CompuServe Thread

#CD-ROM s'ware develop?

6 messages in this thread
#52053From: Richard DayJul 4, 1993 10:16 AM
I'm preparing to go to market with a new Windows application. It is a system for managing, displaying and distributing information (text, graphic etc) and makes extensive use of pick lists, hypertext linking and similar. I am interested in the possibility of either developing CD-ROM titles using this software, or marketing the software to developers. My question is, how does one test things like response times for a product which will run from a CD-ROM. I know how to optimize code for a hard disk environment, but not how to optimize for an environment where the disk is being read at maybe 300 ms versus the <12 I get on my system's hard drives – let alone the slow data throughput of a CDROM drive. How does one get around these problems during software development? Any input, or pointers to information sources, very gratefully received! Ric
#52090From: The One-Off CD ShopsJul 4, 1993 11:49 PM
Ric, You can either buy a cdrom emulator (software) or you can make a test cdrom (one-off). Depending on how many times you have to repeat the cycle, making the one-off could be more practical, since that would cost probably less than $300 if you have a service bureau (like mine) do it. The emulator software, depending on whose you buy, is usually part of a premasterming systems and can cost thousands. Kathy [GO ONEOFF]
#52157From: Richard DayJul 6, 1993 9:04 AM
Kathy Thanks for the info. I'll discuss it with my partners and try to decide which way to jump. Ric
#52165From: The One-Off CD ShopsJul 6, 1993 12:57 PM
Ric, Glad to help any way possible. Kathy Cochrane [GO ONEOFF]
#52187From: David EdwardsJul 6, 1993 5:55 PM
Richard, After using a CD simulator or your best "seat-of-the-pants" guesstimate, you might consider having the premastering done on a Sony CDW-900E or its equivalent. This professional CD Writer produces a disc that is equivalent to a manufacturer's stack check disc for the price of a consumer one-off disc. We call these QuickOne(tm) discs. Once you have tested it, our disc manufacturer uses that disc, without reformatting or re-encoding, to clone a master. A QuickOne disc complies in all respects with the Red Book, Yellow Book and Green Book standards, and may therefore be used with any commercially available CD player, CD-ROM drive or CD-I player. These discs are functionally equivalent including performance characteristics, to that of a mastered CD. If you decide to support multiple platforms, it is the only that I know of to accurately test every platform prior to mastering. I hope that helped… sorry if I had my marketing beanie on too tight. 🙂 David L. Edwards Shoestring Engineering, Inc. 584 Castro Street, Ste 508 San Francisco, CA 94114 USA 415-920-6920 415-920-6922 (fax) AppleLink,AOL: dle Compuserve: 76344,1702
#52302From: Richard DayJul 8, 1993 7:07 AM
David Thanks for the info. I don't mind your wearing the marketing beanie at all – just now I'm trying to learn everything I can about the options. Ric