Although the latest versions of Windows operating system support built in CD/DVD functionalities, it still remains in a very basic level. The built-in utility is good as a file copier, but when it comes to recording movies and audio, Nero stands as the most sophisticated tool (Windows also support audio/video disc burning). Demerit with Nero is the licensing. It will cost you a considerable amount unless you download a cracked version. Actually there is no need to become a pirate; there are few noble but unpopular options available.

Nero itself now provides a free version of their good old product. Its called ‘Nero 9 Lite’. Totally free to download and supports Windows 7. But there is no specific 64 bit version; 64 bit will be supported via 32 bit emulation.

Why not open source? I found two attractive alternatives to Nero. CDBurnerXP and InfraRecorder. Most reviews say the both of these software are far light weight than Nero. It’s a known fact that Nero is bit bulky, resource consuming and also bundled with few additional software tools that you will never use. Currently I am using InfraRecorder as my Nero alternative. It’s very simple, handy and straightforward. One big attraction for me is, it has a 64 bit edition.

Few other advantages include support for multi-session, very light on resources, support for not just ISO, but also BIN and CUE images, burning on dual layer DVDs is supported, scan SCSI/IDE bus for devices and capabilities, create disc copies using temporary disc image and import capability of session data from multi-session discs and add more sessions.

Here goes some screen shots:

This article from makeuseof.com reveals few other good alternatives on this matter.

Besides the iPhone being announced/released in 2007, we can get behind this image from Begeek

If you are a music nerd like me who wears a headphone during almost all of your time at office, plugged in your ipod or mp3 player while on the road or let your woofers hammer every second while you are on the wheel, then you must know how important ID3 tags are for you. ID3 tags are like an attachment of extra data to an MP3 file that tell you all that good stuff about the file like who the artist is and what album it comes from. It’s simply metadata for the listeners. This is especially important with MP3 players or iPods. It’s a must when we need to search for the artists, titles or the albums. Album art is one another great addition to this composition. Editing ID3 tags is a must do thing if you heavily download music from web. I usually used good old winamp for this purpose. Recently I came across this cool application which let us edit ID3 information much easier than ever.

AudioShell is an extension to the Microsoft Windows Explorer shell. It adds two tabs to the properties of the audio file. The supported file formats is impressive:

• MP3: all ID3 tag versions
• wma, asf and wmv (including DRM protected files)
• m4a, m4b, m4p and mp4
• ogg, flac (vorbis comment tags)
• mpc, mp+ (APE/APEv2 tags)
• monkey’s audio (APE/APEv2 tags)
• wav pack (APE/APEv2 tags)
• optim frog (APE/APEv2 tags)

Download URL: http://www.softpointer.com/AudioShell.htm

Photographic Society of Sri Lanka, the oldest amateur photographic society in the country has launched their all new website recently. With origins that go back over 100 years, the PSSL today continues in a mission that has not changed since the days of its founders, namely “the advancement of the art and practice of photography amongst the amateurs of the island.”

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