Although your scratched CD-ROMs may be the best-looking coasters you ever had, don't be so quick to exile them to a purgatory of holding flat Dr. Pepper. Esprit Development Corp.'s Wipe Out! will help you perform data-saving plastic surgery.

When you use a scratched CD-ROM, the laser in your CD-ROM drive may have trouble reading the data under the scratch. This could cause an error in a program or even a complete halt of the application. If the scratch is deep enough to touch the metal wafer that holds the data, you've probably permanently lost binary code(data.

If the scratch is only in the protective plastic layer, however, you can make an easy repair. With Wipe Out! and a little muscle, you can buff out some of the deepest surface scratches. Just clean your CD-ROM to remove any grime, place a drop of the abrasive solution on the scratch, and buff out the scratch with the nonabrasive cloth included with Wipe Out! This restores your CD-ROM, allowing the laser in your CD-ROM drive to read the disc's 0s and 1s.

If the scratch is extremely deep, it may take a few applications of the abrasive solution and a lot of finger-numbing buffing to smooth out the scratch. The work pays off, however, when you can once again run your favorite program. (Note: After you buff out a scratch, you may see small insignificant scratches from the abrasive. They will not disturb your data.)

For $14.99, plus shipping and handling, you get enough of the abrasive goop to repair about 40 discs, a nonabrasive polishing cloth, and written instructions. You can use Wipe Out! on music CDs, CD-ROMs, and multimedia discs.

Esprit Development Corporation
http://www.cdrepair.com
(908) 284-0426

Copyright © 1999 Smart Computing Magazine