Durability of CD-Rs

[Michael M.]

Daniel Carrera wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Does anyone know how long a home-burnt CD will last?
>
> I'm thinking of backup media here, so we can assume that the CD is 
> very rarely used. I've tried to google for an answer, but didn't find 
> what I needed.
>
> Cheers,
> Daniel.

The new Kodak Preservation series of CD-R and DVD-R promises data 
storage of 80 to 300 years.
See:  http://www.cdfreaks.com/news/13323

Also, I have a bridge you can buy for a *real* bargain!  Contact me 
offlist...   :-)

In all seriousness, while I don't really know what to make of Kodak's 
claims for its new line, I do know that Kodak did at one time make the 
best quality CD-R's on the market and commoditization essentially forced 
them out.  Kodak did not, like most others, opt to lower its standards 
and compete on price, so the big box stores (which often use extra-cheap 
or even free CD-R offers as loss-leaders) stopped carrying Kodak CD-Rs.  
As for the others, AFAIK the discs manufactured by Taiyo Yuden are 
generally regarded as the best of the rest.  Many think highly of 
Mitsui.  The former are manufactured in Japan, I'm not sure about the 
latter.  Many people simply make sure that they only buy discs made in 
Japan, but it can sometimes be hard to find them.  More often, you'll 
find discs made in Taiwan or Mexico.  There actually aren't very many 
places in the world where CD-Rs are manufactured, and almost all CD-R 
brands (Sony, Maxell, Philips, Memorex, Verbatim, FujiFilm, etc., etc., 
as well as no-name brands) are manufactured at the same handful of 
factories.  Sometimes the same brand uses multiple manufacturers -- I 
used to buy FujiFilm CD-Rs made in Japan by Taiyo Yuden, but I also 
found lots of FujiFilm CD-Rs made in Taiwan.  You have to read the 
packaging.

So whatever one makes of Kodak's claims, I'm glad they are coming back 
and I will give these discs a shot as soon as I find a good source for 
them.  Give me a call in 80 years and I'll let you know how it's going!

-- 
Michael M. ++ Portland, OR ++ USA
"No live organism can continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids are supposed, by some, to dream." --S. Jackson