Here's a way to easily make labels for your CD-Rs

[Finch Platte]

I saw this in the S.F. Chronicle. I was making a CD this a.m., and didn't really want to go thru the hassle of typing up a label for the case. Then I saw this article, and checked it out. In about 1/2 hour, I had made my first label. It's basic, but it looks like there's quite a bit you can do with it. The parts I like best are that it automatically looked up the disc and put the songs on the label for me! No typing necessary. Then I was able to put the band and name of the disc on the spine. Very cool.

Here's the Q/A article.

Q: I have all my data files backed up on compact discs. I'd like to print a list of the contents of each CD, but I can't figure out how to do it. I can display a list of files and folders on the CD by using Windows Explorer, but after that, I'm stumped. I remember in the old days of DOS, you could display a list of files and folders, then print it by pressing the Print Screen key. The key -- now it's called PrtScrn -- is still there, but when I press it, nothing happens. What gives?

A: On today's Windows computers, pressing PrtScrn sends a picture of what's on your screen to the clipboard. You can then open up a new Microsoft Word document, paste the image into it, then print it out. So, it's harder to print a screen today than it was 20 years ago. Go figure.

Fortunately, you don't have to worry about that. Just get yourself a program that can make inserts for your CD cases. Check the software that came with your CD drive because it might do labels and inserts. If not, I'd recommend cdrLabel, a nifty little program you can try for free and buy for $15 at www.ziplabel.com. It lets you easily make inserts for the case cover and back, or a booklet if you have lots and lots of files on a CD.

fp