Skipping CDs -

When I was young and foolish, I thought CDs and DVDs were indestructable, now I'm stuck with a huge pile of CDs that won't even play anymore. Aside from spending a fortune on a grinder polisher, or sending them off to a company to have refurbished... is there a method, product, or prayer that will bring these guys back to life?
Thanks

Theres programs that will try and read cds 100+ times to get all the data off it - google it.

Exact Audio Copier. Look into secure mode. If it doesn't work try it on different CD-Rom drives.

heh it really does depend on which side u scratched though huh?
was it the metal side or plastic side? If its the plastic side u can get liquid stuff which u just rub on it and it fills the scratches, cant remember name of any of them though

If its minor scratches on the playing surface causing the skipping, try smearing with a little toothpaste - you may laugh now (i did too) but i`ve seen it done and it worked, to my utter disbelief.

If the label side has been scratched, your fucked.

brasso works wonders too

Thank you all for your help.... my roommate had done some research on-line and found some products, one had a free sample that they send you. I got the sample yesterday there was enough in the little packet to treat a couple of discs and it actually fixed 3 out of 3 CDs - Perfectly ! ... Woo Hoo... Some audiophile guy recommends the stuff, and it is made by one of the top car products co. I think I'll invest in some more.... still got about a dozen to go... not to mention rental DVDs that never play (yeah.. it is supposed to fix them too.) The stuff is Sonic Blast from 303 Products.... www.303sonicblast.com cheap too (especially the Free sample )
Anyone else had any luck with this kinda thing? Sounds kinda hokey, but, damn, it worked for me. Thoughts on how this stuff might actually work?
Just thought I'd spread the news.

Make sure you copy your CDs onto new ones, but keep the originals in case the RIANZ gets hold of you...