[macworks]

Adam: You could certainly try using a laser lens cleaner. I've also noticed that older drives sometimes have issues working with modern disks. I suspect this is due to the fact that newer burners are burning "lighter" spots and as such, sometimes older drives have a harder time reading. Now I know that, to you, your iMac G5 is not an "older" computer. And that's a totally reasonable position to take. I just wanted to relate my experience with optical drives over the years.

You'll also want to watch your iMac G5 carefully. I've seen a number of them with blown capacitors on their logic boards recently. All you have to do is take the back panel off (3 screws) and look at the "cans" just above the power supply. The should have flat "tops". If they are bulging or "oozing" at all, then you're logic board is done for. You're likely to have problems starting up after a shut down. You might also experience the random freeze or kernel panic and/or a whole host of other problems. Also note that in some cases, the logic board AND the power supply need to be replaced at the same time.