 Sheila Regnault |
digital photos on cd I was just told -- although it could be a rumour -- that preserving your photos on cd will only last 2 or so years. Is this true?
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Pete H |
I've heard 5 yrs..Longer for a pressed CD. Backup-Backup-Backup Pete
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BetterPhoto Member |
They last longer on DVD. Why, I don't know.
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Sheila Regnault |
Thanks for the information. What is a "pressed" CD? How can I preserve my older photos which I just finished scanning and putting on CDs?
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robert G. Fately |
Sheila, it is true that cheap blank CDs can just go bad over time (2 years is a bit quick, but 4-5 years is not unheard of). This is because the dyes used in the ablation layer can fade or oxidize if any micro-cracks appear in the edge of the lamination due to flexure. In other words, if you buy cheap blanks and bend them while taking them out of their jewel cases, they might just become coasters in a few years. It has happened. However, if you but high quality blanks - Mitsui Gold is a brand many (including myself) feel is quite good), then this problem is mitigated. By using better chemicals in the dye layer, these CD blanks can hold their data for decades. DVDs, which use a better dye in the first place, last longer because of this as well (though you can also get gold DVD blanks). "Pressed" CDs are the commercial ones you buy at Tower Records. These are stamped (like vinyl LPs were in the olden days) so the pits are physically pressed into the plastic. They ain't goin' anywhere. When you burn a CD in your computer, though, the process is different - the dye layer I spoke of above changes color when hit with a laser, so instead of a physical depression (pit) being formed it's really more of a color change to allow or disallow reflectance of a read laser at a later time. So, if the dyes start to oxidize or fade, the data becomes lost. So, to answer your final question - buy high quality blank CDs. Google Mitsui Gold and you will find the US subsidiary - MAM-A - and you can order direct from them. Expect to pay about $1 per blank.
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Sheila Regnault |
Thank you all so very much. From all of the above I understand not to go the cheap way -- either paper, inks or discs. I have never seen Mitsui in Australia, but I do use TDK Gold. I also have my pictures on the laptop, an external hard drive and my desktop -- they can't ALL crash at once.
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