Newsgroups: comp.publish.cdrom.multimedia Path: cdrom.com!barrnet.net!sgiblab!swrinde!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!bcstec!gwe3409 From: gwe3409@bcstec.ca.boeing.com (Gerald Edgar) Subject: Re: CD Long-Term Durability? Message-ID: Organization: Boeing Computer Services References: Date: Fri, 11 Mar 1994 14:46:05 GMT Lines: 22 Wasn't there a project at the library of Congrees (In Washington DC for those of you outside the U.S) that was to investigate the means to produce archival (that is to say greater than 100 years) CDs? as I recall they were intended to be of glass with a gold coating for the reflective layer. I supppose a stong laser in the blue range could be used to cut the gold. In addition you might want to check things like the warrenty on CDs. There was an artical in the November 1993 CD-ROM Professional on tests Kodak did with simulated sunlight exposure, heat and humidity. They mused that their CDs could last 100 years. I'm not sure I would give CDs that long a life without verification. I can think of lots of other media that has a very short life that people seem to give little thought to -- Paper, when its cheap lasts 10 years. Films as we speak are turning from celluloid to a goo. 100 years seems a good life span to me - at least for starters. Further information could be obtained from the producers of both writable and pressed dics - what is their warranty length? Gerald Edgar "I speak only for myself"