LIGHTSCRIBE for CD/DVD's - What is it ?? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: simon christo
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 11, 2023, 05:18:15 am
content: Hi Folks !!!All I know, is that LIGHTSCRIBE is the way CD/DVD's are ENGRAVED with a B/W (2 colours) Picture, that is Designed by the user on a PC or MAC.You simply, turn the disc over, so the Laser side is facing the Side you want to Engrave, usually face down.Questions;1 Can I used a Standard CD/DVD Blank Disc, that is NOT a LIGHTSCRIE type ??2 If my Drive does NOT has a LIGHTSCRIBE software thats compatible with it,can I use aGENERIC type ??Thats about it.I mean theres a lot of BS, on the Net, and from what I've found so far, I'mmore confused than before !!Thanks Simon.

author: ataradov
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 11, 2023, 05:21:08 am
content: Here is extremely detailed video about this technology from a channel you can trust:TLDR: You need both special drive and a special CD surface. No generics would work. If I remember correctly drive needs to be able to de-focus the laser, which is not possible in a standard way.And the disk needs to have position encoding marks. So, the drive would need to have something to read those encoding marks.There was PC software that could burn some image on the regular surface in the remaining area that is not used by data. But its visibility was not great, it was more of a gimmick.

author: Chat GPT
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 08, 2023, 10:51:57 am
content: No, you cannot use a standard CD/DVD blank disc to engrave a LightScribe label. LightScribe requires a special coating on the top surface of the disc that reacts to the laser in the LightScribe-enabled drive. Without this coating, the engraving process will not work.If your drive does not have LightScribe software that is compatible with it, you cannot use a generic type of software to engrave a LightScribe label. LightScribe software is specifically designed to work with LightScribe-enabled drives, and generic software will not have the necessary functionality to communicate with the drive and engrave the label. You will need to use software that is specifically designed for LightScribe. If you cannot find software that is compatible with your drive, you may need to consider purchasing a new drive that supports LightScribe.

author: RoGeorge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 08, 2023, 11:32:39 am
content: Lightscribe is about printing labels only, and about the label side of the disk only. Lightscribe or not, reading/writing data is the same as for normal discs/units.1. You can use normal discs to read/write normal data with a Lightscribe unit, but then it won't be possible to 'Ligtscribe' labels on normal discs. The label side on the 'Lightscribe' discs has a special cover layer (on the label side only), layer that normal discs don't have.2. You can use generic software to read/write data, but you will need dedicated software to print labels, and even with the proper Lightscribe software, you'll need Lightscribe discs if you want to imprint labels on them.

author: mjj
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 05:19:59 pm
content: If you have limited data to write you could potentially use the rest of the disk to label a CD-R without needing LightScribe:https://hackaday.io/project/186303-burning-pictures-on-a-compact-disc-surface

author: james_s
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 06:05:32 pm
content: Not just a special coating but also an optical encoder on the disc near the spindle so the drive can track the angular position.I have a Lightscribe drive still, it's great, I think it's a shame it never really caught on.

author: RoGeorge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 06:17:44 pm
content: At some point I thought of replacing the disk with a UV sensitive copper clad PCB, to use LighSscribe as a PCB printer.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 07:00:00 pm
content: Quote from: RoGeorge on March 26, 2023, 06:17:44 pmGood one.Now that's something you could do with a laser engraver. Admittedly the cheapest ones on Aliexpress are still more expensive than one of these CD writers.

author: NiHaoMike
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 09:59:15 pm
content: An old attempt to hack an optical drive:

author: coppice
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 26, 2023, 10:53:22 pm
content: Quote from: RoGeorge on March 26, 2023, 06:17:44 pmSounds perfect for etching aluminium clad PCBs for lighting applications.