Aside from checking the manual for a particular DVD drive, is there any way to determine if a DVD drive supports DVD +R/-R (DL) for both reading and writing?In Windows, Nero InfoTool is a convenient way to determine the capabilities of a drive. Is there an equivalent tool (or method) for linux?
determining dvd drive capability
linux;dvd
You should be able to useless /proc/sys/dev/cdrom/infoto display the functionality of the DVD drive.  0 means an option is not enabled and a 1 signifies an option that is available.If you have libcdio installed you can use the cd-drive command for more detailed drive information.K3b is a graphical tool you can use that is similar to Nero.  Navigate to:Settings ==> Configure K3b ==> DevicesThis should display the DVD+R status.