Apologies if this has been asked before, but I'm struggling to understand the benefits of ripping over straight file copying.
Given that computers are sensitive to corrupt data, but we've all installed software that shipped on CD and DVD, it seems to me that computers are capable of making bit-perfect digital transfers of data from CD to HDD.
You can anecdotally verify this by copying arbitrary content (eg. documents, images, software programs) back and forth from CD to HDD an arbitrary number of times. If the disc is damaged it will be reported as a failed read or write.
So does a straight drag-n-drop of the tracks from a CD to my HDD (I'm using a mac) make a bit-perfect copy or not?
Many thanks,
-Darren
