Posted by Richard Crowley on 02/10/07 00:51

"Gene" wrote ...
> Thanks, I agree with everything you said, except that
> by keeping the original tapes in 100gt ice coolers inside
> the house, and burning them to DVD-Rs, gives me a
> random access library that allows me to go to specific
> DVD-Rs & copy off a clip.

I have no objection to using DVDRs for handy indexing,
etc. I do it myself. But DVDRs are unsuitable for "archiving"
for two significant reasons:

The nature of the field-burnable dyes has no track record
for real decades-long archival endurance. Indeed, my own
experience is that some discs that I wrote a few years ago
are already unreadable. This does not portent well for ANY
"archival" expectations.

Making "playable" DVDs involves severe MPEG2 compression
which may be fine for distribution or casual viewing, but it
irrevocably discards a significant portion of your video quality
and it is therefore unsuitable for production or archival use.
Granted there are people here who edit MPEG, etc. but they
are mostly removing commercials from off-the-air recordings
of TV shows, etc.

> This is a nightmare with the tapes
> in the storage coolers. It is SO much easier having a numbered
> and dated DVD dup library - even with a lower quality product.
> In my case, I will have the tapes in coolers, as well as DVDs
> to copy & use. The previous thread had to do with uploading
> the copies to my ISP, etc. - vs. making DVD copies at home.

With one DVD per tape, it seems like a very straightforward
way to search for video and the number on the DVD tells
you which tape number to retrieve. Doesn't sound like a
"nightmare" by my definition.

> My current tapings are going to only DVDs, that is, I'm converting
> MiniDv tapes directly to DVD-Rs via firewire. I then rewind the tape
> and use it again & again. I may ultimately regret this.

Depends on what you are shooting. You do realize that
you are irretrievably throwing away a significant portion
of the quality of DV by compressing to MPEG.

OTOH, I have the expectation that television viewing
screens will get BETTER over time and that downgrading
my video to MPEG will turn out to be an even more
regrettable mistake when viewed from 5-10-20 years
out.

If what you are shooting isn't worth the $5/hour that
the mini-DV tape costs, why did you even bother shooting
it? IMHO, you are making a very regrettable decision.

> However, my plan is to use an automated DVD burner at the first sight of
> DVD deterioration.

You got significant deterioration the moment you down-
graded your video from DV to DVD/MPEG2. No amount of
copying will ever bring it back. But if you are satisfied
with that, there you are. In my world, MPEG/DVD is a
last-step release-only format. It is NOT an archival format.
It is NOT a production (editing) format.

> At present, I have not seen, or heard of, anyone having a problem with the
> coatings, etc. of the earlier DVDs.

Well, now you have. Good luck.

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