Re: saving digital photographs
Alan Chandler <alan@chandlerfamily.org.uk> writes:
> On Sunday 10 September 2006 03:05, H.S. wrote:
>> I have around 4.5GB of photos from the past few years on my hard disk. I
>> have all of these as albums in digikam. I am thinking of saving these on
>> to a DVD and freeing up the space from my hard disk. I was wondering if
>> anyone has any suggestions on how best to do this.
Don't be penny-wise and pound foolish! Hard drives never have been more
affordable. If you are pressed for disc space, save yourself much time
and potential grief by simply purchasing a new drive, either as a
replacement or else as a second drive.
Both the CD and the DVD are quite susceptible to mechanical damage,
particularly on the back side, on which is the reflective layer, just
under the paint or label. Moreover, the reflective layer is prone to
flaking and peeling with time and with variation in temperature and
humidity. And the reflective layer, unless it is gold, is susceptible
to dulling with oxidation, for the sandwich construction does not
provide a hermetic seal for the reflective layer. There even have been
reports of a strain of bacteria, said to be found in tropical regions of
the earth, which feeds upon aluminum, and which has been known to eat
away the reflective layer of CDs. Finally, any dye-based system such as
user-burnable CD or DVD is prone to chemical changes of the dye with
time, temperature, and humidity. Consequently, CD and DVD are not
worthy candidates for archival storage.
Within reasonable economic constraints, the safest options for long-term
storage of irreplaceable data appear to be conventional fixed disk
drives and flash media. However, because of the fact that drive
electronics likewise are susceptible to the effects of time, heat, and
humidity, and in view of the fact that technological changes can leave
the average user with no way to access data on an obsolete device,
valuable data should be transferred to a new fixed drive or new flash
device every five years or so.
Of course, redundancy is recommended: put irreplaceable data on more
than one device, and keep at least one copy off-site, to protect against
fire, flood, vandalism, user errors, etc. Friends and families would do
well to provide one another drive space for off-site storage of
redundant archives; in view of the plummeting cost of storage devices,
to do so has become practical and of negligible cost. (Here in the US,
a 300- to 400-Gbyte Seagate drive can be had for a hundred dollars US.)
(An Example: Does anyone remember the 8-inch floppy, which came in both
single- and double-side versions, and in both single- and double-density
variations? And does anyone still have running a system which can read
these floppies? And are 20-year-old floppies still readable, or has the
binder for the magnetic oxide turned to gum?)
RLH
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