Description

This article is from the CD-Recordable FAQ, by Andy McFadden (fadden@fadden.com) with numerous contributions by others.

4-42] I formatted a CD-RW and only have about 530MB free

(2000/10/29)

This is the expected behavior when formatting CD-RW media for use with
Roxio's DirectCD packet-writing software. CD-RW discs are formatted
with fixed-size packets, which takes up more space but allows you to
erase individual files. With variable-size packets, you get to use more
of the space on the disc, but when you delete a file it is simply marked
as gone. The space is still in use.

To use variable-size packets on a CD-RW with DirectCD, format a CD-R with
DirectCD and then do an image copy from the CD-R to the CD-RW.

Packet writing programs from other companies may work differently.

Don't forget that it is only necessary to format a disc if you want
drive-letter access. Conventional pre-mastering and creation of audio CDs
should be done on unformatted discs. See section (3-40).

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