CDs that don't play

A CD was created with a blank CD-R disc I had provided, and did not function in a player.

The person who was attempting to play the CD believes: "a 'CD-R' should always play in a 'CD-R' player". I was not successful in attempting to explain that, as in a lot of situations, items deemed to be of high-quality provide consistent results...

The disc I provided (for free) was the least expensive one available at the store when I purchased it. I purchased it based on cost, not quality.

The player is not, in my opinion, a high-quality unit...it's a "cheapie": Living Solutions (Atico International USA, Inc.) 60-Second CD Player with Radio (model #CD168).

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Problems are...
"...more likely to occur with car CD players and portable CD players that have less robust error-correcting abilities, older CD players, and less expensive CD players of any age...Certain brands of CD-R may cause problems for a particular CD player because of differences in dye formulations among CD-R brands..."

Glass-mastered CDs appear to be the better quality types...
"...CD-Rs, regardless of the manufacturer or method of duplication, are more likely than their glass-mastered counterparts to have compatibility problems with certain CD players, resulting in skipping, clicks, pops, or complete stops..."

"Duplicator manufacturers typically test and recommend only certain brands of blank CD-Rs for use in their machines...

http://www.vochor.com/cd_playability.html

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"The Red Book audio CD specification provides for audio discs that store up to 74 minutes of sound...The Yellow Book spec for CD-ROM provides for data CDs that hold about 650 megabytes of data.

"...audio CD-Rs can be made to hold up to 80 minutes of music, and data CD-Rs up to 700 megabytes of data.

"...there's a serious problem with such CD-Rs: they violate the standards specification in such a way that such discs won't work on some players or drives...

"For maximum compatibility, you're better off sticking to 74 minute, 650 megabyte CD-R media...

http://www.oggfrog.com/howto/cds-wont-play/

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Contemplating (Data) Mortality

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"You get what you pay for..."

DVD Ripper - Back up DVD's Fast and Free - Part I

DVD Rip Automates One-Click DVD Ripping
From lifehacker.com — "Windows only: Sick of scratched, skippy DVDs, I put together a simple AutoHotkey script that automated DVD rips in conjunction with a freeware application called DVD Shrink. I've since gone back and drastically improved the original DVD Rip application complete with options and improved automation..."
See part II for more info and details.
DDTechGuy

can't burn CDs

"Kathy" called the radio show about her problems creating CDs: her Dell computer crashes during the burning process...

There could be problems and/or incompatibilities with: the software, the hardware, and/or the operating system.

Recently, my problems were due to blank CDs I had purchased years ago. I cannot burn standard audio CD files to these disks from a computer with a DVD/CD burner, but am able to using the CD burner of a different computer.

There CAN BE incompatibilities between some DVD/CD burners and blanks. If you check the documentation of the recorder/computer, and the burning software, they might recommend a specific manufacturer (and type) of blank.

Some manufacturers that are considered to produce quality media are:
Imation
Kodak (BASF)
Sony
and TDK (3M/Pioneer/Yamaha).

Also, see CD Freaks.com

cheap movies (beginning tomorrow?)

There are news reports that Hollywood Video is closing “under-performing and unprofitable” shops...

Liquidation sales will be held at the targeted locations...The stores will close sometime after that...with final dates varying by location.