on 8/6/01 6:13 PM, Lynn Allen at ktrout@hotmail.com wrote:
>
> PC World (I got my copy just 2 hours ago) has some comments on DVD-RW and
> DVD-RAM. Not enough info, IMO, but a start. DVD holds a lot of data (up to
> 14 MB). Down side: if it goes bad, you *lose* a lot of data!
>
> AFAICT, there's no clear-cut "winner" for storage--maybe the answer is to
> buy 2 or 3 recording machines--one to use, one for backup, and one for
> parts. Not too practical, is it? More likely than media obsolescence is
> *format* obsolescence. My only answer is to store on more than one disc and
> if you can, store on more than one medium and more than one format. And keep
> your original film in a safe place, because there's some chance that you or
> someone will have to do this again in 10 or 20 years.
>
> The scrolls in the Library of Alexandria, I'm told, were burned to heat the
> baths of the conquering generals. OTOH, my record as a new Nostrodamus is
> not perfect, either. Looking in either direction, the permanence of anything
> we know is still a crapshoot. :-)
>
>> From: "Mark Edmonds" <mmje@mmje.demon.co.uk>
>>
>> Basically, I am looking for a long term (20 years+) storage medium to
>> archive my scans on. I don't have faith in CDR and tapes are also prone to
>> long term problems so the only solution I can see is a magneto optical
>> disk.
>> Another problem is that it is all well and good to have a bomb proof medium
>> but it is no good if no one makes the hardware to read it in a few years
>> time.
>>
>> So is there a clear cut winner out there? The two affordable options I am
>> looking at are either the Iomega Optical drive or the Panasonic DVD-RAM.
>> The
>> Iomega seems to support a format which has some penetration in the market
>> but the DVD-RAM looks like it might not have got very far. I am running
>> NT4.0 by the way.
>>
I agree with Lynn that there are no clearcut winners. However, I am willing
to hedge my bets and say that the broadest acceptable standard is likely to
win. To this end, since I am not in a rush, I am willing to wait a few
months until the DVD+RW format hits the market, read the reviews, then make
an informed buying decision. For more on DVD+RW, see the following sites:
There are other sites, but these will give you the flavor.
Jim Snyder
