[Tabvla]

Can any Forum member confirm if all versions of Vista support the Mount Rainier (MRW), commonly known as EasyWrite, optical media format.

[JohnWill]

Did you try Google? http://www.answers.com/topic/cd-mrw

[Tabvla]

Thanks JohnWill. Yes, the first place I looked was Microsoft and then Answers.com.

The information is vague and outdated. Vista started life with more bells and whistles than a Thailand Taxi, but it is still a bit of a mystery as to what is actually going to be in/out of the final releases and what functionality will be switched on/off between versions.

[davehc]

I have not the slightest idea what the program is, but had a quick browse. It seems that it is the capability of the HD rather than the OS. However, I found this:
"Mount Rainier will be implemented natively in Windows Vista, which is scheduled to release at the beginning of 2007."
Have a look yourself - there is quite a lot more. Here's the link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_R...packet_writing)

[JohnWill]

Everything I read says Vista will support Mount Rainier format, but of course you need a drive that also supports it. The real test would be for you to send me a Mount Rainier compatible drive and I'll test it on my copy of Vista.

[Tabvla]

Thanks JohnWill,

Great idea!! 3 Mount Rainer drives in the mail to you today.

Can I please have the results on Test Form 7a in triplicate.

[JohnWill]

You bet, Test Form 7A it is.

[RonCam]

(TM) Philips N.V.
Just came across this thread, I see someone is looking for a Mount Rainier/EasyWrite drive to test with Vista.

Call your friendly dealer and ask for a Samsung SH-182M. I think its very widely available ... and reasonably priced, according to Computer Shopper's best buy designation of a few months ago. It comes up as Mount Rainier compatible on Nero's InfoTool, as well as on CS Tech Editor Alan Lu's feature chart. And, no, you won't see it on the box.

Is a DVD-burner 100% EasyWrite/MRW compatible if it only does CD-MRWs? This one appears to drop back to plain UDF packet writing on DVD+RWs. At least, the Properties box for a formatted disc lacks the EasyWrite designation, and the Mount Rainier selection is unavailable when formatting.

This is with Roxio/Sonic DLA (final version) and it's also possible this software doesn't support DVD+MRW formatting. The Help documentation mentions only CD-MRW. If anyone gets a different result with this drive and Vista, let us know.

But, the drive claims DVD-RAM compatibility, so maybe it's better to get a few new higher speed DVD-RAM discs rather than go with regular discs and forego the Mount Ranier error checking/correction ... with little or nothing to replace it.

You can test it with Vista, and post the results here. If Vista has what it's supposed to, I expect the results (with this drive) would be as follows:
CD-MRW
DVD+MRW
DVD-RAM

Post a reply if you can get Vista to format a DVD+MRW with this drive. Nero Disc Info (in main program) will tell you if you really have a Mount Rainier disc.

There is also a more-expensive HP burner (DZ555B) that may have full compatibility, but I don't personally have one. Also, the new Plextor PX-755A that promises full compatibility with current firmware. On both you lose the DVD-RAM capability, however.