HK1083561B - Apparatus and method for recording and/or reproducing data, and method for recording information - Google Patents

Description

Apparatus and method for recording and/or reproducing data and method for recording information

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an information storage medium, an apparatus using an information storage, and a method of recording and/or reproducing information using the information storage medium, and more particularly, to an information storage medium for storing information on an optimal writing pattern or information on whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following an old version of standards, and an apparatus and method of recording and/or reproducing information using the information storage medium storing information on an optimal writing pattern or information on whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following an old version of standards.

Background

Generally, an information storage medium is widely used as an information recording medium of an optical pickup apparatus that records/reproduces information in a non-contact manner. Optical discs, which are examples of information storage media, are classified as Compact Discs (CDs) or Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs) according to their information storage capacities. Examples of recordable optical discs include 650MB of CD-R, CD-RW, 4.7GB of DVD/RW, DVD-RAM, and the like. In addition, HD-DVDs having a recording capacity of 20GB or more are under development.

As the recording capacity of optical discs increases, their recording speed has also been developed. However, the recording pattern of an optical disc changes as its recording speed increases.

FIG. 1A shows a write pulse pattern widely used in CD-RW, DVD-RAM/R/RW and the like. The write pulse pattern in fig. 1A includes multiple pulses for forming each mark on the optical disc. The multi-pulse mode is widely used to prevent deformation of marks on an optical disc due to heat accumulation during mark formation.

However, since the energy supplied per unit time decreases as the recording speed of the optical disc increases, an error may be generated when recording data according to the multi-pulse mode.

However, the reduction in energy per unit time can be compensated for by using a single pulse for each mark as shown in FIG. 1B or by increasing the bias power.

As described above, the information storage medium has different write patterns, i.e., write strategies, according to its recording speed. Fig. 2 illustrates a data area structure of a conventional information storage medium. As shown in fig. 2, the conventional information storage medium includes a lead-in area 100, a user data area 110, and a lead-out area 120. Information regarding a data writing pattern is recorded in the disc control data zone 100-2 of the lead-in area 100.

The lead-in area 100 includes a first buffer area 100-1, a disc control data area 100-2 in which disc control related information is recorded, a disc test area 100-3, a drive test area 100-4, a defect management area 100-5, a reserved area 100-6, and a second buffer area 100-7. The disc control data zone 100-2 stores a disc type, a disc version number, a disc size, information on a recording layer, and the like. The disc control data zone 100-2 also stores information about a data writing pattern.

For example, the disc control data zone 100-2 may store information about the first to third write pattern types. The first write pattern type may be a first multi-pulse pattern, the second write pattern type may be a second multi-pulse pattern, and the third write pattern type may be a single-pulse pattern. In fig. 1A and 1B, Ttop, Tmp, and Tcl are parameters of the write mode, that is, an initial pulse time, a multi-pulse time, and a cooling pulse time, respectively. Pw, Pe, and Pb denote write power, erase power, and bias power, respectively. T denotes a minimum length of one recording mark. 3T and 7T indicate the length of one mark or space.

For example, the fifth to ninth bytes of the disc control data zone 100-2 store the first recording speed, the first reproduction power, Ttop1, Tmp1, and Tcl1, respectively, as information on the first write pattern type. The cross section of the disc control data zone 100-2 is reserved. The eleventh to fifteenth bytes of the disc control data zone 100-2 store the second recording speed, the second reproduction power, Ttop2, Tmp2, and Tcl2, respectively, as information on the second write pattern type. The sixteenth byte of the disc control data zone 100-2 is reserved. The seventeenth to twenty-first bytes of the disc control data zone 100-2 store the third recording speed, the third reproduction power, Ttop3, Tmp3, and Tcl3, respectively, as information on the third write pattern type. The twenty-second byte of the disc control data zone 100-2 is reserved.

As described above, the conventional information storage medium classifies information about writing patterns according to writing pattern types and stores the information. If information on several writing modes has been recorded, when a drive records data in an information storage medium, it reads out information on all writing modes, selects a writing mode suitable for the drive itself, and records data according to the selected writing mode. In other words, after the information storage medium of fig. 2 is loaded in a drive, the drive must test all of the first to third write pattern types to find the optimal write pattern. Therefore, the drive must be designed to include a function of testing the writing pattern, thereby complicating the drive design and increasing the duration of recording data.

In the conventional information storage medium of fig. 2, information regarding its recording speed is recorded in the disc control data zone 100-2. Information regarding the version of the information storage medium, which describes a standard for recording speed, is also recorded in the disc control data zone 100-2. When such a disc is loaded into a drive to record data on the disc or reproduce data from the disc, the drive first reads out information on the version of the loaded disc. If the version of the loaded disc is the same as that of the drive, the drive records data on or reproduces data from the loaded disc.

However, when a new version of an information storage medium is developed, a drive corresponding to the new version must also be developed. A drive following an old version of the standard cannot record or reproduce data on or from an information storage medium following a new version of the standard. In other words, when an information storage medium is loaded into a drive, the drive reads out version information stored in the information storage medium and can record or reproduce data on or from the information storage medium only when their versions are the same. On the other hand, if the version of the information storage medium is different from the version of the drive in which the information storage medium is loaded, the drive cannot recognize the loaded information storage medium because the information storage medium stores version information different from the information regarding the version of the drive. Accordingly, regardless of whether the drive is compatible with the information storage medium complying with the different version of the standard, the drive automatically recognizes that it cannot record or reproduce data on or from the information storage medium complying with the different version of the standard.

As described above, if an information storage medium following a new version of standards does not store information about a drive following an old version of standards, the new version of information storage medium cannot be used in the drive following the old version of standards even if they are actually compatible with each other. Therefore, users suffer from inconvenience and expense of having to use a new drive whenever a new version of the information storage medium is used.

Disclosure of Invention

An aspect of the present invention is to provide an information storage medium storing information on an optimal writing pattern, information on a recording speed, or information on a drive following an old version of standards, thereby improving the speed and performance of data recording.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recordable information storage medium including a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, wherein compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a version of a standard older than a version of the information storage medium is recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

The information storage medium may store information on an optimal writing pattern when the information storage medium is operable in a drive following an old version of standards.

The compatibility information may be recorded in a reproduction-only area or a recordable area of at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

When the compatibility information is recorded in the reproduction-only area of at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas, the compatibility information may be reproduced as a sum signal or a difference signal. When the compatibility information is recorded in the recordable area of at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas, the compatibility information may be reproduced as a sum signal.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recordable information storage medium including a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, wherein information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data is recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recordable information storage medium including a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, wherein information regarding an optimal writing pattern is recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

Information on the optimal writing pattern may be recorded in a reproduction-only area of at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas. The reproduction-only area may be a disc control data area included in the lead-in area for storing disc-related information.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a recording and/or reproducing apparatus using an information storage medium having a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, the apparatus recording and/or reproducing information on the information storage medium including: an optical pickup for transferring data on the information storage medium; and a controller for controlling the optical pickup to detect compatibility information recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive using a first version of standard older than a second version of the information storage medium, and controlling the optical pickup to transfer data regarding the information storage medium according to one of the first and second versions detected from the compatibility information corresponding to the version of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of recording information on an information storage medium, including: forming a lead-in region; forming a user data area; forming a lead-out region; and recording one of compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a version of standards older than a version of the information storage medium, information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data, and information regarding an optimal write pattern in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of increasing a data recording speed of a recordable information storage medium, comprising: forming a lead-in region; forming a user data area; forming a lead-out region; and recording one of compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a version of standards older than a version of the information storage medium, information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data, and information regarding an optimal write pattern in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of improving recording performance of a recordable information storage medium, comprising: forming a lead-in region; forming a user data area; forming a lead-out region; and recording one of compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a version of standards older than a version of the information storage medium, information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data, and information regarding an optimal write pattern in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.

Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.

Drawings

FIG. 1A shows a multi-pulse write mode;

FIG. 1B shows a single pulse write mode;

FIG. 2 illustrates a data area structure of a conventional information storage medium;

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate a data area structure of an information storage medium according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate a data area structure of an information storage medium according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and

fig. 7 is a block diagram of a recording apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below in order to explain the present invention by referring to the figures.

Fig. 3 illustrates a data area structure of an information storage medium according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 3, the information storage medium according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a lead-in area 10, a user data area 20 storing user data, and a lead-out area 30.

The introduction region 10 includes: a disc control data zone 10-2 storing disc-related information; a disc test zone 10-3 storing information for testing a disc; a drive test zone 10-4 storing information for testing a drive; a defect management area 10-5 storing information for removing a defect generated on the disc; and a reserved area 10-6. The lead-in area 10 further includes a first buffer area 10-1 and a second buffer area 10-7, respectively. The lead-in area 10 is divided into a reproduction-only area and a recordable area. For example, the first buffer area 10-1 and the disc control data area 10-2 are included in a reproduction-only area in which only reproduction occurs because data is recorded in the form of pits during the manufacture of the disc. A disc test zone 10-3, a drive test zone 10-4, a defect management zone 10-5, a reserved zone 10-6, and a second buffer zone 10-7 are included in the recordable area.

The disc control data zone 10-2 stores information such as the type of disc, the version number of the disc, the size of the disc, information on a writing pattern, and the like. The information on the writing pattern may be first to third types of information on the writing pattern. Information on the first write pattern type is recorded in bytes 5 to 9 of the disc control data zone 10-2. Information on the second write pattern type is recorded in 11 th to 15 th bytes of the disc control data zone 10-2. Information on the third write pattern type is recorded in 17 th to 21 st bytes of the disc control data zone 10-2. The information on the writing pattern includes a recording speed, a reproduction power, an initial pulse time Ttop of the recording pattern, a multi-pulse time Tmp of the recording pattern, a cooling pulse time of the recording pattern, a writing power Pw, an erasing power Pe, a bias power Pb, and the like.

As shown in fig. 3, the information storage medium according to the first embodiment of the present invention stores information about an optimal writing pattern in a lead-in area 10. More specifically, information on an optimal writing pattern may be recorded in a reproduction-only area or a recordable area of the lead-in area 10.

If information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in the reproduction-only area, it may be recorded in the disc control data zone 10-2 of the lead-in area 10. When considering the specifications of the disc, information on an optimal writing pattern is recorded in the form of pits when the disc is manufactured. The information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in a prescribed byte, such as the third byte, of the disc control data zone 10-2. More specifically, information on the optimal writing pattern may be recorded in the zeroth to seventh bits of the third byte.

For example, if the optimal writing pattern is the first writing pattern type, 00000000b is recorded as the optimal writing pattern. If the optimum writing pattern is the second writing pattern type, 00000001b is recorded as the optimum writing pattern. If the optimal writing pattern is the third writing pattern type, 00000010b is recorded as the optimal writing pattern.

If data corresponding to the first writing pattern type is recorded as the optimal writing pattern, the drive reads out data corresponding to information about the first writing pattern type. In other words, the drive reads out data corresponding to the fifth to ninth bytes in which the information regarding the first writing pattern type is recorded, sets conditions corresponding to the read-out data, and records the data according to the set conditions.

Fig. 4 illustrates another data area structure of an information storage medium according to a first embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 4, information on an optimal writing pattern is recorded in a recordable area of the lead-in area 10. More specifically, information on an optimal writing pattern is recorded in the reserved zone 10-6 of the recordable area. In this case, after the disc is manufactured, the optimum writing pattern of the manufactured disc is determined by testing the disc, and the optimum writing pattern is recorded in the reserved area 10-6. Information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in a prescribed byte of the reserved area 10-6. For example, if the optimal writing pattern is the first writing pattern type, 00000000b is recorded as the optimal writing pattern. If the optimum writing pattern is the second writing pattern type, 00000001b is recorded as the optimum writing pattern. If the optimal writing pattern is the third writing pattern type, 00000010b is recorded as the optimal writing pattern.

If data corresponding to the second writing pattern type is recorded as the optimal writing pattern in the reserved area 10-6, the drive reads out data corresponding to the information about the second writing pattern type recorded in the disc control data area 10-2. In other words, referring to fig. 3, the drive reads out data corresponding to the eleventh to fifteenth bytes in which information regarding the second write pattern type is recorded, sets conditions corresponding to the read-out data, and records the data according to the set conditions. The information recorded in the disc control data zone 10-2 of fig. 4 is the same as that shown in fig. 3 except that information regarding the optimal writing pattern is recorded in the reserved area, and thus is not shown in fig. 4.

Information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30. Therefore, when a defect is generated in the information recorded in one of the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30, the information stored in the other non-defective area is available.

Although the case where only the information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded has been described above, the information on the optimal writing pattern may be recorded together with the information on the multiple speed of the disc. For example, information on the optimal writing pattern and information on the multiple speed of the disc may be recorded in prescribed bytes of the disc control data area 10-2 shown in fig. 3 or bytes of the reserved zone 10-6 shown in fig. 4.

Examples of data representing information on the optimal writing pattern and information on the multiple speed of the disc are shown in table 1.

Watch (A)1

Data of	Information
		00000000b	n times speed, first write mode
10000000b	m times speed, first write mode
		00000001b	n times speed, second writing mode
10000000b	m times speed, second writing mode

If information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in the information storage medium together with information on the multi-speed, as shown in table 1, the optimal writing pattern and the recording speed of the information storage medium are determined at the same time. Accordingly, the drive records data in the information storage medium with improved performance.

If the information on the optimal writing pattern has been recorded in the reproduction-only area, it can be reproduced as a sum signal or a difference signal. If the information on the optimal writing pattern has been recorded in the recordable area, it can be reproduced as a sum signal.

A data area structure of an information storage medium according to a second embodiment of the present invention is shown in fig. 5. Referring to fig. 5, an information storage medium according to a second embodiment of the present invention includes a lead-in area 10, a user data area 20, and a lead-out area 30, as in the first embodiment of the present invention. However, the information storage medium of the second embodiment of the present invention stores information about whether it can operate in a drive following a version of a standard older than that to which the information storage medium follows.

Generally, information storage media complying with the same standard have the same recording conditions. Each time the standard of an information storage medium changes, its version also changes. In general, a newer information storage medium does not operate in a drive following an old version of standards because recording conditions are changed for the newer version of the information storage medium. In addition, an information storage medium following an old version of standards generally does not operate in a drive following a newer version of standards. However, there is an exceptional case where an information storage medium following a newer version of standards is operable in a drive following an older version of standards.

For example, an information storage medium operating at 3 × speed can always operate in a drive operating at 3 × speed. However, it is also possible that a 4 × speed information storage medium operates in a 3 × speed drive and a 2 × or 3 × speed information storage medium operates in a 5 × speed drive.

If an information storage medium operating at n (5. ltoreq. n.ltoreq.8) times speed can operate in a 2 x or 3 x speed drive, the version of the standard must not change. However, if the information storage medium cannot operate in an n-times speed drive, the version of the standard must be changed even when the information storage medium operates at its lowest speed. In other words, if the information storage medium cannot operate in an old version of drive even when operating at its lowest speed, the version of the standard must be changed.

However, when a new version of the standard is developed, an information storage medium following the new version of the standard is operable in a drive following the old version of the standard. In this case, if the information storage medium following the new version of standards does not store information about a drive following the old version of standards, data recording will not occur regardless of the fact that the information storage medium following the new version of standards is operable in the drive following the old version of standards. Accordingly, an information storage medium following the new version of standards stores information as to whether it is operable in a drive following the old version of standards.

Information regarding whether the information storage medium of fig. 5 is operable in a drive following an old version of standards is recorded in a reproduction-only area of the information storage medium of fig. 5 or a recordable area of at least one of the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30. More specifically, the information is recorded in bits of a prescribed byte of the reproduction-only area or the recordable area. Since the data structures of the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30 are similar to each other, only the lead-in area 10 will be described. The description is applicable to the lead-out area 30.

Referring to fig. 5, a disc control data zone 10-2 storing disc-related information is included in a reproduction-only area of the lead-in area 10. The recordable area includes a disc test zone 10-3, a drive test zone 10-4, a defect management zone 10-5, and a reserved zone 10-6. Fig. 6 illustrates another data area structure of an information storage medium according to a second embodiment of the present invention. For example, referring to fig. 6, the reserved area 10-6 stores information on whether the information storage medium is operable or inoperable in a drive following an old version of standards. If information regarding whether an information storage medium is operable or inoperable in a drive following an old version of standards has been recorded in a reproduction-only area in the form of pits, it can be reproduced as a sum signal or a difference signal. If information about whether an information storage medium is operable or inoperable in a drive following an old version of standards has been recorded in a recordable area, it can be reproduced as a sum signal.

In addition, information on whether the information storage medium is operable or inoperable in a drive following an old version of standards may be recorded in the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30, so that when a defect is generated in the information recorded in one of the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30, the information stored in the other non-defective area is used.

As described above, if an information storage medium following the n-version of the standard stores information about whether it is compatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than the n-version (e.g., the x-version of the standard), the drive reads out the information to select an appropriate information storage medium.

When the compatibility information is recorded in the n-version information storage medium, information regarding an optimal writing pattern is also recorded. The information on the optimal writing pattern may be recorded in the same byte or a different byte from the byte in which the compatibility information is recorded. When information on the optimal writing pattern and compatibility information are recorded in the same byte, they can be recorded in the following manner.

Both types of information are recordable in the form of a bit combination in a prescribed byte of a reproduction-only area or a recordable area of the lead-in area 10. For example, if 00000000b is recorded, the n version of information storage medium is not compatible with a drive following the x version of standards. If 00000001b is recorded, the n version of information storage medium is compatible with a drive following the x version of standards, and the optimal writing pattern is the first writing pattern type. If 00000010b is recorded, the n version of information storage medium is compatible with a drive following the x version of standards, and the optimal writing pattern is a second writing pattern type. If 00000011b is recorded, the n version of information storage medium is compatible with a drive following the x version of standards, and the optimal writing pattern is a third writing pattern type.

Information is recordable as to whether data can be efficiently recorded using a write pattern, in particular, using a multi-pulse write strategy. When the recording speed of the information storage medium is much higher than that of the drive, the multi-pulse write strategy is not available. In other words, since the recording speed of an information storage medium becomes much higher than the drive speed, it is likely that data is recorded in the information storage medium using a single pulse write strategy without using a multi-pulse write strategy. Therefore, if a new version of information storage medium is developed due to an increase in recording speed, information on whether data can be efficiently recorded in the information storage medium by using a multi-pulse write strategy is recorded.

Information on whether data is recordable or unrecordable using a multi-pulse write strategy is recordable in a recordable area or a reproduction-only area of at least one of the lead-in area 10 and the lead-out area 30. The data structures of the recordable area and the reproduction-only area have been described above. For example, 00000000b indicates that data cannot be recorded using the multi-pulse write strategy, and 00000001b indicates that data is recordable using the multi-pulse write strategy. Alternatively, 00000000b indicates that data is recordable using a multi-pulse write strategy, and 00000001b indicates that data is recordable using a single-pulse write strategy.

Information on whether data is recordable or unrecordable using the multi-pulse write strategy may be recorded separately or together with information on whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following an old version of standards.

If information on whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following an old version of standards and information on whether data is recordable or unrecordable using a multi-pulse write strategy have been recorded in a reproduction-only area of the lead-in area 10, they can be reproduced as a sum signal or a difference signal. If both types of information have been recorded in the recordable area, they can be reproduced as a sum signal.

The above description regarding the information storage medium according to the described embodiments of the present invention also applies to a multi-layered information storage medium having two or more recording layers.

Fig. 7 is a block diagram of a recording and/or reproducing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 7, the recording and/or reproducing apparatus includes a recording/readout unit 1001, a controller 1002, and a memory 1003. The recording/reading unit 1001 records data on a disc 1000, which is an embodiment of the information storage medium 1000 of the present invention, and reads out the data from the disc 1000. The controller 1002 records and reproduces disc-related data according to the present invention as set forth above with respect to fig. 3 to 6.

While not required in all aspects, it should be understood that the controller 1002 can be a computer implementing the methods using a computer program encoded on a computer readable medium. The computer may be implemented as a chip with firmware or may be a general or special purpose computer programmable to perform the method. In addition, it should be understood that, in order to achieve a recording capacity of several tens of gigabytes, the recording/reading unit 1001 may include a short-wavelength, high numerical aperture type unit that can be used to record several tens of gigabytes of data on the disc 1000. Examples of such units include, but are not limited to, units using light wavelengths of 405nm and having numerical apertures of 0.85, units compatible with blu-ray discs, and/or units compatible with Advanced Optical Discs (AODs).

Industrial applicability

As described above, the information storage medium according to the described embodiments of the present invention stores information about an optimal writing pattern, thereby increasing the speed of data recording. Recording data using the optimal writing pattern also improves recording performance.

Further, the information storage medium according to the described embodiment of the present invention stores information as to whether it is compatible with a drive complying with an old version of standards, so that the drive complying with the old version of standards is available even when the information storage medium complies with a new version of standards. Therefore, it is more convenient for the user to record data.

While certain embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments. Rather, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.

Claims (35)

1. A recording and/or reproducing apparatus for use with an information storage medium having a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, the apparatus comprising:

an optical pickup for transferring data on the information storage medium; and

a controller for controlling the optical pickup to detect compatibility information recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive using a first version of standard older than a second version of the information storage medium, and controlling the optical pickup to transfer data regarding the information storage medium according to one of the first and second versions detected from the compatibility information corresponding to the version of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the information storage medium stores information regarding an optimal writing pattern used by the drive during recording of the information, such that the information storage medium is operable in the drive following the first version of standards.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the information storage medium further stores strategy information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas comprises a reproduction-only area, and the compatibility information is recorded in the reproduction-only area.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the reproduction-only area is a disc control data zone storing disc-related information used by the controller to control the information storage medium.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the controller reproduces the compatibility information as one of a sum signal and a difference signal.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas comprises a recordable area, and the compatibility information is recorded in the recordable area.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the controller reproduces the compatibility information as a sum signal.

9. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in one of a same byte in which the compatibility information is recorded and a different byte from the byte in which the compatibility information is recorded.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein when the information on the optimal writing pattern and the compatibility information are recorded in the same byte, the information on the optimal writing pattern and the compatibility information are recorded in a prescribed byte of the lead-in area.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein:

when 00000000b is recorded in the specified byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is incompatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n,

when 00000001b is recorded in the specified byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n, and the optimal writing pattern is a first writing pattern type,

when 00000010b is recorded in the prescribed byte, the information storage medium uses a version n of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version older than n of the standard, and the optimal writing pattern is a second writing pattern type, and

when 00000011b is recorded in the prescribed byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n, and the optimal writing pattern is a third writing pattern type.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the introduction region comprises:

a disc control data area storing disc-related information;

a disc test area storing information for testing the information storage medium;

a driver test area storing information for testing a driver;

a defect management area storing information used by the controller to remove a defect generated on the information storage medium; and

a reserved area.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the lead-in area further comprises first and second buffers.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the lead-in area is divided into a reproduction-only area and a recordable area.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the first buffer area and the disc control data area are included in the reproduction-only area.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the disc test area, the drive test area, the defect management area, the reserved area, and the second buffer area are included in the recordable area.

17. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the information on the writing pattern used by the controller comprises at least one of a recording speed, a reproducing power, an initial pulse time (Ttop) of the recording pattern, a multi-pulse time (Tmp) of the recording pattern, a cooling pulse time of the recording pattern, a writing power (Pw), an erasing power (Pe), and a bias power (Pb).

18. A method of recording and/or reproducing data with respect to an information storage medium having a lead-in area, a user data area, and a lead-out area, the method comprising:

detecting compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a standard of a first version older than a second version of the information storage medium, from at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas; and

data regarding the user data area is transferred according to one of the first and second versions from the detected compatibility information corresponding to the device transferring the data.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the information storage medium stores information on an optimal writing pattern when the information storage medium is operable in a drive following the first version of standards.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the information storage medium further stores strategy information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data, and the step of transferring the data further comprises recording the data according to the stored strategy information.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas includes a reproduction-only area, and the compatibility information is detected from the reproduction-only area.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the reproduction-only area is a disc control data zone storing disc-related information for controlling the information storage medium.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the detecting of the compatibility information comprises reproducing the compatibility information as one of a sum signal and a difference signal.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas includes a recordable area, and the compatibility information is detected from the recordable area.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the compatibility information is reproduced as a sum signal.

26. The method of claim 19, wherein the information on the optimal writing pattern is recorded in one of a byte identical to a byte in which the compatibility information is recorded and a byte different from the byte in which the compatibility information is recorded.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein when the information on the optimal writing pattern and the compatibility information are recorded in the same byte, they are recorded in a prescribed byte of the lead-in area.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein:

when 00000000b is recorded in the specified byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is incompatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n,

when 00000001b is recorded in the specified byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n, and the optimal writing pattern is a first writing pattern type,

when 00000010b is recorded in the prescribed byte, the information storage medium uses a version n of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version older than n of the standard, and the optimal writing pattern is a second writing pattern type, and

when 00000011b is recorded in the prescribed byte, the information storage medium uses the n version of the standard and is compatible with a drive following a version of the standard older than n, and the optimal writing pattern is a third writing pattern type.

29. The method of claim 18, wherein introducing the region comprises:

a disc control data area storing disc-related information;

a disc test area storing information for testing the information storage medium;

a driver test area storing information for testing a driver;

a defect management area storing information for removing a defect generated on the information storage medium; and

a reserved area.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the lead-in area further comprises first and second buffers.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the lead-in area is divided into a reproduction-only area and a recordable area.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the first buffer area and the disc control data area are included in the reproduction-only area.

33. The method of claim 32, wherein the disc test area, the drive test area, the defect management area, the reserved area, and the second buffer area are included in the recordable area.

34. The method of claim 29, wherein the information on the writing pattern comprises at least one of a recording speed, a reproducing power, an initial pulse time (Ttop) of the recording pattern, a multi-pulse time (Tmp) of the recording pattern, a cooling pulse time of the recording pattern, a writing power (Pw), an erasing power (Pe), and a bias power (Pb).

35. A method of recording information on an information storage medium, comprising:

forming a lead-in region;

forming a user data area;

forming a lead-out region; and

one of compatibility information regarding whether the information storage medium is compatible with a drive following a standard of a version older than that of the information storage medium, information regarding which one of a multi-pulse write strategy and a single-pulse write strategy is used to record data, and information regarding an optimal write pattern is recorded in at least one of the lead-in and lead-out areas.