[Discussion] Gold CDs [was: Disk Backup to CD (Carl Gehr)]

[Joseph Hansen]

May 10, 2007

I think I posted this information here about a year ago.

Inkjet Art sells gold-plated mitsui CDs that are claimed to be highly  
resistant to deterioration from heat and UV radiation, with a  
projected lifetime of 200 years.  They're expensive: about $1.50 each  
in small quantities.

For more information, see: http://www.inkjetart.com/mitsui/index.html

I do not have personal experience with these CDs, but would like to  
hear from anyone who has.

Joe


On May 10, 2007, at 5:48 PM, Carl Gehr wrote:

> Specifically regarding STORING of whatever media you use:
> 	I have a Safe Deposit Box at a nearby bank!
> The fireproof safe/box that I keep in house is only temporary
> before the media is moved to the bank.
>
> Carl
>
> On Thu, 10 May 2007 13:00:12 -0700, Bill Nicholls wrote:
>
>> Keep in mind that CDs are *not* a robust mechanism for storage. Both
>> heat and light will accelerate the aging of the CD.
>>
>> As my friend Van found out, never leave you CD on a windowsill. He
>> picked it up after the afternoon sun had hit it for about two  
>> hours and
>> it was totally erased.
>>
>> Unless you have a fireproof safe that limits the inside temp to  
>> boiling
>> water, the heat from a fire will also destroy non-stamped CDs. All in
>> all, they really are only a temporary storage medium.
>>
>> Alternatives:
>> 1. DVDs - these are harder to erase, but not proof against a lot of
>> light or heat.
>> 2. Tape - the traditional backup still has a lot of value. Van  
>> tells me
>> that good tape drives, often with useable tapes, are available on  
>> ebay
>> for 5% of original cost, sometimes less. A good tape in a (non-cheap
>> 2000 degree F, 2 hours)) fireproof safe will survive even a very  
>> hot fire.
>> 3. Raid Drives - This is my current mecanism for backup, though I  
>> am in
>> the process of setting up a cheap DDS4 tape backup system, using  
>> Bacula
>> (recommended open source). A pair of RAID1 200GB drives is about  
>> $125,
>> and even a fire is unlikely to destroy the data unless the drives get
>> hot enough to warp.
>>
>> Recommendation:
>> This is what I am doing. I already have multiple RAID1 drives in
>> different systems. I backup core files to two sets of raid drives if
>> they are important. For my video files I have a 1T RAID5 that can be
>> expanded to 2.5T with three more 500GB drives. I can recommend  
>> Hitachi
>> for this, though Segate's best are also fine, about the same price.
>> Currently high quality 500GB drives go for about $130-140.
>>
>> In the next month I will be setting up the tapes and buying a $3-400
>> fireproof safe.
>>
>> I know it's not cheap, but have you considered how much it costs to
>> recover data from one drive? $300 down, no upper limit and no  
>> guarantee.
>> Ouch!  Remember, digital photos and other personal stuff cannot be
>> replaced and insurance is not much compensation.
>>
>> BillN
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>
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Joseph J Hansen
Lexington Strategic Associates
221 Follen Road, Lexington, MA 02421-5802

tel (781) 863-5003
jhansen at LexSA.com,  www.LexSA.com