[PLUG] Opening CD drive drawers

[Jason R. Martin]

On 3/25/06, Michael M. <nixlists at writemoore.net> wrote:
> On Fri, 2006-03-24 at 16:45 -0800, Jason R. Martin wrote:
> > Most OSs (besides Windows) do not let you eject a CD that is currently
> > mounted.  This is to protect the OS from getting a mounted filesystem
> > ripped out from under it.  If you are using a burning utility, then
> > the CD is not mounted, because you are burning it, so the drive is not
> > locked.
> >
> > You should eject your CD using the 'eject' command, or via the file
> > browser in Gnome/KDE.  Apple got this right by just not supplying an
> > eject button on their drives.
>
> What's the difference between an eject button on the drive and an eject
> key on the keyboard, which Apple does supply?  I thought it was just an
> aesthetic thing.  Apple's design philosophy seems to be to hide all
> buttons (for example, the power on/off button) and connectors to keep
> the machine's appearance as clean as possible.  But doesn't the eject
> key provide the same functionality in the same manner as an eject
> button, in terms of the way it interacts with the OS?

Yes, but the eject button on the keyboard signals to the OS that you
want to unmount and eject the CD, so the OS can handle it properly. 
The eject button directly on the drive tells the drive firmware that
you want the CD now, regardless of what the OS is currently doing.

Jason