Re: [ARSCLIST] Hard disk drives and DAT

[John Spencer <js@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Richard,

I've probably bored the list to tears at this point, as I usually  
don't post on a daily basis and I can put my wife to sleep in 30  
seconds when I talk about work...so sorry, everyone in advance.

I agree with your first paragraph in totality. Certainly, if not  
properly budgeted, digital migration projects can DECREASE access and  
viability.

Your second paragraph states clearly that ALL storage media only  
postpones the problem. But since we don't know what the solution is  
at this time, aren't some of these formats a reasonable course of  
action?

In the third paragraph, I would propose that an entire industry of  
data backup services has become very cost-effective due to Sarbanes- 
Oxley and HIPPA compliance, and one could make the logical "leap of  
faith" that the Service Level Agreements of those companies would  
rival those of a TDR. Every once in a while, private industry can  
provide a cost-effective solution - let's face it - all of us in the  
digital archive business benefit from the technology leaps that occur  
within the IT community, while our own industry is quite small and  
could not otherwise drive manufacturers to create the equipment we  
have available. That is where I jump off the government/ university  
train.

Best,
John

John Spencer
BMS/ Chace LLC
1801 8th Ave. S.  Suite 200
Nashville, TN 37203
office (615) 385-1251
fax (615) 385-0153
cell (615) 714-1199
email: js@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
www.bridgemediasolutions.com


On Mar 27, 2007, at 3:44 PM, Richard L. Hess wrote:

> At 03:46 PM 2007-03-27, John Spencer wrote:
> > [Richard wrote:]
> > > I am extremely concerned about asking any archive in position B. to
> > > worry about what they have created long term.
> >
> > Could you clarify that statement? Are you saying that any archive in
> > "position B" should NOT worry about the digital preservation files
> > they have created and how they are stored?
>
> Hello, John,
>
> I would not entrust to any organizations (with perhaps a few  
> exceptions) that are chronically underfunded and lacking in IT  
> expertise the long-term responsibility of managing the life cycles  
> of a transitional digital archive. I see this is an invitation to  
> defer the management of the archive by using already scarce funding  
> for immediate needs. In the end, a crisis is generated and heroics  
> have to happen in order to preserve most of the archive.
>
> I honestly don't care if it's gold audio CD, gold data CD, DVD of  
> any flavour, LTO tape, or hard drives on the shelf. The interim  
> solution doesn't solve the problem, it merely postpones it.
>
> On the other hand, handing over your data with an in-perpetuity  
> storage contract is as stable and as secure as the in-perpetuity  
> provider. Only major universities and government entities strike  
> me, at first glance, as having the staying power to ensure that the  
> common definition of "in perpetuity" is meant.
>
> Hope this clarifies a bit.
>
> Cheers,
>
> Richard
>
>
> Richard L. Hess                   email: richard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Aurora, Ontario, Canada       (905) 713 6733     1-877-TAPE-FIX
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