How do I polish out scratches on DVDs?

A: Since you took the time to write in, I know that you've already tried cleaning your disc and you know for certain that your DVD is scratched.

Your best bet is to take your DVD to a game store like Game Stop. They'll probably charge you a  couple bucks to buff out the scratches in one of their machines, but it's worth it.

There are some things you need to keep in mind, however. The scratch(es) may be too deep to buff out. Remember, that polycarbonate covering is pretty darn thin and there's only so much you can do. And, along the same lines, you can't keep buffing and rebuffing the same disc. Every time that disc is buffed, it's removing a thin layer of polycarbonate from the disc.

You may have been hoping I'd weigh-in on whether or not you could buff out the scratches using toothpaste or peanut butter. Here's the thing, if your DVD is some readily-available, mass-marketed DVD, go ahead and give one of those home remedies a shot. If it works you saved yourself $5. If you accidently mess up your disc, you can get a new one for $10-15. No harm, no foul.

But, if that disc has your wedding or some other one-of-a-kind thing on it, just take it to the professionals. It's not worth the drama of explaining to your spouse how you tried to save $5 by rubbing peanut butter on your wedding DVD.