What is Booktype / BitSetting?

The book type is a field of four bits at the start of every DVD (in the physical format information section of the control data block) that indicates what the physical format of the disc is. For example, the value of DVD-ROM, either one or two layers, is 0000, which has the best compatibility on majority of DVD players. Many devices will use this 'Book Type Field' to determine how the disc should be treated.

One common cause of compatibility problems is the failure of a device to recognize the book type of the disc that has been loaded, most likely as a result of the device being manufactured before that particular book type has been defined. (E.g., most DVD playback devices made before mid-2004 will not recognize the relatively new DVD+R DL Book Type). For DVD+R, DVD+RW, and DVD+R DL discs, it is possible to change the Book Type field value to the value for DVD-ROM (or in some rare and unorthodox cases, even the value for DVD-R) in order to fool older devices that do not recognize newer Book Type Field values (this process is known as Bitsetting).

Regarded as one of the best DVD Burning program, ImgBurn is preloaded with Booktype setting option. By default, ImgBurn will Booktype to DVD-rom on these 'supported' drives. And below is brief manual about ImgBurn Booktype settings.

How to preset ImgBurn Booktype settings?

There are three modes in ImgBurn that allow you to set DVD Booktype for particular media: Write, Build (device tab) and Discover. Here we will take Build mode as example.

Step 1: Open ImgBurn, choose the Build mode. After set the target DVD burner engine, you can click the Device table and you will find a Book icon on the right side bottom. Single click it to get another box.

Step 2: There are several options for your drive type. Choose one you desired or you can click OK to skip preset the Booktype setting.