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About SpanBurner
SpanBurner is a simple app for Mac OS X that can burn a set of folders and files to multiple CDs or DVDs.
It creates conventional files and folders on the discs it writes,
so that they can be accessed from any computer system (including Windows)
that can read standard discs, without any special software.
It's ideal for backing up folders that won't fit on a single CD or DVD, which is otherwise difficult to do on OS X.
(Some fairly expensive disc burning or backup utilities can do it, but they cost many times what SpanBurner costs.)
SpanBurner doesn't replace backup utilities (see caution box, below).
Rather, it's for when you really need to write discs that follow normal file-system conventions.
SpanBurner is very clever about splitting folders while keeping the folder hierarchy intact, but possibly duplicated on different disks.
But it won't split files. If a single file is bigger than will fit on a disc (4.6 GB or so for DVDs), it stops with an error.
Using SpanBurner
Here's how you use SpanBurner:
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Choose the media type from the drop-down: 650 MB CD, 700 MB CD, or 4.7GB DVD.
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Construct a burn set (or just use the default set) by using the + key to add files and folders, or just drag and drop file and folders from the Finder.
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Press the Burn button.
SpanBurner will take a while to calculate the total size of the burn and the number of discs required.
It shows you the result in a dialog and asks you whether you want to stop (to use bigger discs, or to choose less data) or continue.
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When you press Continue, standard OS X burn dialogs appear that prompt you to insert discs and choose burn options, such as whether you want verification.
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If an error occurs, you'll be prompted to re-burn the disc that failed or to stop the burn.
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You keep feeding discs until the burn is completed or until you cancel.
If you do cancel, any discs already burned successfully are fully readable.
Caution!!!
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There's one big caution you have to be aware of if you try to load data back to an OS X system from SpanBurner-generated discs:
When the Finder replaces a folder, it removes any files and folders already present.
So, if a folder named, say, MyPictures is split across discs, you can't load everything back by just copying the MyPictures folder from two discs.
If you do, you'll only get the contents that were on the second disc.
Instead, you have to very carefully copy the contents, not the folders.
If there are several levels of folders, this can get very tricky.
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The only way to avoid this trap would be for SpanBurner to write data in a special format and then to provide its own restore facility, so the Finder wouldn't have to be used at all.
That's what sophisticated backup software does, and you can use backup software if you want.
SpanBurner is for when you really do want multiple, universally readable, discs.
There's one case when you can ignore this caution:
When you're burning individual files, without any folders.
In that case there are no folders for the Finder to overwrite.
Downloading and Licensing SpanBurner
You download SpanBurner from the Download page (link at left).
You can use it for free for spans of up to two discs per burn.
A registration code that you buy for $10 removes that limitation.
(See License Terms and Purchasing, at left.)
No Windows version of SpanBurner is planned, mainly because they are so many more disc-burning utilities for Windows than there are for OS X.
SpanBurner Version History
1.0.02 |
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Fixed font problem that prevented window from displaying on some Macs.
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Run Log now shows more information.
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Cosmetic changes to window appearance.
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Slight changes to how capacities of discs are calculated.
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1.0.01 |
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©2006-2010 by Marc Rochkind. All rights reserved. ImageReporter, and LRViewer may be freely copied and used provided they're not
altered in any way.
ImageIngester, ImageIngesterPro, ImageVerifier, ImageReporter, SpanBurner, LRViewer, LRVmaker, and PhotoSelectLink are trademarks of Marc Rochkind. Hosted by A2Hosting.com.
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