I forwarded Vauter's email to a "friend in the know" and this is what I got back: I'd suspect that this is just a "new and improved" way to spend your hard earned dollars... Aside from the scratches, high temperatures, i.e., inside a hot car over a long period of time (and the occasional microwave trick that makes lightning) CDs are pretty indestructible... They are a "sandwich" of layered substrates one of which gets "burned" with the data... I thought the "New and Improved" advertising ploy went out with Tide? I guess P.T. Barnum was right... Here's some info on the CD life... http://www.isomedia.com/homes/isomedia/CD/cd_rom_faq/faq_41.html http://www.osta.org/technology/cdqa13.htm http://www.education.purdue.edu/edit/misc/workshops/cdrw/ http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0002gf This should get you started... Everything else I can find in mimics this information... julia -----Original Message----- From: vaut...@aol.com To: cave...@cavetex.net Sent: Mon, 12 Sep 2005 17:27:54 -0400 Subject: CaveTex: OFF TOPIC: cd storage and lifespan
I know that this is off-topic, but I seem to remember a while back that someone(s) had been posting their planned experiment to see just how "permanent" cd-r's were with data backup. I ask this because I see on the back page of the latest Light Impressions catalog that there is a cd they are peddling which claims to be "the 300 Year Disc." Other claims are that it is the "best CD on the market," that its "patented dye makes stored data easier to read," and that "24k gold stops CD rot." Knowing the combined knowledge of the caving community is pretty impressive, does anyone out there have any input on this? I know that with my digital images, the only option I really have for storage is on either CD-R's or DVD's. Which is better, and is this "300 Year Disc" all it claims to be. Of course, if it only lasts 250 years, who do I go to complain to? Vauter
