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If I am looking at a ~100 years timescale for preservation of documents, there are exactly two choices that I would consider. At the hundreds of years timescal
by hlieberman 5y ago
If I am looking at a ~100 years timescale for preservation of documents, there are exactly two choices that I would consider. At the hundreds of years timescale, exactly one.
Those are, in order:
1. Microfilm/microfiche
2. Ink on 100% cotton paper, or ink on vellum
The properties of microfilm have been well studied. It requires no technology other than a magnifying glass to read, has a well over 500 year lifespan in studies, and has exemplars that have survived more than 150 years.
Ink on paper, on the other hand, we have exemplars that are almost 1000 year old, with ink on vellum more than 2000 years old. It requires no tools whatsoever to read, and we have been working and understanding how it is best preserved for hundreds of years.
- simonebrunozzi 5y agoHow would you "print" your backup on a microfilm?
- formerly_proven 5y agoLasers, just like normal film prints.
- tablespoon 5y ago> How would you "print" your backup on a microfilm? There are services that can do that for you. You send them document images, they send microfilm back. I've never actually done it, but I've considered it, an I had this random service in my bookmarks: https://overnight-scanning.eu/microfilming-service/ https://overnight-scanning.eu/microfilming-service/
- TacticalCoder 5y agoI've got a printed book from 1575 here. Some pages at the beginning are in a bad shape but otherwise everything is still perfectly readable. I don't know which type of paper/ink it's using though. It's some book about plants: apparently one of the most printed book (after the bible) back in its days.
- FredPret 5y agoHow about building a pyramid with carvings on the inside? I bet that would last. You could even encode data by the presence or absence of a pyramid