I have had CD's that are no longer readable, both a few that I burnt and some mass produced pressings. Yes with some effort, and copying them every now and again, the info on them would not have been lost. But most people just throw their negatives in a box.
My parents had a box (and I don't mean a shoe box either) full of negative in their attic dating back to the 1920's. They looked printable to me. They were lost along with my own archives when their house burned down in the 1980's.
Somehow I do not feel that current recording methods would result in 60 year old images still being usable with that same lack of care.
graywolf http://www.graywolfphoto.com "Idiot Proof" <==> "Expert Proof" -----------------------------------
Rob Studdert wrote:
On 13 Dec 2004 at 9:16, Jon Glass wrote:
All this is, of course, dependent on the one major weaknesses of digital _not_ being solved.
I've long thought this, but never expressed it. Now I'm curious what others think.
I'd suggest that if you don't own a fire proof safe with a hermetic seal which is housed in a climate controlled environment you really don't care for the longevity of your film archives? :-)
All my CDs from over 10 years ago are still readable, there are reasons for this just as there are reasons my film archives don't have water damage, mould problems or scratches (from me anyway).
If you search the archives you'll find this topic has been well pursued, not that I'm saying it should not be brought up again but you will glean some idea of the range of experience and thoughts of the group.
For some guidance check the following thread headings from within the last six months or so:
CD burners 35 vs digi - Some points to ponder. (kind of OT now Oh the gloom of it all Film Is Dead / A Contrary View Digital schmidgital It's over (was Re: Ilford in trouble? and digi snappers)
BTW I have never owned a PDA and I know very few people who do or have owned one in the past but I know a heck of a lot of people who have dumped film cameras and would never go back.
Cheers,
Rob Studdert HURSTVILLE AUSTRALIA Tel +61-2-9554-4110 UTC(GMT) +10 Hours [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://members.ozemail.com.au/~distudio/publications/ Pentax user since 1986, PDMLer since 1998
