AnimeSuki Forums

Ledgem · 2011-11-20, 13:41

WHEN MAKING A REPLY, STOP - Note the date change between this post and the last one!

Bringing this topic back, rather than making a new thread about it. It's been three years since this thread was made, and some things have changed since then: hard drive capacities have gone up, burnable Blu-Ray discs have become a bit more affordable (just a bit), and streaming of anime has become more widespread.

I'm puzzling over archiving. Traditionally, I burned CD-R's; later, I moved to DVD-R's. I still have CD binders full of what I burned. However, the process is slow: it's slow to burn and archive, and for what ever reason, it's even slower when I go back to those old series and pull data off of the discs (this seems to be a computer issue, rather than something with the discs fading). While discs can take more punishment than a hard drive, I'm wondering if hard drives are the way to go - particularly given that hot-swappable hard drive docks are available quite cheaply, too. Storing bare drives isn't quite as easy as storing optical discs, though.

And then there's streaming. You put your trust in an outside source that the material you want will be available, but it seems to be doing well; things are available on-demand. Is there a need to archive your own downloads anymore?

Has anyone come up with a unique solution besides burning to DVDs?

gsilver · 2011-11-20, 14:14

Some fansubs can be awfully hard to get back if you deleted them. It took me a long time to find a set of (what was fansubbed of) Atashinchi. Also, licensed but only partially released in R1 shows like Kodocha were difficult to get back, also. Just because it's fansubbed, doesn't mean that it'll always be available. I'm a Crunchyroll subscriber, and their streams are generally enough for viewing, but if I really like a show, I'll download the highest quality rips I can find of it, just in case it's taken down and never gets licensed, or it only gets licensed for DVD, and the fansubs have better video quality.

I had a bunch of DVDs sitting in a box, but now, hard drives are cheap enough (even with the shortage; I picked up a 2TB internal drive for $80 a week or two ago, and a 1TB external on Friday, also for $80... mostly driven by shortage), that it makes sense to back things up. Also, the external hard drive is a key part of it. Hard drives can and do fail, but so can burned DVDs. What I do is use Robocopy in a batch file to automatically backup everything with a double-click, as well as shuttle files between my desktop and HTPC (for TV viewing). Hard drives still cost roughly twice what burned DVDs do, but considering the time and space it costs for DVDs, hard drives start to look far better.

And, yes, I buy everything that I really like. Heck, I even buy most of what I kind of like... I'm an OCD hoarder like that

If a show is a full-resolution Blu-Ray in R2 and only on DVD or upscaled Blu-Ray in R1, I'll keep the fansubs for viewing, even after I buy the R1 release.

Obelisk ze Tormentor · 2011-11-20, 14:26

I agree with most of what gsilver said. Then again, burned DVDs are tough and won't fail easily if you keep them in a proper place. All you need is some cases that can protect those DVDs from dusts and scratches.

gsilver · 2011-11-20, 14:53

They aren't really as tough as you might think. Have you tried reading your old burned DVDs/CDs lately? I've kept mine safely in sleeves (in the big-ol-metal box), but several of the disks had read errors when I shifted them back to the hard drive.

Obelisk ze Tormentor · 2011-11-20, 15:09

I’ve tried to read some of my old CDs & DVDs (they’re about 5-10 years old). Most of the data inside are still fine & readable. Some of them are failed to be read but mostly coz they are heavily scarred. Still, I’m well aware that those CDs & DVDs aren’t perfect. As for me, I think I’m gonna move on to BD R once it has become more accessible, but as I mentioned before, I also agree with your hard-drives solution.

pseudonhym · 2011-11-21, 08:23

I archive anime yes... I don't buy licensed DVDs though, I would want to buy DVDs (japanese dubbed/no subs) of my favorite series to show my support but they're not available in my country.

Chiibi · 2011-11-21, 08:51

I archive my anime but I always buy my favorites on DVD when they are licensed.

I never regret doing so.

Endless Soul · 2011-11-21, 10:57

I do archive my fansubs, but I also buy the licensed DVDs when I'm able.

SeijiSensei · 2011-11-21, 14:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by pseudonhym

I archive anime yes... I don't buy licensed DVDs though, I would want to buy DVDs (japanese dubbed/no subs) of my favorite series to show my support but they're not available in my country.

What prevents you from buying them from Japanese outlets like amazon.co.jp or cdjapan.co.jp?

Random32 · 2011-11-21, 15:50

I'm using internal hard drives on my desktop for storing anime. Its enough for me, a 2TB drive should store 1700-2300 1080p episodes. Right now I have 2x 2TB in RAID1 for redundancy and it'll last me quite a while. If I like 3 shows per season enough to store them in high quality them on average, that's like 15 years worth of anime.

I do tend to buy DVD's and BR's of series I like, only to support the creators though, I still watch the fansubs. Its not like I can watch them since my desktop is the only device that I own that supports optical media.

Chiibi · 2011-11-22, 01:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

What prevents you from buying them from Japanese outlets like amazon.co.jp or cdjapan.co.jp?

I cannot speak for pseudonhym but I imagine SHIPPING COST could be a big reason. The shipping prices are beyond insane nowadays. But it still doesn't stop me from spending a fortune on doujinshi from Yahoo Japan.
I need my doujinshi.....

I was also forced to buy the Full Moon Wo Sagashite R2 dvds from the auction....because f@king Viz never finished releasing the f@cking R1s...WELL, F@CKITY-F@CK F@CK to them! They can just go and f...

Oops, lost my temper for a minute there....sorry.

Anyway Celga (a company who can bid for foreigners on Japanese auction sites) have gotten so much of my money, they could probably fill up a swimming pool with it and roll around in it.

Vexx · 2011-11-22, 02:46

Main update... I dropped most of the DVD archiving and just keep 3 or 4 big external drives that I rotate through. Any method I use makes me a bit nervous because nothing is perfect.. .and the bigger the library gets the more horrifying the idea of recovering from a loss.

What I need to do is split the archive into "really dear to me" and "fun but doesn't end life if its gone" I guess

And of course, anytime I get the chance I buy the R2 releases of anything I cherished. But there's a period from a few years ago when nothing I liked got licensed.. and it will never get licensed (*cough* Mahoraba: Heartful Days, Petopetosan, etc *cough*).

Coldlight · 2011-11-22, 04:32

I've always archived most of the fansubbed anime I've seen on DVDs, but I think I'll discontinue that method, because of the degradation concerns over time that I've read about. In place of that method, I bought an external hard drive for the purpose of archiving my anime. I plan on migrating the contents of my DVD archives over to it soon, and in the process I'll discover which of my discs may have become unreadable over the years.

Liddo-kun · 2011-11-22, 06:26

In response to the first post.. yes, I archive my fansubs.
I download both HD and Avi versions (whenever available), and both are burned to cd's. Properly labelled and arranged in cd albums. If I espescially like a certain series (Madoka Magica for example), I would make backup cd's in addition to having backup files in flashdrives.

Never buy DVD's, but I do buy cd's of opening / ending themes, and ost's of anime that I like, usually from online stores like CDJapan.

EDIT:

Did not notice immediately that this is a thread revival.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ledgem

I'm puzzling over archiving. Traditionally, I burned CD-R's; later, I moved to DVD-R's. I still have CD binders full of what I burned. However, the process is slow: it's slow to burn and archive, and for what ever reason, it's even slower when I go back to those old series and pull data off of the discs (this seems to be a computer issue, rather than something with the discs fading). While discs can take more punishment than a hard drive, I'm wondering if hard drives are the way to go - particularly given that hot-swappable hard drive docks are available quite cheaply, too. Storing bare drives isn't quite as easy as storing optical discs, though.

Has anyone come up with a unique solution besides burning to DVDs?

Depends on the type of files that you want to preserve.
If it's just 200mb (or less) avi files of a 12-13 episode series. A flashdrive would be sufficient in my opinion.

Flashdrives are small and convenient to carry around.

Echoes · 2011-11-22, 06:38

I generally archive everything I've watched on external hard-drives. I guess you could say I'm a virtual hoarder, as I save even the stuff I thought was mediocre. I never burn anything to DVDs. I'm still waiting to be taught the hard lesson of a hard-drive crashing on me. Until that day, I shall remain blissfully ignorant and naive, enjoying my false sense of security.

~~Jinxed!~~

I buy what I can, which is shamefully little, but I'm making an effort. I usually end up buying anime movies I enjoy more often, since the price-tag is comparatively cheap, and as an additional bonus, a movie is something I'm much more likely to just pick up and rewatch on a whim than a whole series.

SeijiSensei · 2011-11-22, 11:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chiibi

I cannot speak for pseudonhym but I imagine SHIPPING COST could be a big reason.

I figured that people who can justify spending $70 for a two-episode Madoka Blu-ray probably aren't so concerned about spending another $25 for international shipping.

The amounts of money people over on AOD spend on JP releases staggers my mind. I guess they don't have families to feed.

Chiibi · 2011-11-22, 13:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeijiSensei

I figured that people who can justify spending $70 for a two-episode Madoka Blu-ray probably aren't so concerned about spending another $25 for international shipping.

That's bloody ABSURD. I would never pay that much for two episodes....even if it was my favorite anime and I couldn't get it anywhere else. I'd wait for it to be in an auction at a MUCH lower price....no better yet, wait for a BATCH auction....

Goggen · 2011-11-22, 14:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chiibi

That's bloody ABSURD.

And yet, not at all uncommon.

Eri-tan · 2011-11-22, 15:14

I'm usually archiving all anime that I ever watched, unless they're pretty bad that I probably won't re-watch it later. I archive them all in my internal and ext HDD, as nowadays they're cheap.

2011-11-20, 13:41	Link #41
Ledgem Love Yourself Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Northeast USA Age: 38	Three years later: thread revival WHEN MAKING A REPLY, STOP - Note the date change between this post and the last one! Bringing this topic back, rather than making a new thread about it. It's been three years since this thread was made, and some things have changed since then: hard drive capacities have gone up, burnable Blu-Ray discs have become a bit more affordable (just a bit), and streaming of anime has become more widespread. I'm puzzling over archiving. Traditionally, I burned CD-R's; later, I moved to DVD-R's. I still have CD binders full of what I burned. However, the process is slow: it's slow to burn and archive, and for what ever reason, it's even slower when I go back to those old series and pull data off of the discs (this seems to be a computer issue, rather than something with the discs fading). While discs can take more punishment than a hard drive, I'm wondering if hard drives are the way to go - particularly given that hot-swappable hard drive docks are available quite cheaply, too. Storing bare drives isn't quite as easy as storing optical discs, though. And then there's streaming. You put your trust in an outside source that the material you want will be available, but it seems to be doing well; things are available on-demand. Is there a need to archive your own downloads anymore? Has anyone come up with a unique solution besides burning to DVDs? __________________

2011-11-20, 14:14	Link #42
gsilver Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007	Some fansubs can be awfully hard to get back if you deleted them. It took me a long time to find a set of (what was fansubbed of) Atashinchi. Also, licensed but only partially released in R1 shows like Kodocha were difficult to get back, also. Just because it's fansubbed, doesn't mean that it'll always be available. I'm a Crunchyroll subscriber, and their streams are generally enough for viewing, but if I really like a show, I'll download the highest quality rips I can find of it, just in case it's taken down and never gets licensed, or it only gets licensed for DVD, and the fansubs have better video quality. I had a bunch of DVDs sitting in a box, but now, hard drives are cheap enough (even with the shortage; I picked up a 2TB internal drive for $80 a week or two ago, and a 1TB external on Friday, also for $80... mostly driven by shortage), that it makes sense to back things up. Also, the external hard drive is a key part of it. Hard drives can and do fail, but so can burned DVDs. What I do is use Robocopy in a batch file to automatically backup everything with a double-click, as well as shuttle files between my desktop and HTPC (for TV viewing). Hard drives still cost roughly twice what burned DVDs do, but considering the time and space it costs for DVDs, hard drives start to look far better. And, yes, I buy everything that I really like. Heck, I even buy most of what I kind of like... I'm an OCD hoarder like that If a show is a full-resolution Blu-Ray in R2 and only on DVD or upscaled Blu-Ray in R1, I'll keep the fansubs for viewing, even after I buy the R1 release. __________________ ◕‿‿◕

2011-11-20, 14:26	Link #43
Obelisk ze Tormentor Black Steel Knight Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Indonesia	I agree with most of what gsilver said. Then again, burned DVDs are tough and won't fail easily if you keep them in a proper place. All you need is some cases that can protect those DVDs from dusts and scratches. __________________

2011-11-20, 14:53	Link #44
gsilver Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007	They aren't really as tough as you might think. Have you tried reading your old burned DVDs/CDs lately? I've kept mine safely in sleeves (in the big-ol-metal box), but several of the disks had read errors when I shifted them back to the hard drive. __________________ ◕‿‿◕

2011-11-20, 15:09	Link #45
Obelisk ze Tormentor Black Steel Knight Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Indonesia	I’ve tried to read some of my old CDs & DVDs (they’re about 5-10 years old). Most of the data inside are still fine & readable. Some of them are failed to be read but mostly coz they are heavily scarred. Still, I’m well aware that those CDs & DVDs aren’t perfect. As for me, I think I’m gonna move on to BD R once it has become more accessible, but as I mentioned before, I also agree with your hard-drives solution. __________________

2011-11-21, 08:23	Link #46
pseudonhym わかんないよ Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: +8 GMT	I archive anime yes... I don't buy licensed DVDs though, I would want to buy DVDs (japanese dubbed/no subs) of my favorite series to show my support but they're not available in my country. __________________ ご愛顧ありがとうございました

2011-11-21, 08:51	Link #47
Chiibi Vanitas owns you >:3 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: in a boring place you will not want to go to	I archive my anime but I always buy my favorites on DVD when they are licensed. I never regret doing so. __________________

2011-11-21, 10:57	Link #48
Endless Soul Megane girl fan Join Date: May 2011 Location: Diagonally parked in a parallel universe. Age: 55	I do archive my fansubs, but I also buy the licensed DVDs when I'm able. __________________ Signature by ganbaru

2011-11-21, 15:50	Link #50
Random32 Also a Lolicon Join Date: Apr 2010	I'm using internal hard drives on my desktop for storing anime. Its enough for me, a 2TB drive should store 1700-2300 1080p episodes. Right now I have 2x 2TB in RAID1 for redundancy and it'll last me quite a while. If I like 3 shows per season enough to store them in high quality them on average, that's like 15 years worth of anime. I do tend to buy DVD's and BR's of series I like, only to support the creators though, I still watch the fansubs. Its not like I can watch them since my desktop is the only device that I own that supports optical media.

2011-11-22, 02:46	Link #52
Vexx Obey the Darkly Cute ... Author Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ... Age: 66	Main update... I dropped most of the DVD archiving and just keep 3 or 4 big external drives that I rotate through. Any method I use makes me a bit nervous because nothing is perfect.. .and the bigger the library gets the more horrifying the idea of recovering from a loss. What I need to do is split the archive into "really dear to me" and "fun but doesn't end life if its gone" I guess And of course, anytime I get the chance I buy the R2 releases of anything I cherished. But there's a period from a few years ago when nothing I liked got licensed.. and it will never get licensed (cough Mahoraba: Heartful Days, Petopetosan, etc cough). __________________ "It Really IS Rocket Science", Novel series rough drafts; vol. 1 thru vol. 3 complete Volume 4 in work, Visit the thread for short stories!

2011-11-22, 04:32	Link #53
Coldlight Sayaka★Magica Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Under the piercing blue sky	I've always archived most of the fansubbed anime I've seen on DVDs, but I think I'll discontinue that method, because of the degradation concerns over time that I've read about. In place of that method, I bought an external hard drive for the purpose of archiving my anime. I plan on migrating the contents of my DVD archives over to it soon, and in the process I'll discover which of my discs may have become unreadable over the years. __________________ Miracles and magic do exist. I have no regrets.

2011-11-22, 06:38	Link #55
Echoes Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: In line to confess his sins. Age: 36	I generally archive everything I've watched on external hard-drives. I guess you could say I'm a virtual hoarder, as I save even the stuff I thought was mediocre. I never burn anything to DVDs. I'm still waiting to be taught the hard lesson of a hard-drive crashing on me. Until that day, I shall remain blissfully ignorant and naive, enjoying my false sense of security. ~~Jinxed!~~ I buy what I can, which is shamefully little, but I'm making an effort. I usually end up buying anime movies I enjoy more often, since the price-tag is comparatively cheap, and as an additional bonus, a movie is something I'm much more likely to just pick up and rewatch on a whim than a whole series. __________________ MyAnimeList Reviews and stuff

2011-11-22, 15:14	Link #59
Eri-tan Bored Join Date: Nov 2011	I'm usually archiving all anime that I ever watched, unless they're pretty bad that I probably won't re-watch it later. I archive them all in my internal and ext HDD, as nowadays they're cheap.