> I lost several CD's of digital photographs in a matter of a couple > months and they were just sitting quietly in their jewel cases on the > shelf. They were irrecoverable. Sidney I write two copies of EVERY CD I make for backup/archival purposes and I check that at least one file from each is readable. Ideally i'd verify every single file but that would take for ever. CDs are not immune from deterioration. The bigest "threat" to digital files is that they just get forgotten. Unlike neg's there is no physical reminder you might be conveying something important to the trash can. Archiving digital data (work context) is an active and ongoing process. It does not just happen, the media needs to be refreshed every couple of years. Old slides might fade over 20 years, but at least there is something there. Digital is binary: it's there or it's not - instantly. Jeff has it nailed: multiple cpies at multiple sites ... it's that much effort.
