Video Storage Question --- DVD-R vs VHS

[cjefferys]

one word of advice for dvd owners...if you make you own dvds..do not use the stick on labels that cover the whole disc...go lightscribe....the labels will warp your dvds after time..trust me...ive thrown quite a few dvds away due to that...the labels are almost impossible to remove once they are on....anywho...

Not only that, but it's very easy to make a disc "unbalanced" by not putting the label on EXACTLY centered, which can cause the disc wobble which can cause problems and possible damage. So yes, stay far away from labels, use either lightscribe, or inkjet printable discs (I use the latter)

[spiderrogue]

you and me would get along nicely...i wanna use those discs with pre made labels..dang..im just not caught up yet....maybe next year, i will have either the inkjet printable ones or a lightscribe burner that isnt a lite on(dont like that brand)....
when i did use the labels..i had one of those label kits that came with the applicator that lets you get them centered....but yea..wish i had known that they cause so many issues down the road, back then...i wouldnt have used them....they do come off..with a lot of work...a lot....

[FullerDawg]

Guys I've backed up over 2000 DVD over the past few years and all seem good.One main thing to remember when burning DVD's is to burn at slower speeds I usually burn at 2x .I was told to do this along time ago by a computer geek.Also use higher speed disc which are better quality like 16x. Anyway that has seemed to work for me. I'd hate to think I need to redo them every 3 to 5 years . No way Too many

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

OVERALL DVD is a better storage medium. Both have problems, and none will last forever, but:

-VHS degrades when played AND over time. After about 100 plays the coating will start rubbing off the tape. (The heads of the player actually contact the tape, so this is unavoidable.) Also, the tapes themselves will start to derez after about 10 years. This'll make the image "fog up." I HAVE tapes that I've watched hundreds of times and can attest to the degrading. (I think I'd watched my copy of "Rock and Rule" a thousand times. Me and the guys can recite the whole thing from memory....)

-DVD last a lot longer. After about 20 years the plastic will start yellowing, but even this doesn't NECCESSARILY mean the disk won't play. Constant playing doesn't degrade the disk as much as a tape, either. As for scratches, you CAN have a DVD resurfaced. Fixes any scratches and chips, but costs about $50 per disk. Like VHS, recording an a slower speed will give a better resolution pic with DVD. Unfortunately, once a movie/show/whatever is recorded digitally, it's a LOT easier for the company to change formats, forcing you to buy your collection again. Although it's ALSO easier for home computers to convert. I figgered recording my collection as data will make it easier for ME to convert as neccessary.

I bought a DVD/VHS recorder a year ago, and it's a cheapie one, and it works pretty good. It decides to find tape protection at weird times (like, on tapes I recoded myself years ago) but I figger if I ever upgrade my computer I can re-edit the fragments. I needed one 'cos I had about 1600 tapes, and when my VHRs die, I might not be able to get new ones.

I'm down to around 1300 tapes now.

Don C.

[cjefferys]

1300 tapes? Damn, I down to a couple hundred and thought I had a ways to go yet. Factory pressed DVDs should be ok for quite some time. Just like original pressed CDs, I have some of those that I bought over 20 years ago and they still play fine. The problem is not pressed discs, but recordable burned ones. They use a type of ink to save the data, and the problem is the ink breaking down over time. No one really seems to know how long those suckers will actually last.