Sorry to post such an "elementary" question
 

but I need to ask since I'm just barely getting started.

I'm currently developing a program which just recently started to be shown on local public access cable.The tech guy says their servers like dvd-r's as opposed to pluses.Besides the above,other intended purposes include being used at home and making them for others upon request.I guess it's basically a compatibility issue/question.The goal is to:
a)Pick the best/most reliable brand(s).
b)Pick the "right" format....plus versus slash..
c)Pick the right speed.
d)burn a dvd that will play in as many types of players as possible.."universal" if you will.

Yes,I had a Lite On combo dvd-rw/etc. internal burner/player just installed over the weekend which actually was purchased based on advice I got at this very forum.

What do you gents think of Maxells for example?The local Staples store is selling them for a reasonable sale price.What should I stay away from?What are the pros and cons of "pluses" & "slashes".What do you bank on?

Thanks in advance.
Bruce

You can't pick by brand name. You have to pick based on the actual manufacturer of the DVD media. This is because brand names source from many different DVD media manufacturers, some good, some bad.

You can tell the manufacturer of a DVD blank by checking the media ID code (although there have been instances of codes being faked. Which is why you need to purchase media from reputable stores).

Visit the DVD Blank Media & Quality FAQ for information on which codes belong to which manufacturer. There's a treasure trove of other good information on that page as well, such as how to check the media ID and which stores are best to purchase DVD media from.

You'll see a code for Maxell at the top of the aforementioned list. Be careful, however, not to jump to the conclusion that means that all Maxell branded media is top quality. Maxell also purchases some media from other manufacturers that isn't quite as good. Again, that's why you have to purchase based on the actual manufacturer of the DVD media, not a brand name (Maxell happens to be both in this case, which confuses matters even more).

If you want to be sure you get excellent quality media, the best course would probably be to avoid brand names altogether and instead purchase straight unbranded media, such as Taiyo Yuden media (again, check the Blank Media & Quality FAQ page for information on the best stores to purchase media from).

I'd better stay away from that question as my good friend Dan Euritt is liable to jump all over me. ;-)

The optimum burn speed can vary by burner. Check the reviews on www.cdfreaks.com and www.cdrinfo.com to see if they tested your particular burner. If they did, the review should tell you what the quality of the burn was at the different tested speeds.

That's a pretty general question that includes all your previous questions above, plus the factors of your DVD burner (some DVD burners burn more compatible discs than other burners do), and probably the software you use to encode your MPEG-2 files and the DVD authoring program you use.

One other factor to consider is the bit rate of your encoded video and audio streams. The combined bit rate of the two (plus any alternate streams such as subtitles) should not exceed the maximum DVD spec of 10.08 Mbps (megabits per second). In general it would probably be best to keep the video track at or below 8.5 Mbps, and encode your audio using Dolby Digital (AC3) compression.