From its humble beginnings as a music carrier, the compact disc (CD)—and later the digital versatile disc (DVD)—is now entering its third generation for the high-definition market as HD DVDs or Blu-ray. However, one thing that must stay consistent throughout these evolutions is the high-quality production of these polycarbonate replicas.

CDs are a part of nearly everyone’s life, and they have become versatile enough for us to store data, copy data, and, on occasion, use as coasters. This is generally common knowledge, but how many of us are aware of the production method for CDs and how this can affect the disc’s overall quality and its output.

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