Gifts which have been put together by hand have long been considered by many to be more thoughtful than those just purchased from the store. In the modern world it is possible to create some great digital gifts and put them on a CD or DVD disc in order to give them to your friends, co-workers, or family members. Take a look at these four ideas:
1. A Photo Album
Classic photo albums have been a gift for years. With the advent of computers and in particular digital photography we now have the ability to put a large number of photos onto a disc. While a classic album might have had room for twenty to a hundred photos, you can fit far more images than that onto a disc. So there’s no need to agonize over a choice between the picture of your sister getting soaked by cousin John doing a cannonball at the pool, or the one of her chasing him in the parking lot. You can add them both to the gift, and still have plenty of room for those pictures of her solo at the jazz choir concert.
2. A Music Compilation
Long ago people used to make each other mix-tapes, but now you can make a compilation on disc from all the music you want to share. You can choose from making a disc which will run on a normal CD player (which will get you about 70 minutes of music), but many players now offer the ability to play digital MP3 files as well. This means you can put a huge number of songs on a single disc.
3. A Video From a Special Event
With digital video incredibly commonplace on phones and hand held recorders making a chronicle of an event can be a lot of fun. A great idea for a wedding is to encourage all of your friends and family to film away with their own devices, and to send you the videos they take. A little editing and piecing together of the pieces can make for a fabulous gift to send everyone with (or even as) the thank-you cards. Video recordings from all kinds of events can be a great way to let people relive memories, or keep them connected when they’re far away.
4. A Collection of Keepsake Messages
Life is full of milestones, and sometimes it’s a great idea to commemorate them with messages from friends, co-workers, and loved ones. Graduations, promotions, retirements, enlistments, and more. The list of special events in our lives go on and on, and making a compilation of video messages from yourself and others related to an important day in someone’s life can really let them know just how you all feel about them.
All of these ideas require a bit of software and some knowledge to implement, but they don’t have to cost much to make, and they have a great deal of sentimental impact when done properly. So if you’re looking for a great idea, consider one of these four ways to make use of discs. You’ll be giving someone a gift they’re not going to forget.