or CD-ROM), a CD-I disc, or an CD-ROM XA disc. A CD-ROM XA drive can check this flag and refuse to play a CD-I disc. 3. The directory tree of a CD-ROM XA disc is stored in an ISO 9660 compatible format. The directory tree of a CD-I disc uses a mutated version of ISO 9660 that breaks some of the ISO rules. This can prevent an XA compatible driver from reading a CD-I disc. 4. The CD-I format defines an additional audio file format that CD-ROM XA drives are not required to support. That's all I can think of off the top of my head. There may be others.