Hi all
Another issue to bear in mind is the availability of CD readers. A CD may
last 30 years at optimum temperatures but will we all still have access to
CD readers?
Digital storage media (of whatever variety) should really be refreshed on a
reasonably regular basis (every 3 years for CDs). And the data should be
transferred to newer storage media well before the original medium becomes
obsolete. So for CDs your organisation should be monitoring trends in
storage to make sure that you are not left with a lot of CDs and no (or
only few) readers which can access them.
Regards
Justine
Justine Heazlewood
Manager, Electronic Records and Online Access
Victorian Electronic Records Strategy
Public Record Office Victoria (Australia)
E [log in to unmask]
W www.prov.vic.gov.au
Steve Bailey
<Steve.Bailey@BRIST To:
OL.AC.UK> cc: (bcc: Justine Heazlewood/DPC)
Sent by: "The UK Subject: Re: DIGITAL PRESERVATION ON CD
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archivists,
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AIL.AC.UK>
09/04/2002 10:03 PM
Please respond to
Steve.Bailey
Suzi,
There are several variables you will need to consider such as the
quality of the CD ROM (older or lesser quality CDs are likely to last
for a shorter amount of time than high-quality new ones). Temperature
and humidity levels and the amount of useage will also affect their
longevity. Also it is important to ensure that they are kept away from
u-v light, strong magnetic fields or major fluctuations in
environmental conditions.
Bearing all that in mind some sample generic figures for CD-ROM are
available from 'Preservation Management of Digital Materials: A
Handbook' by Maggie Jones and Neil Beagrie. I quote:
25RH & 10 degrees C = 30 years
30RH & 15 degrees C = 15 years
40RH & 20 degrees C = 3 years
50RH & 25 degrees C = 9 months
50RH & 28 degrees C = 3 months
Please note that the figures for CD/DVD are significantly different.
Hope this helps
Steve Bailey
Electronic Records Manager
Joint Information Systems Committee
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