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> there's no guarantee the systems of the future will still be able to read file systems and data formats encoded in the standards of today If modern society s
by yjftsjthsd-h 2y ago
> there's no guarantee the systems of the future will still be able to read file systems and data formats encoded in the standards of today
If modern society survives continuously for 200 years, I don't see any reason we couldn't read current formats if they're actually standard and/or well-documented; we can, for example, still read original unix filesystems, if nothing else by running actual original unix in (open)simh, and that's 45-50 years old already.
- Rinzler89 2y agoOK, but what about more than 200 years? What about the next civilizations? Also, a lot can happen in 200 years that can have unforeseen effect on the FRAM of that USB stick (EMPs from nuclear explosions, solar storms, etc)
- yjftsjthsd-h 2y agoSure, there's a reason I scoped to data formats within the continuity of this civilization (ish). I agree that the hardware side is harder (albeit not impossible for the stated target), I'm mostly trying to push back on the idea that civilization and computers will be completely unrecognizable in what is honestly not that long a timeframe in context. If you want to make something last arbitrarily long or through electronics-destroying events, then yes you should consider other options (or really, multiple options at once), but I think that's moving the goalposts.
- cdchn 2y ago60 years on we haven't forgotten how to read EBCDIC. Punch cards can still be deciphered. Most languages aren't unrecognizable from what they were 200 years ago. I don't think we'd have much issue reading an USB stick in 200 years.
- Rinzler89 2y agoPunch cards you cand decode with your eyes, you don't need tech for that. Good luck with USB drives in 200 years. Even old USB 1.0 devices sometimes struggle on modern HW.
- deleted 2y ago[deleted]