RE: [AV Media Matters] Estimated costs of backing up tapes

[rohre@arlut.utexas.edu]

It has been our experience with tapes made for research sponsors, that it is
always cheaper to make a copy at the time of the original session, rather than
resetting up the lab for a later copy session.  Invariably, there will be
changes in equipment or its condition, if any time elapses before back up
copies are made, and you have to account for the real costs of labor to
recertify the recorders are calibrated and working; for locating the
information that should be added to the (likely) inadequate labels on Masters,
etc. until you get everything annotated and linked between copies and masters,
(to ensure that the Masters are saved, and only the working copies are
played).  We also like to have the unique serial numbers close to the Master's
number, which is another reason to make copies at the same  time as Masters.
Arbitrary numbering of media gives up a useful tool that relates the Master
media and its copy; for if the numbers in serial are nearly the same, you may
hope the age of the media is similar, if they were made together on stock of
similar origin.

We had a convention of marking the label area of each Master immediately after
it was made with a Red "M".  Then, when handling those tapes, the labels on
boxes and reel, or cassette, all contain fairly complete information, and M to
denote a Master tape.  Once you are set up to make Master labels, you can
easily produce labels for copies, and attach them with little extra labor.
Plus, you can easily see that labels have uniform content.  Copies made after
the fact, might have left out needed information, such as the type of Time
code used, Channel mode assignments, for combination FM and direct recording
systems, etc.

For the question on information to help keep media assigned to its proper
package or reel, if you are using back coated tape, the back coating can be
written on in the leader area with H grade mechanical pencil lead.  We did not
do this except for certain special need, but it is something that should not
leave bad deposits on heads, if it rubs off to the next oxide layer.  Pencil
lead is graphite, similar to back coat material. The unique serial number of
the tape could be assigned and put on the proper box, reel, and on the end of
the back coating.

Stuart Rohre
ARL:UTx