Sometimes. The problem is that CD-Rs (Orange Book Part II) are "invisible" to DVD laser wavelength because the dye used in CD-Rs doesn't reflect the beam. Some first-generation DVD-ROM drives and many DVD players can't read CD-Rs. The formulation of dye used by different CD-R manufacturers also affects readability. That is, some brands of CD-R have better reflectivity at DVD laser wavelength, but even these don't reliably work in all players.
The common solution is for the DVD player or drive to use two lasers at different wavelengths: one for reading DVDs and the other for reading CDs and CD-Rs. Variations on the theme include Sony's "dual discrete optical pickup" with switchable pickup assemblies with separate optics, Sony's dual-wavelength laser (to be initially deployed on Playstation 2), Samsung's "annular masked objective lens" with a shared optical path, Toshiba's similar shared optical path using an objective lens masked with a coating that's transparent only to 650-nm light, Hitachi's switchable objective lens assembly, and Matsushita's holographic dual-focus lens. The MultiRead logo guarantees compatibility with CD-R and CD-RW media, but unfortunately, few manufacturers are using it.
Bottom line: If you want a DVD player that can read CD-R discs, look for a "dual laser" or "dual optics" feature.
An effort to develop CD-R "Type II" media compatible with both CD and DVD wavelengths was abandoned.
DVD-ROM drives can't record on CD-R or any other media. There are a few combination DVD-ROM/CD-RW drives that can write to CD-R and CD-RW. Current writable DVD drives (see 4.3) can't record on CD-R or CD-RW, although future versions will.
The loop pricing is based on distance, I believe. The coop's website claims $220/mo for a local loop (but I don't see what city "local" is). Sunnyvale is $350/mo, SF $500/mo. The prices and some info on why they're not offering DSL are here.
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Mmmmm... green beer.
http://www.dvddemystified.com/dvdfaq.html#2.4.3
To quote:
The loop pricing is based on distance, I believe. The coop's website claims $220/mo for a local loop (but I don't see what city "local" is). Sunnyvale is $350/mo, SF $500/mo. The prices and some info on why they're not offering DSL are here.