discs - Gizmodo

posts about #discs more →
Blu-ray Will Never Become Common in Computers, Supposedly
A Peek Inside a Blu-ray Factory
DVDs That Last for 1000 Years Might Be Overkill
Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
Do You Want Your Video Games As Downloads Or Discs?
GE Makes Holographic Storage Breakthrough For Cheap(er) 500GB Discs
Dark Knight's Chris Nolan Event Shows BD-Live Is Not Quite Ready
Microsoft Responds to Xbox 360 Disc Scratching Allegations
This Week in Blu-Ray: Is it Christmas Yet? Edition
This Week In Blu-ray: Kill the Baby Mama Edition

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tensai
08/26/09

In reply to Blu-ray Will Never Become Common in Computers, Supposedly
the REAL question is what media format will next gen consoles use? i doubt its dvd or hd-dvd
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ScottRose promoted this comment tensai was starred tensai was unstarred

ScottRose
08/26/09

@tensai: I hope it's as the article implies, and the media is HDDs fed by internet downloads. (For god's sake, with an option to backup or re-download if needed!)

Barring that, I'd say solid state storage. Sorta like the Atari and NES cartridges of yore, but with more giggly bites.
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350z-Racer
08/25/09

In reply to Blu-ray Will Never Become Common in Computers, Supposedly
Physical media will exist for a long time (imo), because a lot of people like to cling to cover art and such and have something to display. Plus what happens when you HDD full of movies crashes? Wouldn't it be useful to have that physical media backup? I'm sure it will eventually end, but not anytime soon. So I believe no, the era of physical media is not over, not anytime soon that is.
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Hello Mister Walrus promoted this comment 350z-Racer was starred 350z-Racer was unstarred

Hello Mister Walrus
08/25/09

@350z-racer: Just download it again. That's what I do with Steam.
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macpatrik
08/25/09

@350z-racer: I think it's coming to a very close end. My covert art of CDs and DVDs look better on my computer than they do printed.

And I have them all on back up via my portable hard drive. I can fit days of music and hours of movies in my pocket. But the price of storage is still to high. Once the price of storage comes down, internet speeds increase, and more sources of downloadable content are available, physical media won't be the main source for movies.
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madog
08/26/09

@macpatrick: Ive seen external 1TB drives for $99 over at newegg. Of course they will get cheaper to a point, but what the hell, man? A 1GB drive used to cost that much. If you are constantly waiting "for the price to drop", or the "next best thing", then you will always be waiting.
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PaintTheSkyGrey
08/25/09

In reply to Blu-ray Will Never Become Common in Computers, Supposedly
Isn't that what they said about CDs? "Flash in the pan," and all?
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phunnyballs promoted this comment PaintTheSkyGrey was starred PaintTheSkyGrey was unstarred

phunnyballs
08/25/09

@PaintTheSkyGrey: well CD's took things from 3.5MB to 700mb so they were defiantly useful. Thanks to all the great things about CD-R it became quite beneficial to have them in the computer for backup purposes (to transfer photos and what not)

but now with USB sticks, you dont need the slow process of a disc format burning to transfer music and photos.

Also Blu-ray burning is simply too expensive. Each disc can cost $25 (per disc!!!). so it is just impractical considering you can get an external pocket drive for the same cost.
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Edited by phunnyballs at 08/25/09 7:29 PM phunnyballs was starred phunnyballs was unstarred

soggy_cheerio
08/01/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
A different test.
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Edited by soggy_cheerio at 08/01/09 4:41 AM soggy_cheerio was starred soggy_cheerio was unstarred

soggy_cheerio
08/01/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
A different test.
Reply

Edited by soggy_cheerio at 08/01/09 4:30 AM soggy_cheerio was starred soggy_cheerio was unstarred

soggy_cheerio
08/01/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
A different test.
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Edited by soggy_cheerio at 08/01/09 3:52 AM soggy_cheerio was starred soggy_cheerio was unstarred

soggy_cheerio
08/01/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
A different test.
Reply

Edited by soggy_cheerio at 08/01/09 3:31 AM soggy_cheerio was starred soggy_cheerio was unstarred

soggy_cheerio
08/01/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
A simple test.

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Edited by soggy_cheerio at 08/01/09 3:10 AM soggy_cheerio was starred soggy_cheerio was unstarred

Dan Crouse
07/28/09

In reply to A Peek Inside a Blu-ray Factory
I used to work for a Sony plant in Indiana that made DVDs. They are made the same way, and it appears that they are made with the exact same machines. The data is actually molded into the polycarbonate disc.
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deliciousburglar
07/28/09

@Dan Crouse: are you saying a laser is never used to "engrave" the information?
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taking_this_easy
07/28/09

@deliciousburglar: well, have you heard of the dvd plant "pressing" a DVD?

pressing is better and more accurate, probably faster, and each dvd is exactly the same physically (barring errors)
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reddingofish promoted this comment taking_this_easy was starred taking_this_easy was unstarred

mac_kix_windoze
07/28/09

@Dan Crouse: They're made exactly the same way as DVDs (and CDs for that matter). The only real difference is in the mastering process. When I was last at a pressing plant in Germany (about three years ago I think) they couldn't decide whether to upgrade their equipment for HD or Blu-Ray. At the time, neither format was beating the other. They were thinking to go HD because they could actually modify their existing machinery to cope. If they went Blu-Ray they'd have to replace it all with new kit. I hope to god they didn't go the HD way....

I've watched these lovely little discs being manufactured many, many times and it NEVER ceases to amaze me. Never do I think to myself "oh no, gotta watch the discs being made again". It's great. The lacquer application (picture 6) is my favourite. It's dolloped onto the centre of the disc while it's not moving and then each disc is spun extremely fast and the centrifugal force alone spreads the coating evenly across the disc. Wow.
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Margatron promoted this comment mac_kix_windoze was starred mac_kix_windoze was unstarred

mac_kix_windoze
07/28/09

@deliciousburglar: and yes, the data is etched onto the master (at the mastering stage, funnily enough) first with a laser. the resulting "mothers" and "father" are what's used to produce the "mould" that all the discs are pressed from.
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Margatron promoted this comment mac_kix_windoze was starred mac_kix_windoze was unstarred

reddingofish
07/28/09

@taking_this_easy: It all looks like a fancy record making operation. Vinyl records, CDs, DVDs, and Blu-Rays are all made the same way, sorta. I cannot wait until the age of the spinning disk is over and all media will be downloadable files.
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reddingofish was starred reddingofish was unstarred

deliciousburglar
07/28/09

@mac_kix_windoze: thanks et al., i need to read up on DVDs, i thought it was all about crystal orientation, something not pressable in my mind.
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deliciousburglar was starred deliciousburglar was unstarred

Margatron
07/28/09

@mac_kix_windoze: Yes, this is exactly right. The master, also called the "glass master" is a mold of the notches in the disc. If only we could have seen a Polka-Dot-Door video on this factory...
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Hi, I'm God
07/28/09

In reply to A Peek Inside a Blu-ray Factory
Well... there goes my awesome view of BDs. I always pictured these giant lasers shooting from 50 feet away controlled by little oompa-loompas. Each disk was an adventure to make, and unskilled-laser-aimers would accidentally shoot their colleagues who would vaporize instantly. Finally, in an epic plume of smoke and debris, a disk would emerge.

I don't want Blu-rays anymore... ruined! Ruined I say!
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GitEmSteveDave_OverSleptThisMorn
07/28/09

@Hi, I'm God: Oompa-Loompa, Laser-dee-do
I have another new release for you....

But I was picturing more like Gunka-Lunka's. They're more surly, and thus, cooler.
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Edited by GitEmSteveDave_OverSleptThisMorn at 07/28/09 9:02 AM

valkilmerisawful
07/17/09

In reply to DVDs That Last for 1000 Years Might Be Overkill
Has he been chewing on marbles?
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frigg
07/17/09

In reply to DVDs That Last for 1000 Years Might Be Overkill
there are systems that will artificially accelerate aging used to test products. wonder if he ever tried to use one of those?

I rest easy knowing my floppy disks have been tested to survive until 3009. I would just hate to lose my collection of pixelated cats made in MacPaint.
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Tarv
07/17/09

In reply to DVDs That Last for 1000 Years Might Be Overkill
Now I can rest easy knowing I can bury my pr0n collection with me when I die. Then at zombie apocalypse, I will be set!
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bosskev promoted this comment Tarv was starred Tarv was unstarred

bosskev
07/17/09

@Tarv: Yes, but you are forgetting that, as a zombie, you won't have any blood flow...and that's kinda critical for, uh, certain pr0n-related functions.
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Bigbadbikernerd
07/17/09

@bosskev: I'm sure Viagra will take care of that problem.
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bosskev
07/17/09

@Bigbadbikernerd: Actually, for the burgeoning living dead market, Pfizer has been beaten to the punch by competitor Lilly—introducing Cialimortis®!
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Edited by bosskev at 07/17/09 12:14 PM bosskev was starred bosskev was unstarred

alphanumeric1971
07/17/09

@bosskev: You win.
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Bertone77
07/17/09

In reply to DVDs That Last for 1000 Years Might Be Overkill
How about just sticking the info on a couple TB HDD... then stick the HDD in a magnetically shielded box and be done with it? Info on a HDD if not turned on or not magnetically messed with should last forever right?
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frigg
07/17/09

@Bertone Zero77: Google published a study of disk drive failures based on their own experience that debunked conventional wisdom linking disk activity to longevity.

http://labs.google.com/papers/disk_failures.html
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Bertone77
07/17/09

@frigg: Interesting, so based on that info it really has nothing to do with sheer amount of usage but more with disk-errors created by such usage. Therefore one could argue that leaving the data on a HDD that is off will not improve the longevity of the information by lack of read-use but by reducing the likelihood of errors created by users accessing the information.
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frigg
07/17/09

@Bertone Zero77: It's been a while since I read it, but I recall that the study basically says disks fail because they break down, not necessarily because of read/write errors, or because of conventional wisdom based on use. For example, a lot of people think it's good to spin up a stored drive from time to time to keep it mechanically viable, which seems to make sense. However, Google's study says it doesn't really matter.

Because it's Google, their study has heft since it involves a disk population larger than any other ever studied.

They conclude: "Surprisingly, we found that temperature and activity levels were much less correlated with drive failures than previously reported."
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The Lab
07/17/09

@frigg: That was a great article, showing that so much of the "common sense" stuff we thought we knew about hard drives was wrong.
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92BuickLeSabre
06/15/09

In reply to Shoplifter Caught Blu-Handed With 33 Discs Down Pants
Why in the world would you steal blu-ray discs in OKC? It's at least a two hour drive, straight south, before you'll find your first blu-ray player.

Come to think of it, why do they even sell blu-ray discs in OKC in the first place?
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Diddle my Skittles
06/15/09

@92BuickLeSabre: I'll have you know that Days of Thunder is one of the finest blu-ray titles there is.
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Diddle my Skittles was starred

92BuickLeSabre
06/15/09

@WWJD with a dSLR: So true.

And I'm sure all the folks in Texas and North Carolina are enjoying it in exactly that format.
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