How do you store your pictures?

[triplefin]

As the title says really. I've got most of mine burnt onto CDs but recently got one out only to find that I couldn't get the computer to open some of the folders. Fortunately i always keep two copies and it opened the other one.

[jackdiver]

I've had problems with CD's and DVD's in the past, so at the moment am using a backup hard disc, well, actually my ipod.

[KenByrne]

I've got an external hard drive as a backup device. Still an ongoing problem to maintain copies. Seems worse than film although I've mislaid slides and negs in my time.

[ATJ]

Jane,

This is what I do with mine: How I backup my photographs.

[chrisugden]

i back mine onto CD then the CD's get backed up onto a DVD when i've enough to fill one. when something is backed up onto CD & DVD is gets wiped from my computer. something is then always double backed up, similar to jane.

chris

[whacky]

I have stuff on my laptop. Then I put everything onto a cd and onto a external hardrive.

[Cussy]

I have all mine on my hard drive. Backup 1 is an external hard drive, backup 2 is an external hard drive I keep at work, backup 3 is they are all on my works PC too. I also have ALL my photos resized small and these are on my data pendrive I carry with me all the time.

I've lost photos, and I've lost data at work - hence the paranoia. IMHO CDs are OK to backup to (but a bit small), but DVDs are hopeless. From experience at work I'd say we lose files on 1 in 10 DVDs immediately and another 1 in 10 within a month. After a year it's pot luck whether they work. We only use branded DVDs and still they aren't reliable. We've now stopped using them as backup.

A big external hard drive is very cheap and the most reliable (unless you drop them and some will die instantly!!)
Rob

[ATJ]

Originally Posted by Cussy

From experience at work I'd say we lose files on 1 in 10 DVDs immediately and another 1 in 10 within a month. After a year it's pot luck whether they work. We only use branded DVDs and still they aren't reliable. We've now stopped using them as backup.

Rob,

Have you been using DVD +R or -R? I have read that +R are significantly more reliable. Taiyo Yuden +R are meant to be the bee's knees and Verbatim +R a close second. Any other brands are probably suspect.

I use Verbatim +R and verify the DVDs immediately after they are created by comparing the files to a backup on a different machine and I've not lost one file yet. I have also randomly checked older DVDs and they have also matched without problems.

[Cussy]

Originally Posted by ATJ

Have you been using DVD +R or -R? I have read that +R are significantly more reliable. Taiyo Yuden +R are meant to be the bee's knees and Verbatim +R a close second. Any other brands are probably suspect.

We use +R. What I mean by problems is during my work we collect photos at a rate of 2 a second looking directly down from an aircraft for up to 5 hours. By saying there are problems we loose maybe a single image (but that could be your prized image!). But long term we've had all sorts of problems with total DVDs being unreadable. Can't remember the brand we use, but our IT guys said they were the ones to use and cost about 5 times the normal price.

One thing we also find is that often the DVD recorder that burnt the DVD is better at reading the DVD than other machines.

CDs are a different animal, I have loads from 10 years ago+ that are still readable.

Hard drives are so cheap I'd say they are far more reliable. It also wont be long before flash memory is cheap enough to be a viable.
Rob

[TimIngmire]

I think I have three or four copies of all photos 2 lots on hard drives and another on DVD which is a little ropey.

I must admit tho to having an odd view of my photos - if all the diving ones were lost I'd be more annoyed than dissapointed. Family ones are a different matter though - these are clearly more important and will be for generations.

Tim