@unclebob
Have a read through the tutorial I have posted
here.
I cant comment on wether Lite-Ons etc are better burners or not but I can tell you the method I use to backup DVD movies works 100%.
It may look a bit daunting at first but it really is not hard once you have done a couple.
Give it a try before you go and spend more money on other burners and players!
The programs I use are
AnyDVD, CloneDVD2 and
Nero.
Trial versions are available for each program. Click on the name of the program to be taken to the download page. (AnyDVD and CloneDVD2 are available from the same site.)
Good luck