Re: [AV Media Matters] Detailed look at history of stickytapesyndrome

[<rohre@ARLUT.UTEXAS.EDU>]

Thank you Peter, for sharing your additional experience.  I felt
that surely the problem would eventually appear in video media,
which you have confirmed for the reel to reel type.  Very
interesting your observations re both involvement of oxide and back
coat layers, re Jim Wheeler's report on the thickness of layers,
etc.  The chemistry of tapes and disks is a fascinating subject, and
of course related to that of other plastics.

Most of us have seen what sunlight does to plastics outdoors, along
with the elements, but also, it has been seen here that the common
UV producing office tube lighting can fade plastics, and thus no
media should be stored on open shelves where lights are on in the
room all the time.  There were many computer media rooms shared with
the computer equipment in the old main frame days that probably put
the media at risk of paper dust and the UV, but the migration from 7
track to 9 track to 8mm and 4mm small format media, including DLT,
etc.  and now AIT probably has kept more media problems from the
environment from appearing in the computer applications.  Also, we
feel that back up tapes are so seldom used, that old back ups may
not be stressed by current use since a good system is so reliable
today.

Stuart Rohre
Applied Research Labs, U Tx