The tip won't harm your disc, but the ink might. Although this might not happen every time, it would be worth not taking the risk.Д«ut what about those soft tipped permanent markers that everyone uses? Can those cause harm, too? Possibly. Anything that puts high point-pressure on the surface can damage the delicate layers beneath. Obviously, ballpoint or hard tipped pens can scratch the surface of the disc where the data reside, possibly rendering it unplayable. So what harm will come from writing on discs? Last, some CD-Rs have additional protective layers on the top of the disc, for example those with a ' white printable surface.' These CD-Rs, while more expensive, are far less susceptible to damage. Second, it should go without saying (but we'll say it anyway) that you should never write on or label a double sided DVD - since both sides are read by the laser. However, this does not make it immune to damage. The data layer in a DVD is more protected than that of a CD. There are a few side notes that we cannot ignore here: The first being that CD-Rs and DVDs are constructed differently. Damage to the top of the disc can destroy the data all together. On some CD-Rs, the data layer is under nothing but a thin layer of lacquer. However, most people don't realize that the tops of discs are just as prone to damage as the bottom - if not more so! Although you can physically see the shiny data layer from the bottom of a CD-R, it is actually applied to the TOP side of the disc, just under the label. Scratches, fingerprints, and other debris can stop the laser from reading the data. Most people know that it is very important to keep the bottom of your discs clean and scratch free.

The data appear as marks or pits that either absorb light from the laser beam or transmit the light back to the laser/photosensor by way of the shiny metal reflective layer. The plastic is there to carry the data layer - the shiny metal you can see when you look at the bottom of a disc. In order to understand why certain markers and pens can harm your CD-Rs and DVDs, we first need a basic lesson on the physical properties that make up the disc:Д¬D-Rs and DVDs are made mostly of polycarbonate substrate, or plastic. But you do have to be careful of the kind of writing instrument you use to do so. Now, we're not saying you can't label your discs. The damage won't happen today, or even next month, but at some point the ink will leach into the reflective layer of the disc and it'll be the end of your data. It's also a great way to assure that the disc won't be readable later on. The easiest way to label a CD-R is to whip out that permanent marker and write directly on the disc.

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