In reply to: Anna Silliman Hi Anna,
> The other reason I like MO is that using the disks is > more like using a removable hard drive. You can add > things in increments if you want (not like burning a CD). Sounds good. > If one has data that really might need to be accessed > that far in the future, there's another important > consideration--will the software and operating systems > then still be able to read the data, even if the > media is okay? Probably not, but in my case, I won't be getting any new software or operating systems ... not unless I turn into a bank-robber or something, which isn't likely, *or* if... all new shareware drops to $1 each and the full version of Photoshop goes to $19 and new graphics-capable computers drop to, I dunno, $50 or something - then *that* would change the picture, but I don't see that happening anytime soon... software prices don't seem to fall anywhere near as fast as hardware prices do, and I have spent a *lot* more $ spent on software than on hardware (back when I was still able to do that). So, I'm going to have to make this last, one way or another. > For example, say you have a ten-year old file of a > publication that you created in PageMaker or an older > page-layout program, and that you > have plenty of backups of this document. Will a newer > version of PageMaker on OS XXXI a few years from now still > be able to open that old file though? Well, for most "normal" people who have a decent income or even some distant hope of eventually *getting* a decent income, that's a very valid question. In my case, however, it won't apply (not being negative, just realistic). If this 8600 conks out, I'll just have to find replacement parts or replacement similar old/obsolete/antique Mac where all my software *will* run. I do have spares of some parts already - memory, CD drives, Zip drives (like *those* are good for much anymore, but still), and a few other things. The weak link is the printers (I have two) - they will probably be the first things to go - and even if they don't outright fail, there would still be the problem of replacement ink, and when they do eventually give up the ghost, that would present something that I'd have to find a workaround for. Even though one of my hobbies is Photoshop and Painter stuff, I'm not a pro - total hobbyist here - and as such, I don't have to worry about service-bureaus' file-compatibility or whatever, so when Photoshop 5.x format becomes obsolete or whatever, it won't affect me that much. > So, if you are preserving that kind of file the thing > to do is remember to open it up every few years, load it > in and re-save in the newer format, so that the file > will continue to be useful. That's very good advice, in general, and I do agree with you, and I see your point. Kind of a spin-off of that, that I've been doing with some of my stuff, is to copy the stuff onto another disk periodically. In the case of the few hold-out (ack) Zips that I still have lurking in dark corners (stuff that I sort-of care about but not really enough to bother putting on CD-R since I want to be able to change it sometimes), I copy the data and then reformat the original (someone told me that gets rid of bad-blocks or whatever, not sure what that means, but it sounded logical at the time). I do likewise with my hard-drives - reformat them once a year or so. Probably not really necessary, since I use a pretty good assortment of good-quality maintenance apps (DiskWarrior for the directory, Norton for bad-blocks and bundle bits and all that, etc) but I've heard that the only way to get fresh info in the "partition-map" (whatever that is - it sounds important, though) is to reformat periodically, so that's the reason I do that (I'm a partition junky - they make my computer experience a *lot* easier). (glancing over my post here, I suppose I come across as some sort of doomsday Mac-survivalist ;) or something - stocking up on things or whatever - but I'd rather solve some problems now, while it's still possible, rather than be rudely surprised with unsolvable problems later. And, although it may not be fashionable to air financial stuff, it nevertheless is a big part of the picture and it's not something I can change, given present circumstances) Well, thanks again for your replies and for your very sound advice, I appreciate it! - Jamie Marie . __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail Plus � Powerful. Affordable. Sign up now. http://mailplus.yahoo.com -- PCI-PowerMacs is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- Sonnet & PowerLogix Upgrades - start at $169 | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> PCI-PowerMacs list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/pci-powermacs.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive:<http://www.mail-archive.com/pci-powermacs%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
