Strictly from the shelf life POV. How long until early CD games, like PC Engine CD stuff will become unbootable? All I know is that cartridges will die too some day, but at least they probably will outlive many of us.
Also do you think, collecting the media after it's dead, is still viable as long as you have CD image iso preserved in some other form?
I have C64 and Amiga games that still work today. They'll die out out long before a game on CD will.Quote:
Originally Posted by Orchid87
Dunno some games from the mid-90s were not pressed very well and are prone to disc rot. I never experienced it myself. Theoretically, CD's can last for 200 years. In reality hard to know. How you store them and treat them also plays a big factor. I think carts esp anything 16 bit and older are more at risk. Capacitors go bad.
CD can't last so long. They are made of plastic. plastic becomes opaque over time. Also the disk ROT is a problem. And the laser pickup are not so reliable.
CDs lasting 200 years was the hype back then but it's clear by now that it's pure bullshit. Besides the fact they're extremely easy to scratch (which kind of voids the whole lifetime ordeal), air leaking into them and causing disc rot is a pretty known problem. It's more a matter of how long it'll take before they rot. Pressed discs at least tend to be better quality than burned discs (which you're lucky if they live more than a few years).
...I wonder what are the statistics on rotting CDs.
Cartridges will probably outlive us at this rate though. It legitimately seems like mask ROMs are the only ones living up to their promised lifetime (even the oldest stuff hasn't seen bit rot in significant quantities yet). And replacing capacitors is cheap and easy, I'd consider that to be just routine maintenance. The problem will be when the custom components start dying (which depends on how delicate that particular piece of hardware is).
To me it's just buy what you like. Fuck what anyone else thinks...
I'm selling all my CD games (mainly Sega CD). I just don't want to be the guy that wakes up one day to a ruined collection. I've many well cared CDs just go to the cemetery, even as recent as Xbox 360.
This is 100% right.Quote:
Originally Posted by SegataS
This is 100% wrong. Properly stored, CDs will outlive you. The laser pickup itself I don't know, but the disc will be readable. CD rot is so absurdly remote that it's not even worth bringing up. It was only a real problem with LDs.Quote:
CDs lasting 200 years was the hype back then but it's clear by now that it's pure bullshit. Besides the fact they're extremely easy to scratch (which kind of voids the whole lifetime ordeal), air leaking into them and causing disc rot is a pretty known problem. It's more a matter of how long it'll take before they rot. Pressed discs at least tend to be better quality than burned discs (which you're lucky if they live more than a few years).
Also the part about CD-Rs is just plain wrong. I have the very first CD-R I ever burned in 2002, 16 years ago, and it reads. Not only does it read, a surface scan reveals a rating of 99% quality, better than some pressed CDs.
Unfortunately it's full of MP3s which would be better off unreadable.
CD is better IMO because if it has audio tracks, you can listen it it in a CD player or make MP3s.
I worry about that when buying games for disc systems. I've had one or two discs start to show rot, but they both still operate.
Anyone who played this stuff while it was current should realize that they only have so many decades of life left themselves.
I don't believe that after zero discs have died over 30 years, my PC Engine games are going to suddenly begin rotting.
LOL... Jesus, way to go morbid on us.Quote:
Originally Posted by Black_Tiger
Point taken, enjoy your stuff while you have it, don’t sweat what’s going to happen in twenty or thirty years.
... and maybe consider life insurance.
I think that now is the most viable time, all my CD based consoles have a reliable copy and play alternative. Things like ODEs and HDD launchers and even good emulation make it great to be able to buy and backup, still play and stay the right side of the law.
Yeah, I get the stuff that I do because it brings me enjoyment. If someday they stop functioning, it will not lessen the enjoyment that I got from them over the years.Quote:
Originally Posted by Black_Tiger
That said, I expect CDs to outlive me since I live in a nice semi-arid environment with my items stored in a cooler and darker location.
I imagine buying a used original white XBOX360 is like rolling the dice at this point.