> On what side of a CD is the music -actually- on?  I've heard Label Side
 > & Unlabeled/Silver Side.  I've gotten rid of skips by cleaning the
     Well, the "music" is actually located a 0.1 micrometers below the
label side (not very far, that's why you can damage a disc easily from
the label side).  However, it is only "readable" from the bottom
(non-label) side of the cd which is always clear (kind of hard to read
through the label side when many of them have a coat of black paint on
it!)   Or you could look at it as the pit (music) layer is located
1.1mm from the bottom of the disc.  It is protected with polycarbonate
plastic on the bottom and is thus both scratch resistant (my glasses
are made from polycarbonate and they don't scratch easily at all) and
you can even rub out scratches and still not get to the music layer
very easily from that side.  The bottom is clear so the laser can read
the pits that are etched in the aluminum substrate in the
aforementioned location.
     So, for all intensive purposes, you can think of the music as
being on the bottom side of the disc since that's the side it's read
from.
     Anyways,  
 > Label
 > Side, my main CD player needs them label -down- to play, the CD-Boombox
     So does mine (Pioneer unit).  That's because the laser is located
above the spinning disc on that unit.  The laser shines down on the
data layer, so the bottom of the disc must face up.
     My older cd player and your boom box have the laser located below
the the cd spindle and therefore the bottom of the disc must face down
so the laser can shine UP onto the data layer on the bottom of the
disc.  You should be able to see the lens for the laser on the boom
box cd player.  
 > is label -up-!  I suppose the same is true for computers, which go
 > label
 > -up- in my Sony CD-ROM.  Could it be "tracking data" on one side and
 > "music data" on the other?  Facts anybody?
     Nope.  Current cds are only read from the bottom.  Laserdiscs
(those big 12" jobs that have movies on them) are double-sided and
thus have material on both sides.  The new DVD format which will
eventually replace the CD has both the capability for double sided
discs and TWO LAYERs on each side of the disc.  (the laser can focus
on either layer).  The dual layer technology doesn't even require an
aluminum substrate, so they *could* have CLEAR cds, but they're not
going to.  The first layer will be semi-transparent and the 2nd will
be an aluminum substrate like on CD.  The idea is that it's easier
(read "cheaper") to read the discs when more light is reflected back
off a layer like that.  
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