The funny thing about computers is they can make life more simple while complicating it at the very same time. For example, the fairly recent advent of movie, television and music downloads has made it very easy for people to get their favorite entertainment quickly, any time of the day or night.

But in the same token, those downloads can become a big storage issue for those with small hard drives. This is where burning software can come in handy.

Whether you purchase movies, TV shows or music online, burning software can help take care of storage and backup issues by taking the downloads off the hard drive and putting them in a different location for storage and even play. Burning software simply allows the computer to talk to a DVD or CD burning device while managing the functions of the burn.

Burning software is available that can do a number of things to help manage a collection of downloads. Not all software principles are considered legal, but those that are can be real headache savers for download lovers.

In general, burning software can do these things for you:

* Provide you a way to back up your downloads. This is important for anyone who doesn't want to risk losing their download purchases in a hard drive crash. Having a $1,000 movie collection "trapped" on a computer isn't a smart thing. Backing it up via burning software can be very wise indeed. This is something that's generally allowed by digital protections built into downloads, too, so there's no need to worry about copyright infringement.

* Organization of downloads. Burning software tends to allow for easier management of downloads. Rather than having file after file of mish-mashed downloads, the software enables the creation of special disks for storage and organization.

* Portable viewing/playing. While some downloads won't allow for the creation of CDs or DVDs for playing or viewing, some will. When this is the case, burning software will enable the creation of a DVD movie from a download so you can take it on the go, pop it in a DVD player and view it.

When actual DVD quality burns aren't allowed due to copyright protections, backups still typically are. This means the disks can hold the files or replay on the computer only at a later time. Remember though that computerized downloads can be played on regular TV screens with a few simple connections.

* Unlocking DRM. There is a lot of burning software available that will allow the breaking of DRM codes. This means downloads that can't be burned to DVD for viewing on a DVD player can be when the code is cracked. This isn't considered legal, but the fact is this type of software is available.

Anyone who has a digital download library on their computer would do well to investigate burning software. Whether it's for the creation of playable disks or the simple backup and storage of buys, this software can make downloads even more enjoyable. Trying to keep up with hundreds of downloads in a computer can result in a big loss if burns aren't made and a hard drive crashes.