A method for labeling a plurality of tracks on a medium (100) is disclosed. The method detects one or more contiguous blank pixels at the conclusion of a data set representing a first track. An endingposition (501) for the first track is set at a last non-blank pixel. At least a portion of the first track up to the ending position (501) is labeled before advancing to a second track. The data setmay have a header comprising shift information for the ending position (501).