DiscJuggler

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Padus DiscJuggler is a professional CD/DVD recording software program. Its native .CDI image format is by far the most common format used to image self-booting Dreamcast CDs. The final version is DiscJuggler 6.00.1400, released on April 18, 2006, and it was sold up until around April 2011.

DiscJuggler is compatible with Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 10, and 11. It also works very well with the Wine compatibility layer on Linux when the wineprefix is set to Windows XP 32-bit mode.

Additionally, Padus provided a .CDI file mounting library which developers can use to integrate .CDI file handling in their Windows programs. This can be used as a plugin for the ImgBurn software to allow burning DiscJuggler .CDI files. ImgBurn is only available for Windows, but like DiscJuggler, it works very well with the Wine compatibility layer on Linux, just make sure to use a Windows XP wineprefix, and once installed, enter the Settings menu and set the I/O Interface option to "SPTI - Microsoft" and the "SPTI - Device Enumeration Method" to "Device Interface" for optical drives to be detected properly while using Wine.



Dreamcast image standard

Because the Dreamcast MIL-CD self-bootable disc format requires multiple sessions be recorded to disc, a Dreamcast CD cannot be represented using an ISO file, which only represents a single CD data track. The most common format in the early 2000s for game discs was CDRWIN's bin/cue format, but while this format supports multiple tracks, it does not support multiple sessions without 3rd party extensions that didn't come until much later. Therefore, when the first Dreamcast CD images began to be distributed, the DiscJuggler image format was chosen and soon became the timeless standard for Dreamcast discs. Later, Nero .NRG and Alcohol 120% .MDF/.MDS files were used as secondary standard formats by some users.

Burning CDI files using DiscJuggler

  • Install DiscJuggler using the above installer, following the directions in the readme.txt file.
  • Open DiscJuggler and click File > New.
  • Select "Burn disc images".
  • Select the .CDI file you wish to burn using the "Source" box.
  • Select the CD burner you wish to use using the "Destination" box.
  • Select Action > Write.
  • Select your desired burn speed under Method. Some users find slower burn speeds to produce more reliable discs.
  • Despite popular belief, it is unnecessary to set any settings under the Advanced tab. The .CDI file contains all the information DiscJuggler needs to know. Just leave it alone.
  • Click Start to burn disc.

Burning CDI files using ImgBurn

ImgBurn is usually very reliable with burning DiscJuggler CDI files, but on rare occasions there may be incompatible discs requiring the use of the original DiscJuggler software.

  • Install ImgBurn. Download the Padus .CDI File Mounting Library, aka CDI plugin for ImgBurn file above. Extract its contents to the ImgBurn folder in Program Files.
  • Open ImgBurn. Select "Write image file to disc".
  • Select the .CDI file you wish to burn as the Source.
  • Select the CD burner you wish to use using the "Destination" setting.
  • Select your desired burn speed under Settings. Some users find slower burn speeds to produce more reliable discs.
  • Click the burn button to begin.

Burning CDI files using cdirip and Burn on a Mac

  • TODO
    • Rip CDI file using cdirip image.cdi -bin
    • Burn first session cuesheet with Allow more sessions checked, burn second session cuesheet with it unchecked

Burning CDI files using cdirip and cdrecord

  • TODO
    • Rip CDI file using cdirip image.cdi
    • Burn using cdrecord or cdrkit
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