by Lou Grinzo
Rating 92
Easy cd creator 4.0 deluxe is the latest edition of Adaptec’s popular CD writing package. It offers a considerable number of features and improved usability compared to prior versions. Easy CD Creator works with either CD-R (write once) or CD-RW (rewritable) drives and discs to create just about any kind of CD by using and editing data from almost any source imaginable.
The software allows you to easily archive data from your system or use a CD-RW drive as a backup device.
The package includes numerous software utilities and a few hardware components. The more notable utilities include Adaptec’s Take Two program, which records a system backup file that can span multiple discs; and DirectCD, a package that lets users move data to a recordable CD as you would a floppy disk, with drag-and-drop ease within Windows Explorer.
Also included is software for creating online photo albums and CD jewel case covers, and a CD labeling accessory from HP.
We tested Easy CD Creator on a Windows 98 system, and had only one glitch. It caused our system to swap the two drive letters assigned to our internal IDE Zip drive and the parallel-port CD-RW drive, until we rebooted.
We copied data CDs with no problem, made several custom discs, used the various editors, and found all components to work quite well.
We did notice that duplicating an entire disc (disc-at-once recording) made the system less responsive. These types of operations are typically considered standalone or “lunch time” jobs, so it is better not to run anything else while they’re in progress.
Aside from Adaptec’s easily disabled animated help character (a la Microsoft Office’s infamous and equally annoying paperclip), Easy CD Creator 4.0 is an exceptionally well designed, deep, and solid CD recording package.
