Worn out media

[24bit]

So the lightning struck me too.
Some of my very early toasted media like Office 4.2 are no longer useable.
Even my old Apple CD300 drive refuses to read them!
I suppose the reflective layer is the problem, as one can almost see through the media.
(Of course MSO4.2 is not that big loss.)

I just wonder how others are proceeding with old media.
What would be the safest place for old files in your opinion:
The cloud maybe, or USB HDDs?
Magneto-Opticals are said to hold data for at least 30 years.
But will there be drives for such media 30 years from now?

[Cat_7]

Hi,

That has happened to me as well. The problem you describe is well known and subject of research. Digital sustainability comes with durability of media and hardware/software to read them. Image you reading a hfs file many years from now without an emulator (that at least partly circumvents the hardware problem).
For the casual users (I count us among them) it would require constant moving of data to newer media that will be supported in the next few years. So yes, for now an USB hard disk, and perhaps later SSD "drives" and what comes next. The cloud in itself might be a solution (if trustworthy) but the format in which you save will become a problem lateron.

So, at least in my opinion, there is no best way to be prepared for the future. Your personal future is at best 80/90 years, in which you will confront the problem you bring up several times. But further than that, who would keep your records? Old stone tables seem to last, and books do well as well. But in any case, only a limited amount of the total information laid down on media will survive into the future....

Best,
Cat_7

[kikkoman]

you might consider tape drives.....

[Ronald P. Regensburg]

For self-burned CDs and DVDs it is a good idea to make a new copy at least every 5 years. And keep the disks in a dry, cool, and dark place.

Or you can keep disk images of your disks. I myself started around 1995 to archive irreplaceable disks (floppies than, CDs/DVDs now) as disk images. Every 4-5 years the image files were copied with my other stuff to a new Mac and to new backup drives. Everything I archived in the past 15 years is still useable.

[macdro]

Yes, with the capacity of external drives today, storing everything as disk images is one of the best options, as they can be mounted from any volume.