Can somebody explain the differences between these terms

Dvd-r, Dvd+r, Dvd-rw, Dvd+rw

[sadelb]

what are the differences between these terms.. I just got a new laptop and it has a duel dvd player +/-.. i think it is compatible with the new double density dvds but I am just curious what all of those terms mean, what I can and cant do with each of them.. I know the RW are rewritables but what does the + and - mean.

[kodaks]

There is an excellent article about this at DVDR Digest:
[dvdr-digest.com...]

[sadelb]

thanks for the article... i understand everything about them now... there are dvd players that do support dvd- and + drives now though.. the article said it wasnt available as of yet..

[kodaks]

the article said it wasnt available as of yet

Note that the article was written Jan 2003, so it may be a bit outdated.