i agree a hard disk on a shelf is a very iffy thing. hard disks are part of=
a system and that system includes the computer. inside a computer they are=
very reliable, reporting=A0possible failure before it happens, and with ro=
bust error correction when data moves.
five years is the manufacturers guarantee after that they should be replace=
d even if they have failed.
i have some amount of confidence in raid style systems where multiple drive=
s become a single storage unit and replacing individual drives does not cau=
se data loss. that with a tape back up (LTO=A04 or 5) is as reliable as it =
can get. the system is expensive.
dvd=A0back ups look promising but=A0if one disk out of ten fails in a few y=
ears (and they do) it becomes a painful thing to maintain the system. i don=
t know if=A0any tests have been made but blue ray is not inherently more re=
liable than dvd or cd.
=A0i have published my poems. you can read (or buy) at http://stores.lulu.c=
om/umashankar
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