COMPUTER TIPS

 

How to get the best quality CD and DVD labels.

 

 

Whether you are thinking of starting and marketing your own band, or just wanting to have a professional look for your home movie, digital photo or CD collection, there are a range of options when it comes to printing your CD and DVD labels. While it's rather easy these days to design top-quality labels on your home computer or laptop using a variety of software, there are a lot of choices out there for the aspiring musician or home organizer.

When it comes to making and burning your own CDs, there is one advantage that professional services offer over the do-it-yourself variety. Getting your CDs professionally made means that the company will be able to print your images or text on the actual disk, leaving you the choice between three printing options:

• Inkjet printing is your basic option, and although the costs for inkjet printing are lower, so too is the quality of the print. You'll also be dealing with lower quantities, which could be perfect for some, but entirely unsuited to others.
• Thermal printing offers a slightly higher quality option, but also for lower quantity orders. While the quality is good, you're limited in the choices as thermal printing isn't available in full color options.
• Screen printing is the top of the range, ensuring you the fullest colors and metallic finishes if that's what your project requires.

If all this seems a bit beyond your budget, technical prowess and scope of the project, then you can always print out your labels at home from your computer printer or a specifically-designed label printer. Just be careful with sticking home-printed plastic or paper labels onto your CDs and DVDs because they could shift and disturb the weight balance of the CD, which is something that you don't have to worry about with professional thermal labels. You'll need to double-check that the D.I.Y-printed disk plays after labeling it, and if all else fails, don't be afraid to revert back to the good old fashioned way of writing your track list, photo directory or film contents by hand!