Re: [AV Media Matters] Dispassionate testing reports

[seubert@library.ucsb.edu]

Jim and others, I was at IPI a couple of weeks ago and they were
talking about the Photographic Activity Test (PAT) that they do on
products to certify that they are archival. The good thing is that
the manufacturers pay to have their products certified as PAT
compliant so the testing funds itself. What we need is a standard
like PAT for archival media (optical and magnetic) that can be
quantified, and then some manufacturers will emerge to fill this
market niche and pay to have their products certified by a lab like
IPI or NML.

David

>We really need a "Consumer Union" to evaluate tapes, CDs, and DVDs and
>publish an annual report of test results.  IPI, NIST and NML are facilities
>that could do this but they would need funding.  Any ideas??

Jim
David Seubert, Curator
Performing Arts Collections
Davidson Library Special Collections
University of California
Santa Barbara, CA 93106
805-893-5444 Fax 805-893-5749
mailto:seubert@library.ucsb.edu
http://www.library.ucsb.edu/speccoll/pa/