Other GNU/Linux tips

The power of GNU/Linux comes from the command line. It gives you ultimate control, understanding, and mastery over your computer.

Burning CDs and DVDs is quite simple.

To burn some files to a blank DVD, making the DVD multisession and appendable, with the common ISO9660 volume with Joliet and Rock-Ridge extensions, assuming let's say you have some avi movies in the current directory:

• Insert a blank DVD into the drive.
• Burn:

  $ growisofs -Z /dev/dvd -R -J *avi

To append more avi movies from the current directory to the same DVD:

• If the DVD is mounted, unmount it:

  # umount /dev/dvd

• Burn:

  $ growisofs -M /dev/dvd -R -J *avi

Make sure to note the difference: in the first case the option is -Z, in the second it's -M

Make also sure to use the same options for both initial burning and when appending data.

To finalize the multi-session DVD maintaining maximum compatibility:

• If the DVD is mounted, unmount it:

  # umount /dev/dvd

• Burn:

  # growisofs -M /dev/dvd=/dev/zero

To burn an ISO-image to a blank DVD:

• Insert a blank DVD into the drive.
• Burn:

  $ growisofs -dvd-compat -Z /dev/dvd=image.iso

To burn an ISO-image to a blank CD:

• Insert a blank CD into the drive.
• Burn:

  $ wodim -v dev=/dev/cdrom image.iso

To identify the dev=... address for the above step:

To burn arbitrary data to a blank CD:

• Create the directory structure for the CD you desire by copying the desired data to a tmp directory.
• Generate an ISO-image from the directory:

  $ genisoimage -R -J -o output_filename.iso input/directory

• Burn the ISO-image to the CD as per the above step.

To burn it in one step, without creating a temporary ISO-image:

• Create the directory structure as per first step of prior example.
• Burn:

  $ genisoimage -R -J input/directory wodim -v dev=/dev/cdrom -

To burn wav files to create an audio CD: