Is it possible to make a double-sided CD or DVD, like they did with floppy disks?
I mean…HEY! Twice as much Data!
Just put a laser beam focusing on both sides of the disk and put in about a milisecond’s worth of data overlap for seamles data reading.
A quick Google search reveals that double-sided DVDs are quite common:
The following threads have already discussed double-sided CDs and the lack of interest in them:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=29506
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=38557
What I meant to ask was whether or not the double sided disk could be read continuously, seamlessly, from one side to the other WITHOUT taking it out and manually flipping it.
Okay. That’s an entirely different question, then.
Again, a quick search on Google suggests that double-sided DVD players are in the pipeline. This FAQ, however, says:
And, as mentioned in the CD threads, there doesn’t appear to be industry interest in double-sided CD hardware. I’m sure it’s technically possible, but that doesn’t mean it’s worth doing.
Basically, the answer is yes, it is possible, but there’s little interest in it. The industry doesn’t think the market is out there. I’d have to agree - what’s the big deal in flipping a disk every few hours?
Hope that helps.