dvd recordables

[wammel]

I read it somewhere that recordable CD's and DVD's have a limited shelf life. Is this true? I want to transfer some of my old home movies and videos to DVD eventually but now wonder if the whole process is worth the trouble and would be better off waiting for a format that is permament. Any comments would be appreciated.

[sometimesit]

I don't think there will be a format that is permanent.
Formats come and go - so if the disk is OK then you would still need something to play it on.
Progress means that most people move on, from one format to another during their lifetime.

Recordable CDs & DVD's will usually last for your requirements. but if they are stored in a bad environment then they will detrorate. In direct sunlight, damp - physical damage to the data layer will all reduce the life of the disk.

What can happen to disks is the reflective layer that is needed for them to be read by the player become transparent or corroded so they don't play.

I have a large collection of CDs and DVDs and most of mine are OK.
I think the secret is to make a copy after so many years (5 or so) of any disk that shows signs of age -- usually the ones you use the most or favourites.

[wammel]

thanks sometimesit. Isuppose I'll just have to use what's available. My main concern with any kind of copying is the loss of quality involved. I've looked at some of the so called profesional sites on the net and although they sound very convincing about their services they all say they're the best and tend to rubbish the opposition. So I'm not sure what to believe there! Thanks again for the advice.

[vehelpfulguy]

wammal, you say your concern with copying is loss of quality.

But CDs and DVDs are stored in DIGITAL format. Digital means the data is held either as a 0 (zero) or a 1 (one) - millions of them of course.

So when you copy a digital CD or DVD to another CD or DVD you are just copying MILLIONS of zeroes and ones and therefore there is no loss of quality.

This is not true of analogue of course (VHS tapes for example). When you copy from VHS tape to VHS tape you DO get loss of quality.

This is why the world is moving to digital:- digital cameras and camcorders, digital TV, digital radio, digital phones, and of course CD and DVDs which are digital.

Once anything is in digital format it cannot (generally) suffer loss of quality as it is moved around.

(Mind you my Sky signal goes out the window during heavy rain for example)

[wammel]

thanks vehelpfulguy.
My concern regarding copying to DVD was for the first transfer only. (analogue to digital) I have a lot of camcorder tapes that I'd like to move to DVD before they turn to dust and realise I need the best software to do it and minimise the loss. I know I can have them done professionaly but I'm a glutten for trying things out myself so any suggestions on the best way to go about this would be appreciated.
I also have lots of super 8 movies I'd like to put on DVD but I'm not sure if this is even possible to do at home without very expensive equipment. Thanks again