20 Jun
2005
20 Jun
'05
1:47 p.m.
On Sun, 19 Jun 2005, Jerome H. Fine wrote:
I have archived RT-11 distributions on a CD and
wonder
how long it might be before newer OSs are no longer able
to read/burn the CD. At that point, it will be necessary
to use a different media so that future hobby users are
able to continue to access the files. I realize that
stating when the CD will no longer be readable is almost
a pure guess, but I was wondering is anyone is willing
to suggest if it will be less than 3 decades or more
than 10 decades?
Far less than 3 decades. The safest bet is to assume it will not be
readable in 5 years or less. Tape was supplanted by floppies which were
supplanted by CD which is being supplanted by DVD. Once the supplantant
of DVDs arrives on the scene, quickly move all your data (ideally kept on
a live server, relying on the external storage media as last-resort
backups only) onto the new medium. Keep doing this in perpetuity.
--
Sellam Ismail Vintage Computer Festival
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