Reading DVD RW dics

I have an idea to use my samsung component DVD recorder to record shows/movies off cable onto a DVD RW disc. I would then like to put this disc into my mac and download the files (e.g. VOB files and transform then into usable files with mpeg streamclip or something.) However, when I put the unfinalized DVD-RW into my mac, the computer reads the disc as blank (even though there may be 2+ hours of footage already there). Is there a way to fool the computer into reading the data already on the disc? Or am I asking the computer for too much. Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Regards,
DVD "unsavy"

Hi jzdc....,
...when I put the unfinalized DVD-RW into my mac... that's why it is called "unfinalized".. you need to do that FIRST before sliding into your Mac (works like charm with my Pioneer DVD/HDcorder and -rw media...)
after usage, you have to "format" the -rw in your samsung again... and again.. and again...
for making DVDs useful in iM:
you need for 20$ the Apple mpeg2 plugin
and for free the tool Streamclip for converting mp1/2/4, divx, avi, vob...
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6010.shtml
http://danslagle.com/mac/iMovie/tips_tricks/6018.shtml

Similar Messages

New Super Drive in iMac won't read DVD-R Data discs from windows machine.

Bought iMac 2.4 GHz 10/2007, the drive failed to burn DVD's about %70 of the time. Reading was very slow. Took to Apple Store in January, drive replaced. New drive burns and reads, except for TDK DVD-R data discs from my Sony Vaio (movies work). For these it gives alert "Blank DVD." When opened in finder it identifies media as a CD.
Someone had this problem earlier in the forum. No answer was posted. My Dell reads the dics fine. Stranger still, I hooked up an external LaCie 1394 DVD-R/RW+CD to the iMac to read the discs and got the same error. I hooked the same drive to my Dell and it read the same disc fine. Also, Dynex DVD+R and CD's work fine.
It does not seem to be a straight hardware issue. More like a device driver problem maybe?
Phone support suggested transferring all my data to DVD+R dics, but that is kind of a pain. Might upgrade to OS 10.5 help? Thanks

No suggestion but maybe some sharing of your misery. I bought a new 24" iMac 2.8 ghz on 2/24. Two hours after purchase, I put a DVD in the slot and nothing. Twenty five minutes with tech support, trying several different options to eject the disk, got me nowhere. They told me I would have to bring the machine in for repair. I did that, and magically, the DVD player is recognized when he (at the Apple store) boots the machine and it ejects the disk. He said the machine was fine. I said that it wasn't if I had to take the computer for a ride in my truck every time the optical drive doesn't work.
I'm waiting for a diagnostic to be run but I have my doubts about support in this area. I believe that Apple will say that they found nothing wrong and it's user error (not hardly, but it's probably easier than fixing the bug with the optical drives). This is my first ride with a Mac and I expected it to be wonderful. It's not a very smooth ride so far.

Unable to read DVD video

I unable to read DVD video discs, although I can read DVD-R and CD.
I try to change the region using regionset but with no change.
here is the output of vlc, when I try to open DVD:
VLC media player 0.8.6b Janus
libdvdnav: Using dvdnav version 0.1.10 from http://dvd.sf.net
libdvdread: Using libdvdcss version 1.2.9 for DVD access
libdvdread: Could not open /dev/hdc with libdvdcss.
libdvdread: Can't open /dev/hdc for reading
libdvdnav: vm: faild to open/read the DVD
[00000291] dvdread demuxer error: DVDRead cannot open source: /dev/hdc
[00000294] vcd access error: could not read TOCHDR
[00000294] vcd access error: no movie tracks found
[00000294] access_file access error: file /dev/hdc is empty, aborting
[00000294] cdda access error: could not read TOCHDR
[00000294] cdda access error: no audio tracks found
[00000289] main input error: no suitable access module for `dvd:///dev/hdc'
[00000278] main playlist: nothing to play
signal 2 received, terminating vlc - do it again in case it gets stuck
[00000278] main playlist: stopping playback

whats in your
/etc/fstab
yours is probably
/dev/dvd /mnt/dvd auto ro,user,noauto,unhide 0 0
mine is
/dev/dvd /mnt/dvd udf,iso9660 ro,user,noauto,unhide 0 0
i had issues with some dvd's till i changed from auto to udf

Running a mid 2009 iMac on 10.7.5, 3 gb memory, 320 gb hd. Suddenly the computer stoped reading DVDs and the only time I can read a CD is if I restart. Quite often when I insert a CD it gets stuck and I cannot get it out until I restart and it shows u

Running a mid 2009 iMac on 10.7.5, 3 gb memory, 320 gb hd.
Suddenly the computer stoped reading DVDs and the only time I can read a CD is if I restart. Quite often when I insert a CD it gets stuck and I cannot get it out until I restart and it shows up on the desktop where I can then eject it.
I have checked and double checked the finder prefs and all looks normal showing a check mark on CDs,DVDs etc. (the ones I want to show up on the desktop)
I have reset the PEAM, repaired permissions with both the disk utility on the computer and the disk utility when I start up in the Recovery Disk. I did notice that sometimes the permission repeat the same correction several times before it moves on, and sometimes it doesn’t. I have Windows installed on a partition but I keep it unmounted until it is needed for my wife’s work. The dock seems to be just fine and all the apps seems to run just fine. When I insert a photo CD iPhoto does not open but when I insert a music CD iTunes does open.
Also, most every time I open iPhoto it takes a long time(sometimes as long as 2 minutes) for it to load.
Sometimes my Mail (Mail 5.3) does not post new mail but most of the time it does.
Once and a while it seems like the computer slows way down but then it seems ok ten minutes later.
All of these ‘things’ seemed to have happen suddenly and I have not downloaded anything from the internet in some time.
Of course the warranty and extended warranty are both no longer in effect having had this computer for more than three years.
I am running Java and Adobe Player because some of the sites I go to a lot require both.

I believe that insufficient RAM may be the source of some of your problems. If you have a RAM of somewhere 4 to 8GB, you will experience smoother computing. 3GB doesn't seem right, so you might want to learn more by going to this site:
http://www.crucial.com/store/drammemory.aspx
I don't know what know what's happening with your optical drive, but it seems you use your drive quite a bit. In that case, look into a lens cleaner for your machine. It's inexpensive, works quite well.
I hope you'll post here with your results!

Odd problems with reading DVD media [concluded]

There is an odd problem I've encountered...(I'm not sure if its a bug with Arch Linux or Linux in general).
Firstly, the details:
* I've updated the systems (using "extra", "current", and "community" respositories). So its the current one (0.80 "Voodoo"). I'm NOT using "Unstable" respository.
* I've already added the user to the "optical" and "storage" groups. So there's no problems in relations to permissions.
* My fstab entries for the CD and DVD drives are default (I didn't touch them)...That is, "iso9660" and "udf" respectively.
* My desktop environment is KDE 3.5.5...And I have changed the behaviour of the desktop icons such that DVD media, CD media, and USB devices will have an icon pop-up as soon as you plug them in.
* I have "hal" loaded in the DAEMONS of /etc/rc.conf
* I'm using 4 different Linux systems with the following DVD burners.
=> Pioneer DVR-108
=> Sony DW-Q120A
=> Hitachi-LG GCC-4240N (DVD-ROM/CD-burner combo)
* There are three Sempron 2800+ (Socket 754, 1.6Ghz) boxes and the last one is on an IBM R40 ThinkPad, and I know you can't read DVD-R media on that. But it should be able to read DVD+R media without issue.
* Two of the Semprons are running Arch, as well as the ThinkPad. The final Sempron box is running Ubuntu 6.06.1
* When I installed K3b I did: pacman -S k3b dvd+rw-tools
* All the DVD media is Verbatim DataLifePlus ones.
Here's what I've done...
I've burnt two DVD media (they're just video files from last year's Blender 2006 conference thing, so its legal stuff).
One is a DVD+R and the other is DVD-R media. Both were done on a Windows 2000 Pro SP4 box using Nero 6.6.1.4
What's the problem?
Well, KDE in the Arch Linux boxes doesn't recognise the media!...There is no DVD icon that automatically pops up on any of the Arch Linux boxes!
When I run dmesg on the Arch boxes, the only relevant info I get is:
ISO 9660 Extensions: Microsoft Joliet Level 3
ISOFS: changing to secondary root
Now if I re-insert these DVD media onto an Ubuntu 6.06.1 LTS box...The DVD+R works perfectly! While the DVD-R does not.
When I run dmesg on this box, I get the following:
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplet e Error }
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: error=0x40 { LastFailedSense=0x04 }
[17179654.808000] ide: failed opcode was: unknown
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplet e Error }
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: error=0x40 { LastFailedSense=0x04 }
[17179654.808000] ide: failed opcode was: unknown
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplet e Error }
[17179654.808000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: error=0x40 { LastFailedSense=0x04 }
[17179654.808000] ide: failed opcode was: unknown
[17179654.812000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: status=0x51 { DriveReady SeekComplet e Error }
[17179654.812000] hdc: cdrom_decode_status: error=0x40 { LastFailedSense=0x04 }
[17179654.812000] ide: failed opcode was: unknown
[17179654.812000] hdc: DMA disabled
[17179654.812000] hdc: ide_intr: huh? expected NULL handler on exit
[17179654.860000] hdc: ATAPI reset complete
[17179655.364000] ISO 9660 Extensions: Microsoft Joliet Level 3
[17179655.412000] ISOFS: changing to secondary root
[17179725.140000] Unable to identify CD-ROM format.
[17179729.348000] Unable to identify CD-ROM format.
[17181395.032000] ISO 9660 Extensions: Microsoft Joliet Level 3
[17181395.032000] ISOFS: changing to secondary root
If I re-burn the data onto a DVD+RW, Arch and Ubuntu immediately sees it, and KDE (or Gnome in Ubuntu), will have a DVD icon popping up! I can view the video clips without issue!
Now here's the really odd part...
When I load up K3b on either Arch OR Ubuntu, they recognise all DVD media! (As in, they can read the media disc information!)...Tools => DiskInfo
If I click on the PIONEER - DVD-RW DVR-108 on the tree menu on the left side in K3b, (to view the contents of the DVD-R or DVD+R media), it can't read and pops up an error message informing about a read problem. It suggests I try dmesg|tail to see what's wrong.
When I do that, I get...
# dmesg|tail
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
I repeat the same procedure on DVD+RW, and it works perfectly!
Should I use another burning application instead of Nero on the Windows box?
Could it be the way I burn things?
(Some DVD+R and DVD-R are burnt with multisession while others aren't.)
Has anyone else experienced similar issues?
What are your "workarounds" or fixes?

It *should* work...But they don't.
I tried this...
mount -t auto /dev/dvd /mnt/dvd
I get this...
mount: block device /dev/dvd is write-protected, mounting read-only
mount: wrong fs type, bad option, bad superblock on /dev/dvd,
missing codepage or other error
In some cases useful info is found in syslog - try
dmesg | tail or so
I then do dmesg|tail
grow_buffers: requested out-of-range block 18446744073708569376 for device hdc
UDF-fs: No partition found (1)
If I try this...
mount -t iso9660 /dev/dvd /mnt/dvd
I get this...
mount: block device /dev/dvd is write-protected, mounting read-only
mount: wrong fs type, bad option, bad superblock on /dev/dvd,
missing codepage or other error
In some cases useful info is found in syslog - try
dmesg | tail or so
I then do dmesg|tail
Unable to identify CD-ROM format.
If I stick in a DVD-R that is burnt in one go without multisession, I get this in the dmesg
UDF-fs: Partition marked readonly; forcing readonly mount
UDF-fs INFO UDF 0.9.8.1 (2004/29/09) Mounting volume 'SW', timestamp 2006/11/07 19:37 (1000)
It reads this disc perfectly and KDE pops up a DVD icon.
I'm scratching my head as I'm not sure what is the problem.
Could it be hal or the way the DVD media was formatted?

Brand new iMacs with Lion will not read DVD-R

Our business has just purchased 3 x brand new iMacs (3.4Ghz) pre-loaded with OSX Lion 10.7.2 and NONE of them will read a DVD-R containing important files I need to access. However, the trusty 2 year old iMac running Snow leopard sees the files instantly....what's wrong with Lion...?
My 2 year old MacBook pro was updated with Lion a few months ago and hey, it stopped reading DVD-R's....how interesting....! It can't be ALL of the superdrives failing, so it's obviously a fault with the OS...seems to be a VERY common problem, so what's the problem in getting it fixed?

Contact Apple Service, iMac Service or Apple's Express Lane. Do note that if you have AppleCare's protection plan and you're within 50 miles (80 KM) of an Apple repair station, you're eligible for onsite repair since yours is a desktop machine.

I bought a used PowerMacPC G5. I can burn and read DVDs, but I can't read or burn CDs. The CDs are not even recognized. After the drive searches for a while, the CD is ejected without any error messages. The CDs work okay on my iMac.

I bought a used PowerMacPC G5. I can burn and read DVDs, but I can't read or burn CDs. The CDs are not even recognized. After the drive searches for a while, the CD is ejected without any error messages. The CDs work okay on my iMac.
I am running Mac OSX 10.4.11. According to the System profiler the CD/DVD drive is a "PioneerDVD-RWDVR-112D." When I compare the information under this heading, the only unusual difference from my iMac is that the G5 reads "Burn Support: Yes (Unsupported)." My iMac reads "Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipping Drive)."
Under the System Preferences the options are set to "Ask what to do" when a blank CD or DVD is inserted. Music CD set to open iTunes, Picture CD set to open iPhoto, Video DVD set to open DVD player.
Do you have any suggestions?
Thanks, Jack

Hi Jack, great help so far!
Internal...
http://eshop.macsales.com/static_pages/Framework.cfm?page=superdrive/sdl_powerma c_g5.html
External be sure it's Firewire & not Bus powered...
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/optical-drives/

My superdrive will no longer read dvds, but it will read blank ones, whats wrong?

I hope you can help; progressivelymy superdrive has stopped reading DVDS, it reads blank ones straight away withno issues but dvds, games, movies etc it doesn’t read anymore.
It now wont read abrand new game I bought (the sims late night) and will not read the apple snow leopard disk and wont read any dvds.
It sounds like its working, no loud sounds - it sounds fine then it spits it out.
My tech info is ;
HL-DT-ST DVDRW GA11N:
FirmwareRevision:          KA18
Interconnect:          ATAPI
Burn Support:          Yes(Apple Shipping Drive)
Cache:          2048KB
Reads DVD:          Yes
CD-Write:          -R,-RW
DVD-Write:          -R,-R DL, -RW, +R, +R DL, +RW
Write Strategies:            CD-TAO,CD-SAO, CD-Raw, DVD-DAO
Weirdly I updated it 10.6.8 from 5 and itworked after 5 tries with my disk but then, when I turned I turned the computeron the next day It wont work, and the superdrive doesn’t work now.
I live very far from the nearest applestore – 50 miles so it’s a hassle to haul my 27inch imac there.
Please help!

No these forums are not moderated by employees. that's why they call them Communities, it's all Mac users.
It's also very hard to give you a straight answer just like that. This may sound stupid, but are you sure you're inserting the disk right-side-up?
You can try running the hardware test (if you can reboot from the DVD: reboot holding the C key) but if you have these issues with a Mac under Warranty, it may be best to bring it in. Check with Apple, as ther may be a certified Apple repair shop closer to you.

I have a MacBook which no longer reads CDs but still reads DVDs what is the beat thing to do?

I have a MacBook which I have had for a few years now. It nooner reads CDs but reads DVDs, can it be repaired and what is the best thing to do?

Unfortunately it sounds like the drive has to be replaced.
1. You can do it yourself. You can find repair guides at http://www.ifixit.com/
2. You can take it to your nearest Apple Store and have them do it.
3. You can send it to somewhere like TechRestore http://www.techrestore.com/
4. You can buy a cheap external drive.

Optical Drive doesn't read DVD's

Hi, I own an HP Pavillion dv7 1279wm entertainment laptop. It came installed with Vista, but I installed a free upgrade to Windows 7 that I got from HP. I had a problem where the drive would not read anything; the disc would spin, but eventually the tray would automatically open and tell me to insert a disc. After using Microsoft FixIt, I was able to read CDs, but encountered the same problem when trying to load a DVD. Previous to using Microsoft FixIt, I did use device manager to uninstall the drive and then reboot so Windows 7 would automatically update the driver. I'm thinking that means that it's not a software problem, but if you can think of anything else I can do (short of swapping out drives because I don't have access to another drive) to rule out it being a software problem please let me know. I realize that combo drives typically use different lasers to read CDs and DVDs, so my guess is that the laser that reads DVDs has failed. If that is the case, where can I find the correct replacement part and how do I install it?
Thanks,
Kevin

Hi Kevin,
If you eject the optical drive tray, you should see just one laser situated towards the centre of the tray - different voltages are applied to this depending on whether it's reading a CD or DVD.
First of all, use a soft, non abrasive material such as cotton or a cotton bud and gently clean the lens.
Check if this has made any difference.
If it still doesn't read DVDs, try following the procedure under the sub-heading 'Let me fix it myself' on the link below to remove the Upper and Lower filters, restart the notebook and see if this helps the issue.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/982116
If it still doesn't read DVDs, the following procedure will test if your notebook can start from a bootable disc in the optical drive - the advantage of trying this is that it will rule out any possible Windows driver error as the CD/DVD drive is under the control of the Bios when starting the notebook. So if you find that the notebook will not boot from the DVD, then it's almost certainly a Hardware fault in the optical drive itself and it will need to be replaced.
Using another PC to create a Windows 7 Rescue DVD. Download the relevant ISO from the link below.
Windows 7 32bit
Windows 7 64bit
You need use an application such as ImgBurn to correctly burn the ISO to a DVD - a guide on using ImgBurn to write an ISO to a disc is Here. Once created, insert the DVD and then restart the notebook and see if it boots from this disc - if it does, let the first screen come up ( this will show repair options etc ) then just remove the DVD and restart the notebook. If the notebook will not boot from the DVD, it may just load straight into Windows.
Regards,
DP-K
****Click the White thumb to say thanks****
****Please mark Accept As Solution if it solves your problem****
****I don't work for HP****
Microsoft MVP - Windows Experience

CD/DVD Drive only reads DVDS Not CD But the computer reads it as a DVD RW Drive!

CD/DVD Drive only reads DVDS Not CD But the computer reads it as a DVD RW Drive.the drive door say RW DVD+R DL,Compact Disk Rewritable,Ultraspeed,DVD Multi Recorder.I was Wondering if Windows Loaded the wrong Driver?My Laptop S/N IsCNF62612TZ And P/N Is EZ601UA#ABA And The Front Of My Monitor says Hp Pavilion Dv 1000 Entertainment Notebook PC,And The Service Tag Is dv1738od and the Sticker On The Back Of The monitor say Hp Pavilion dv5- 1235dx Entertainment notebook PC.it Cme Factory With Win xp and when i got it the os was corrupted.i tried to reinstall xp but disk said no hard found.so i booted it up with vista ultimate and then downloaded the drivers and stuff from the here.should i had downloaded the 64 bit set as well?

della wrote:
My toshiba tecra a2 can only read DVDs. I cant read any type of cd. Ive tried so many things. My laptop is running on xp service pack 3 with a mat**bleep**a DVD RAm UJ 820s. I can burn/run any type of DVD but cant do anything with cds. Ive tried unistalling the drive and that didnt work. Ive uninstalled the IDE drivers and that didnt work. Nothing seams to work. I cant use recovery cds because there CDS. Please Help!!!!!!!!!
It's probable that the CD 'side' of the combo drive has failed. That you cannot boot from the recovery CD is pretty much proof of the failure.

My external Iomega DVD drive does not read DVDs. Why?

My external Iomega DVD drive does not read DVDs. Why?

what does this question have to do with a mac? post in the Iomega fourms.

Dvd drive does not read dvds

my laptop does not read dvd disks but its able to read some cd disks.
what should i do

Are there any discs that it can read?
Try looking at this article.
What can I do if my CD or DVD drive doesn't work properly?
- Peter

Dvd drive can't read DVD's

hi all,
My problem is the dvd drive in my laptop. It will not read dvd's commercial or burnt variety, curiously it reads cd's just fine. So far email tech support has been useless. I wrote them explaining what steps I had tried to fix the problem such as uninstalling and reinstalling device drivers and they suggested that I try and reinstall device drivers. Do they even bother to read the emails you send or just guote out of some manual. System restore did not work either, but the drive is rarely used so the latest system restore points are probably useless wrt this problem. Returning the unit to factory state is simply not an option. The unit is still under warranty. Any other suggestions? I couldn't find any firmware updates. Other than this problem this system works flawlessly and has since I bought it.
Hp Pavilion
Model # dv6934ca
Windows Vista Home Premium 32 bit
DVD drive TSSTCorp TS-L632N ATA device
3 g ram
320 g harddrive
Message Edited by SidSam on 05-30-2009 10:13 AM

The DVD's I assume are data as well as movie files? Do you have an app such as Intervideo,etc to play dvd's?
My usual steps include running a laser cleaning disk, remove/reinstall as you have done and maybe deleting upper & lower filters.Once done if it still doesn't work,it is declared dead.
I would request a replacement.Of course HP will likely first make you jump through the usual hoops which include a System Recovery back to factory configuration.This can be eased considerably by making a backup Image of your current setup to restore later.
A great free tool I have used a lot lately is Macrium.It works fast and will create & save the image to external USB HDD, CD/DVD,network drive,etc.
Macrium Reflect Disk Imaging:
http://www.macrium.com/reflectfree.asp
******Clicking the Thumbs-Up button is a way to say -Thanks!.******
**Click Accept as Solution on a Reply that solves your issue to help others**

HP dv6 DVD drive not reading DVD's

Hi, my HP dv6 is currently running windows 7 and for some reason it will not read DVD's. It will read CD's just fine no matter what's on them. I've tried to uninstall and reinstall the driver and find other sollutions and so far nothing has worked. Please help.
This question was solved.
View Solution.

Please give us the full model number....dv6-xxxx? An optical drive has more than one laser and sometimes the CD laser is fine but the DVD laser is bad and the only way to fix that is to replace the drive. Are you still under warranty? The only other thing you can try is a dvd laser cleaner disk like this:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2361964&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PPC&utm_t...
This would be a long shot but might work.

Reading DVD RW dics

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for