ronmatt

Neo/Gaussian; I only posted that 6-10 thingy as a guide to the fact that CD's aren't the 'end all' for saving and storing data. They degrade. I read that if they have a label on the backside, they degrade even faster. And if you use a 'sharpy' (as I have), faster still. The problem is the chemical reaction effecting the 'disk side' of the [film?]occuring 'through' the disk material. it has nothing to do with the coating. I just don't think it's worth the gamble to prove that one CD brand, or one writer is better than another. I, of course, refer to personal documents and photos of the kids and grandkids being stored for posterity. Everything has limitations. Just a heads-up. Many people think these things will last forever.

Gaussian

Oh, ok.?

I never said that Ron. No, the chemical reaction is not the main risk factor. If you save these media under good conditions then they will last a lost long time. The main risk is the protective layer. If the protective layers are not "glued" properly then over time oxygen (enemy #1), other chemicals or bacteria can reach the main layer.


What gamble? All digital data is a gamble. I also never advised to store a DVD and then look 10 years later if you can still read it, because yes, then you sure take a big gamble!?
But not only digital data is a gamble, everthing can be stolen or can be lost in a fire is a gamble. The whole idea behind my post is the reduce the gamble. I think it's a lot more of a gamble to store everything only on your hard drive. You only pick out one part of the post, like quality of the drive or media. I don't think you understand the complete picture that I'm trying to draw here.

Trust me Ron, I've done this at a much larger scale, major international companies for which I developed large disaster and recovery plans, plans that were needed to protect investments of tens if not hundreds of millions. There are better solutions than the ones I mentioned, but the problem is that these professional solutions are too expensive or complicated for the average Joe and Jane.

Yes and that's why it's good you bring this under the attention, but I don't think that CD/DVD deserves the picture of being a poor backup medium, because that's simply not true if you take the right precautions.

namvet

ummm, \:/ ... a 'passed' member

ronmatt ... and I for one, appreciate your post ... we, 'mere mortals' who use computers, need guys like you to educate us and alert us to possible problems .... now I really must get that external hard drive next time I'm in the city .... (uugh! .. another city trip!! ... [bustagut] ... )

Shaun

Canvassy backgrounds - and what about a title page in the style of the old fashioned samplers
they used to be so fond of making? Could be quite interesting making the lettering look like it's
actually been embroidered.

aironite

CD's would last for 6 years........ Would an external Hard Drive be good for storing my valuables? How long would that last?

Smoke420

surprisingly, Hard drives can go a lot sooner than some think. I have had many friends with good hds that have gone out within less than 3 years. Depends on the usage I assume. I back up everything. CDs onto hard drives, hard drives onto hard drives, hard drives onto cds. That'd be cool if I could plug a usb into the back of my brain like a spinal cord and just download all the data

ricib

great scrapbook page Alistair.

I scan anything and everything that has a graphic on it and put it in my scanned clipart directory. You never know when that Happy Birthday napkin will come in handy.

ronmatt

The answer is so obvious.....retrotech. These babies will last practically forever if you safeguard them. All we need is a USB connector to the recording devise ( retrofitted ), which you can probably pick up at a recycling center or flee market somewhere. Thomas Alva was a man of great vision..