minipost: scratched up CDs don't mean trash

Yes yes, Dano from Flickr here took the words out of my mouth, everyone has memories of putting one of their video games in the system and then get shocked, then angry, and then saddened by finding the dreaded message of "DISC COULD NOT BE READ, PLEASE CHECK THE SYSTEM MANUAL FOR HELP".

However, these memories usually aren't very precious, with all of the blood pressure spikes and shedded tears, and even money spent on disc cleaners that don't do anything, which all end in the trashing of the disc. Congratulations, you are a victim of the disc scratch major, which is when a scratch goes so deep into the disc, it's rendered unplayable. Do not worry though, for there have been treatments for this disease popping up as time goes by, some good, some bad, but there's always one master treatment. Now everyone has probably heard of using toothpaste, oh but trust me, that's not even half of what you need to repair a scratch.

Now before I begin, I'd like to give James Rolfe, a.k.a. The Angry Video Game Nerd, some credit for giving me the inspiration to make this blog post. His newest episode was about all of the game glitches he found in games, ranging from Super Mario Bros. to Mega Man 5, some good, some REALLY BAD. Now even though he could figure out how to fix an NES cartridge's glitches, he couldn't figure out how to fix the glitches in a disc that we use nowadays, all he could think of was wiping the disc (in a circular motion may I add) to clean the disc. Well the thing is, even the thinnest of scratches can cause some glitches, but it can eventually come down to not reading at all if the scratches are thick enough. Well I think of it like this, he knows how to fix an NES cartridge, but I guess it takes someone more connected today's format of video games to know how to fix them.

Now as for how you just clean a dusty disc, you don't use a cloth and wipe the disc in a circular motion, you take the cloth, start from the circular hole in the middle of the disc, and wipe down to the edge of the disc, no need to wet the cloth or disc, just do this, and it should help. However, that's just for a dusty or dirty disc, and I'm here to help you out with the scratches that kill our hopes and dreams. Now even though there are many ways to fix the scratches on a disc, there are three popular ways that are used to help get rid of the glitch gremlin inside your favorite game. Now I'm just going to save my favorite for last, considering this guy is actually pretty experienced at taking stuff around the house and using it to help your every day needs.

Now the first person uses a thickly cut banana slice, a banana peel, and cotton cloth to clean and repair a disc with smudges and minor scratches. I haven't used this method myself, but if you have scratches like the Xbox 360 "perfect circle" scratch, use one of these next methods.

The second most popular method is pretty complicated, and even though I find it a little too complicated myself, you can go ahead and try it. Now this person uses an air compresser, a corse piece of sand paper, a circular rotating sanding bit, an angle air sander, a spray bottle with water, some wax (or plastic polish), a scouring pad, a no-scratch scouring pad, and a very soft cloth. This is a lot of items, so if you don't already have them, take a visit to the Home Depot and then a stop at the Dollar General to get the things you need.

Now guys, I am going to post links to the videos about these methods, but I still have one more method to talk about, this one being the most popular. Now if you haven't figured it out by now, the best method everyone knows about was created by our favorite HouseholdHacker, creator of the one dollar HD speaker and the AAA battery television. Now what does his method include for repairing your favorite game, movie, album, or just about anything under the compatible disc format? All you need are toothpaste, peanut butter, diet coke or seltzer water, an air tight container, and a roll of paper towels, no water included.

Ladies and Gentleman, the thing you've all been waiting for, THE LINKS!!! First, the banana repair link, where fruit can help you survive a crisis. Next, we have the more complicated handyman repair link, so that as long as you have the stuff, you have no problem repairing your disc like buffing out a car. Finally, my favorite method, the HouseholdHacker repair link, where all you have to do is just go looking through the pantry, fridge, and bathroom for the things you need. I hope this post really helped you out with fixing your game, now you don't have to spend another 60 dollars getting Mass Effect 2, or whatever other game you used one of these methods on. See ya next time, I'll try to talk about an actual game next time.