Photo CD Question
4 messages in this thread
Just yesterday Kodak Italia has started a massive campaign to promote the
photo CD stuff. Spot on national TV and magazine and all this kind of
stuff.
Obviously the Kodak office in Milan doesn't knowreader that plays photo-CD
on television and plays also audio CD.
So now I'm here to ask some question about photo CD:
1) The Photo-CD architecture needs some additional hardware to standard
CdRom or is only a software question. For example if I have a CdRom
connected to the SoundBlasterPro Card (the standard multimedia upgrade
package, here is definitively a best seller) will it be able to read
photo-CDs with appropriate software or I'll need a noew cdrom reader???
2) What is the difference between mono and multi session???
3) Are the photo-CD based over a standard ISO-9660 format with special
information written that requires additional software or is a completely
new format???
4) Is there some file online explaining all that one needs to know about
photo-CD???
Thanks for Help Greetings from Italy
1) The Photo-CD architecture needs some additional hardware to standard
CdRom or is only a software question. For example if I have a CdRom
connected to the SoundBlasterPro Card (the standard multimedia upgrade
package, here is definitively a best seller) will it be able to read
photo-CDs with appropriate software or I'll need a noew cdrom reader???
A: In theory, the first session of a PhotoCD could be read by most
standard CD-ROM drives if the proper device driver were written for them.
In fact, it's very difficult to write such a driver. A CD-ROM XA drive has
built in support for CD-ROM XA sector format that makes it much easier to
write a device driver for it to read discs with CD-ROM XA sectors (PhotoCD
uses the CD-ROM XA sector format).
In short, you will probably need a new CD-ROM reader.
2) What is the difference between mono and multi session???
A: Current audio CDs and CD-ROM consist of three main sections: a) the
Lead-In section, which contains a list of all the tracks in the Program
Area. b) the Program Area, which contains all the information (audio or
data) stored on the disc c) the Lead-out area, a buffer that lets the CD
reader know it has reached the end of the disc.
The new CD-WO specification for appendable CDs allows you to record
multiple Lead-In, Program Area, and Lead-out areas. They are recorded
sequentially:
Lead In 1->Program Area 1->Lead out 1->Lead in 2->Program Area 2->Lead out
2-> etc.
Each set of one Lead In, Program Area, and Lead out is called a Session. A
mono or single session disc is a disc that has only one Lead In, Program
Area and Lead out. A multi-session disc has two or more Lead In, Progam
Area, and Lead out areas.
Existing CD readers interpret the first Lead-out area as always being the
end of the disc, and will not read past it. New multisession CD readers
can read past the first Lead Out to read additional sessions on the disc.
3) Are the photo-CD based over a standard ISO-9660 format with special
information written that requires additional software or is a completely
new format???
3) Are the photo-CD based over a standard ISO-9660 format with special
information written that requires additional software or is a completely
new format???
The PhotoCD uses a format called Bridge Disc. This format uses a modified
version of the ISO 9660 format to handle multisession discs. A standard
ISO 9660 driver would be able to access files in the first session, but not
any other sessions. A Bridge Disc driver would be able to read files in
all the sessions.
Matt –
Good answer…
-> Eric