Mac OS X can not copy files...?

Question

I am very new to Mac OS X and I found it strange that I can not copy files from my hard drive (docs, spreadsheets) to a blank CD-ROM disk. I called the local Apple store and they said I have to buy a third party application to copy(burn) files to CD-ROM disks. I am not talking about copying copyrighted files, just plain old Word and Excel docs. Does anyone know if this is true? I have to get a separate application to do this? Thanks, Tony.

Answer 1

You can certainly copy files to to a blank CD without extra programs. But once there is data on the disc, it becomes much more complicated to add data at a later date.
Windows, however, had a proprietary CD filesystem that let you use the CD like a floppy disc, where you could add and "erase" files randomly.
You can buy an inexpensive program called BurnAgain that does something similar on the Mac.
http://freeridecoding.com/burnagaindvd/
Frankly, though, I think CDs make bad floppy discs. There is much more chance for data corruption when they are re-written.
I'd recommend an inexpensive USB Thumbdrive (Flashdrive). They come in all sizes and really do work like a giant floppy disk -- only much faster. They are dirt cheap. You can find one the capacity of a CD for about $10 or less. DVD-size flashdrives are now under $40 some places.
The easy way to burn data (once) to a CD or DVD is to create a Burn Folder. Hold down the CTL key and click once on your desktop. You'll get a pop-up menu with a choice to create a New Burn Folder. Name the Folder what you want the Disc to be named. Then open the folder and drag the files or folders you want to Burn onto the burn folder. It will actually create links (aliases or shortcuts in Windows terms) to those items. Click on the burn button at the top of the folder and it will ask for you to insert a blank CD or DVD.
You can discard the burn folder if you are through with it, because it just contains alias (shortcuts). But I must warn you that if you navigate into the subfolders of those shortcuts, you will be dealing with your actual files. So please, don't delete anything inside a folder inside a burn folder -- those are your real files!