@larsbrinkhoff @bsdphk @jonathan @cstross care to elaborate? All I heard is that it is the "best" option.

@ekg @bsdphk @jonathan @cstross Lots of tapes written long ago are hard to read today. Often they flake apart, so you only get one chance of recovery.

@larsbrinkhoff @ekg @jonathan @cstross

In datamuseum.dk we have approx 80% luck with ½" tapes, and very very bad luck with ¼" cartridges.

Also troublesome: Hard disks from 1990 forward.

@ttmevans @bsdphk @jonathan @cstross long term storage doesn't necessarily imply read and write cycles, quiet the opposite.

@ekg @bsdphk @jonathan @cstross Sure, but over time the media of tape degrades and the extra contact the read heads can put extra stress on an already weak media.

I do remember some WORM media designed for archival back in the 90s, but I don't know how stable it was over other optical media.

@ekg @ttmevans @jonathan @cstross

Actually it does:

The only way to preserve data long term, is to have many copies and periodically check that they can be read, and to keep copying to fresh media periodically.

@bsdphk @ekg @ttmevans @jonathan @cstross Yep, that's the only reliable way. It also gives you a chance to see if the format is still easily readable.

@ekg @ttmevans @jonathan @cstross

The only reasonably reliable data storage we know of, is paper tape.