I'd like to add a CD burner to my 1998 Dell computer. I see a lot of burners available on eBay for attractive prices. How do I know when I've found the right one that'll fit my computer? I have an empty slot in the main part of the computer. It uses Pentium II, Win 98, runs 3XX? MHz, and already has a CD/DVD player on it.

Is it critical to get software with the burner?

I'd like to add a CD burner to my 1998 Dell computer. I see a lot of burners available on eBay for attractive prices. How do I know when I've found the right one that'll fit my computer?
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If it's an IDE burner, it will (should) just work.


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I have an empty slot in the main part of the computer. It uses Pentium II, Win 98, runs 3XX? MHz, and already has a CD/DVD player on it.


Hmm... I have a 350Mhz AMD K6-2 powered machine that has absolutely no trouble burning CD-Rs at 12x. I doubt, however, that said machine would be able to burn at 52x or anything even close to that.


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Is it critical to get software with the burner?

Well... no.

Honestly, I'm not sure if win98 will require a different device driver to handle CD burners. The phrase "ASPI layer" comes to mind, but I really am not sure what exactly you might need. Everything driver-wise, if necessary, can most likely be downloaded free-of-charge.

As for burning software, well, I never really liked those "easy burn" packages out there, like Roxio Easy CD Creator and the like. Roxio just kept doing strange, odd things.

Personally, I just use cdrecord (http://www.fokus.gmd.de/research/cc/glone/employees/joerg.schilling/private/cdrecord.html), but it's a bit "un-user-friendly" (it's commandline).


Therefore, if you want nice point-and-click stuff, you'll need a GUI frontend...

I would say the best CD burning GUI out there is k3b (http://www.k3b.org/), but that doesn't run in MS Windows (bummer).

I did find a windows frontend. I haven't tried it, I don't know if it works:
http://demosten.com/cdrfe/
Let me know how it works if you try it. :)

:-D

~psi42

Typically, I have found that one CD Burner is just as good as another burner. Only the price, changes. They are all pretty much standard in size, even for a Dell. Because it's a Dell, the install could be rather easy or could take some effort, depending on your exact tower case structure but at any rate, you should have no problem getting it to fit.

I work in a computer store, and test many different products.

The Lite-On 52x24x52 speed CDRW seems to be the one that I had 0 problems with when testing, and it was the only one that passed all my tests 100% and it was also the fastest in recording.

:cool:

Hi,
I highly suggest you go to your local computer sales/repair store; or a computer repair shop near you.
Get their suggestions; and pricing, and let them install it for you.
Mine is a 52x24x52 burner, with software Nero Express 5.5; all came to a great total of 40 dollars US; including them installing it.

You can, not saying you will, waste a lot of time buying and trying to install something yourself. If it doesn't work, you are out the money and time. So, why not "do it right" the first time?

Best wishes,
fredg

I read the previous post that said go to a repair shop or store or somewhere and let them install a CD Burner for you.

I must respectively disagree, that is not the kind of advice people seek in forums such as these, unless it's a last resort.

A CD Burner is 1 of the easiest things to install, the minimum labor in my area to even look at a computer is $75 an hour, I don't have 75 to blow on installing something as easy as a burner.

Simply open the case, plug it into either ide 1 as a slave to your Hard drive or ide2 as master or slave depending on how many devices you already have.

And all burners come with simple step by step instructions and how to set the jumpers on them, it's a 15 minute job at best.

Please don't tell people here to go an pay to have something done that is so simple for them to do themselves.

Buy a computer part at an excellent online retailer like Newegg and install it yourself, you can find tons of how to guides all over the net by searching, also many websites review them and newegg, lets their customers post their comments on the products they purchase, so you can read what they think about an item before you buy it to compare.

Even a novice that knows nothing of computers, should be able to read a simple install for a burner, or floppy or Dvd burner, or video card or memory, or soundcard or nearly anything that goes into a computer case.