Just a thought....the little pits that store the binary info on the CD are actally just under the surface of the label side (Does that make sense?) So any damage to that side can in fact be worse than on the other. That is why some early CD's fail after time, when the ink or paint on the label, actually burns through the plastic!! Als...never write on a CD-R with a biro...use proper non-acidic pens....and, don't use them for frisbees either. hope this helps.Ralphie