What is the best way to archive miniDV tapes ?

Archived from groups: rec.video.desktop (More info?)

Do both AVI-->DVD and DV-->DV
After all, nobody really can predict the course of the future.

"Amamba" <egroy@mailexcite.com> wrote in message
news:c866021a.0411141641.2e70729@posting.google.com...
> Hi,
>
> I have about 11 miniDV tapes of our 2.5 yr old twins. Unfortunately
> two of them got damaged when the tape mechanism in my Sony camcorder
> broke. I would like to archive them now, so that I have at least 2
> copies of each tape.
>
> I have a DVD recorder but, when I output tapes to the Mpeg2 format
> using Pinnacle Studio 7, there's some loss of quality - not much and
> OK for viewing, but not something I would use as master backup.
>
> I have come up with three possible backup solutions:
>
> 1) Capture raw AVI files from camcorder and save them to the DVD. No
> loss of quality, but I won't be able to play the files in DVD player
> (unless there are new ones out there that allow playing AVIs). Also I
> have concerns about lifespan of recordable DVD disks.
>
> 2) Use camcorder's passthrough feature to save to the VCR tape. I
> still have some (commercial) tapes that are 12+ yrs old and seem to be
> in a pretty good shape. However, it seems that VCR's would be kind of
> hard to get in another 10 yrs.
>
> 3) Copy tapes to computer, than back to blank miniDVs. Means I would
> have to keep a miniDV camcorder around for as long as I have the
> tapes. Not something I want to stick to as I hope they would perfect
> DVD camcorders in the next few years.
>
> Any advice would be appreciated !

Archived from groups: rec.video.desktop (More info?)

Amamba wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I have about 11 miniDV tapes of our 2.5 yr old twins. Unfortunately
> two of them got damaged when the tape mechanism in my Sony camcorder
> broke. I would like to archive them now, so that I have at least 2
> copies of each tape.
>
> I have a DVD recorder but, when I output tapes to the Mpeg2 format
> using Pinnacle Studio 7, there's some loss of quality - not much and
> OK for viewing, but not something I would use as master backup.

I use the original tapes for archiving, and keep the edited version on
two DVDs. One copy is for viewing, and the second is a backup.

Since the tape is not used for viewing, it is relatively unlikely to be
damaged. Besides, the edited version really has more value. I also
generally copy the edited version to a separate miniDV tape. That way, I
have three copies of the edited form, in two formats, and the original
is still available in case of the unlikely event that I want to re-edit it.

Archived from groups: rec.video.desktop (More info?)

"Amamba" wrote ...
> I have about 11 miniDV tapes of our 2.5 yr old twins. Unfortunately
> two of them got damaged when the tape mechanism in my Sony camcorder
> broke. I would like to archive them now, so that I have at least 2
> copies of each tape.
>
> I have a DVD recorder but, when I output tapes to the Mpeg2 format
> using Pinnacle Studio 7, there's some loss of quality - not much and
> OK for viewing, but not something I would use as master backup.
....
> Not something I want to stick to as I hope they would perfect
> DVD camcorders in the next few years.

Are you aware that DVD is MPEG2? If you aren't satisfied with
the MPEG2 output from from Pinnacle Studio 7, how do you figure
you will be satisfied with the MPEG2 from the DVD camcorders
you hope will be perfected sometime in the future? It doesn't
seem logical that you can have it both ways.

You can, of course, both make DVD-R data disk copies of the
AVI files (for archival preservation) *AND* MPEG2 DVD-
video disks for playback in standalone DVD players whenever
the notion strikes.

I have a lot of data archived on burnable optical discs (CD-R)
and, indeed, I have seen some of them deteriorate to the point
where they can't be read reliably anymore. OTOH, copying
them once a year will cost you ~$1 and preserve them as long
as the format endures.

Of course, just leaving them on the original mini-DV tapes
is my preference and practice. (But never write tapes in the
"long play" slow speed. They are difficult to interchange.)

Archived from groups: rec.video.desktop (More info?)

With the price of DVD blanks under a dollar I'd cut up the DV avi's and save
them on data DVD's
You should be able to get about 20 minutes on each DVD-R (or +R).
There are tape backups and extra hard drives that you could archive to too.
Put these in a safe deposit box for safe keeping.
UB



"Ed Anson" <EdAnson@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:QI6dneHS8OQ-mAXcRVn-jg@comcast.com...
> Amamba wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > I have about 11 miniDV tapes of our 2.5 yr old twins. Unfortunately
> > two of them got damaged when the tape mechanism in my Sony camcorder
> > broke. I would like to archive them now, so that I have at least 2
> > copies of each tape.
> >
> > I have a DVD recorder but, when I output tapes to the Mpeg2 format
> > using Pinnacle Studio 7, there's some loss of quality - not much and
> > OK for viewing, but not something I would use as master backup.
>
> I use the original tapes for archiving, and keep the edited version on
> two DVDs. One copy is for viewing, and the second is a backup.
>
> Since the tape is not used for viewing, it is relatively unlikely to be
> damaged. Besides, the edited version really has more value. I also
> generally copy the edited version to a separate miniDV tape. That way, I
> have three copies of the edited form, in two formats, and the original
> is still available in case of the unlikely event that I want to re-edit
it.

Are you aware that DVD is MPEG2? If you aren't satisfied with
the MPEG2 output from from Pinnacle Studio 7, how do you figure
you will be satisfied with the MPEG2 from the DVD camcorders
you hope will be perfected sometime in the future? It doesn't
seem logical that you can have it both ways.

[/quotemsg]

When I attempt to output to MPEG2, my only option, using PE3 is a 320 x 240 size... won't that be awfully small to display on a large TV? I don't see any way to set a higher screen size.
Thanks
Tim