Will Your Photos Last a Thousand Years? - Comments Page 1

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Comment Page: 1 |  2 

Posted by:

Dale
01 Nov 2016

Will using M-Discs for music also obtain the same results or is music stored on conventional CD-Rs and DVD-Rs safe from storage degradation?
Thanks.

Posted by:

IanG
01 Nov 2016

A timely article, Bob, as usual.

This subject has been of concern to me of late as I have spent months and months scanning in thousands of old photos. But those I have mainly kept on four backup hard drives and have been circulating them to younger family members on USB sticks.

The main reason I found your article interesting was because I have also been copying many scores of DVDs from the hard drive of my DVR to store. Some of my older DVDs wouldn't play. But I came across Verbatim Archival Grade DVD-R discs and have been using these. They are quite a lot more expensive and I haven't been using them long enough to really test their durability.

What are your thoughts on those?

Posted by:

Stu
01 Nov 2016

Hi Bob. I use LG BP50NB40 and Verbatim BD-R 'M' discs. All my data is backed up to M discs. The real important stuff get encrypted before burning. I format the M disc as a USB drive so I can read/write and delete to a 25GB BD-R "M" disc.
Good article that endorses what I already do...
I do not plan on coming back in 1000 years to check if all the data is still there!

Posted by:

larry Pierce
01 Nov 2016

M-disks cost ~ $0.20/G
but usb flash drive ~ $0.25/G
I think as long as do not write to flash drive
too often usb flash drive would last a long time
so if write once to store data perhaps usb flash
may last 20 years?

Posted by:

Greg
01 Nov 2016

About two years ago I purchased an LG DVD writer that clearly stated on the box that it was M-Disk capable. I then went to the sales staff & even the tech dept and asked them if they sold M-Disks. NO One had any idea what I was talking about. It was only after I showed them the DVD writer box that they believed that such a thing existed, and I wasn't just a middle aged idiot. Of course the large electronics store did NOT have any M-Disks. I am glad that you refreshed this topic as I was concerned that these might have faded away.
-Greg

Posted by:

William Greer
01 Nov 2016

Bob, thanks for the good information (as usual). How does CD storage compare with the expected longevity of cloud server storage -- such as used by Google Drive?

Posted by:

Bill
01 Nov 2016

I've got DVDs and CDs that are pushing 20 years since I've recorded on them and they're still fine. I've heard the stories about laser rot since the first laserdisc came out and I still have some of those. They still play just fine as well, although the picture quality isn't up to today's standards. I think they'll probably outlast my ancient laserdisc player. As for pictures I've recorded on my DVDs and CDs lasting 1,00 years, I'll have to wait and see. ;)

Posted by:

Mark
01 Nov 2016

How long will a usb flash drive last?
Mitsui claims their gold CDs/DVDs will last 100 years or more. Is this true?

Posted by:

bb
01 Nov 2016

Like Bill, I have DVDs and even older CDs (including my first burned CD-R) that have lasted 20+ years. In fact, the *only* optical disks that I've had go bad are those that have been physically mis-treated, either by scratches or exposed to excessive heat or sunlight.
So don't do that! "Standard CD and DVD discs have an expected lifespan of just 3 to 5 years" sounds like something from a advertisement for M-disk.
What may be more important is the file *format* used, I don't think many things can read all my old WordStar files! I'd guess that JPGs and PDFs will be around much longer than .wpd or .wps files. And don't forget about a reader, do you still have a drive that can read that 5-1/4" floppy? Or 100M Zip drive?
Larry Pierce: About using flash memory for archive backup: Don't! When not used, flash memory loses it's bits over time just like a battery loses charge over time. It may not be worn out, but in 10+ years of not being used (to pick a random time) it will not be readable. Magnetic storage is more stable, albeit not as stable as properly kept optical storage.

Posted by:

David
01 Nov 2016

As a matter of interest how long do commercially produced dvds/blu-rays last? Will I still be able to watch my film collection in 20 years time?

Posted by:

Joe M
01 Nov 2016

I've given up on CD's and DVD's altogether. Put everything on a NAS and back up the data to secondary storage. Data CD's, Music CD's, Video DVD's - everything is being ripped to the NAS. I have a few damaged discs and have purchased a CD/DVD resurfacer in the hopes of retrieving those as well.

Posted by:

Sarah L
01 Nov 2016

That is good to learn! I had no idea the colors on a CD or DVD had such a short life. My question is about the way the image is read so that it makes the same image. Software changes so much, does that enter this picture, of saving images? I began thinking it might be better to print important photos so they can be seen by future generations.

Posted by:

bobdeloyd
01 Nov 2016

I doubt that a thousand years from now folks wouldn't even know what a DVD is or have the means to read it. Maybe even 20 years from now folks wouldn't know.
I know there are some who are younger that don't know what a cassette is.
The only way I can see data lasting for a thousand years is to store the data on something dynamic that changes with advances in technology throughout the years. This would be online on the internet and also offline storage in many places like universities around the world and updated once a year. Companies come and go, even Google could go belly-up at some point, so this "Heritage" achieve would have to be maintained by some type of organization supported by governments and private monies. This is the only way I can foresee data lasting over a thousand years.
Sorry this is so long, but it got me thinking... I write scifi books ;)

Posted by:

Gary
01 Nov 2016

With the massive take up of USB flash drives and SSD and their improving life span, will there be any CD/DVD drives available or being made in 100 years time to read CD/DVDs?

Posted by:

Chris
01 Nov 2016

Even the most trusted expert indulges in alamist stuff from time. Sure gets your attention. I have CDs going way back and they can still be read. They've been well looked after.

Posted by:

Denis Ferguson
01 Nov 2016

I think bb has provided the most pertinent comment. How long do you expect to have a device that will read and interpret what is written on these disks? Short of putting a device to do this into storage alongside the long term media, you could be struggling in 20 or 30 years time.
Forget about these long term media and backup to the cloud and to whatever the current proven reliable media is. Copy from old media to new as technology changes.

Posted by:

abrogard
02 Nov 2016

It is ironic that the best storage medium should be, at this late date, solid stone, isn't it? Engrave the bits on a block of granite and they'd last as long as the pyramids, etc...

But there is something new: DNA. New Scientist and such carry articles about the idea. DNA has sometimes lasted for tens of thousands of years.

The idea is to borrow from nature and encode on DNA. Not only almost indestructable but incredibly tiny. Get all the world's data in a matchbox (or whatever, I'm only guessing).

Meanwhile I use Hard Drives. No one has mentioned those, have they? Googling gets some interesting ideas on it but generally I think they're pretty good for off-line, sitting around in the cupboard, long term storage. Until the DNA gets here.

Posted by:

abrogard
02 Nov 2016

p.s.
I meant 'indestructable' to refer to 'naturally' destroying itself, of course, like the other mediums... not as in destroyed by fire or something. (though I think dna can handle some pretty harsh treatment).

Posted by:

Kerry
02 Nov 2016

Thanks for another interesting article Bob. I will certainly look into getting a drive and burn my own disks.

In reply to David about the life of commercial DVDs, my wife bought series 1 of Bones about 8 years ago and now 5 of the 6 disks are unreadable even though they look in good condition and have only been played a few times.

Posted by:

David
02 Nov 2016

Thank you Kerry, that's bad news.

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