Archiving old hi-8 video?

[tchambers]

I have converted some old hi-8 to dv and the un-edited files are 11gigs of video. I have edited them and produced some nice dvd's, but now I would like to archive the raw 11gig file for safe keeping. To be able to access the raw 11gig file, how would I compress this for possible un-compression in the future? If I put it into Nero Vision, it converts the file down to 4gigs and I am not sure that I can do anything with that in the future except view it in it's new form. Does anybody have any ideas for storing these large files in a format and media that will allow access in the future????

[holistic]

I have converted some old hi-8 to dv and the un-edited files are 11gigs of video. I have edited them and produced some nice dvd's, but now I would like to archive the raw 11gig file for safe keeping. To be able to access the raw 11gig file, how would I compress this for possible un-compression in the future?

nooooo ... don't do it - don't touch the DV

Get yourself another harddrive and store the video safely there.
Also, get a DV tape and export to the tape (11 gig is < 1 hour) (borrow a camera if necessary)
Oh yeah, keep those Hi-8 somewhere safe also.

[edDV]

I have converted some old hi-8 to dv and the un-edited files are 11gigs of video. I have edited them and produced some nice dvd's, but now I would like to archive the raw 11gig file for safe keeping. To be able to access the raw 11gig file, how would I compress this for possible un-compression in the future? If I put it into Nero Vision, it converts the file down to 4gigs and I am not sure that I can do anything with that in the future except view it in it's new form. Does anybody have any ideas for storing these large files in a format and media that will allow access in the future????

DV format is already compressed. You can't compress it further and restore it without quality loss. I'd record the files back to miniDV tape. Eash 62 min tape holds about 14GB.

MiniDV tapes are cheap these days.
http://www.tapeonline.com/MiniDV/Sony_DVM60PRL.aspx

Otherwise store the data on a hard drive.

[wwaag]

Agree with the previous posters about saving to DV tape--you certainly don't want to further compress your material.

However, in addition to saving to tape, I also copy the DV clips directly to DVD. It takes 3 single layer DVD's for each hour of material--but DVD's are so cheap today the cost is negligible. An added advantage is that if you want to access these clips in the future, it's a lot quicker to "read" the clip from a DVD than tape. I find this particularly useful if you want to create a video from many different tape sources.

wwaag

[tchambers]

I appreciate all the advice. I just thought there might be a way to compress and uncompress when needed. If I were to decide to burn to dvd how would I divide the file properly and do so without further compressing the file?

[Marvingj]

Get a external Harddrive, cheap these days. Great for storage along with Dv tapes. That way you have two options. I do it all the time with my old betamax & laser disc movies, also family home movies.

[wwaag]

I appreciate all the advice. I just thought there might be a way to compress and uncompress when needed. If I were to decide to burn to dvd how would I divide the file properly and do so without further compressing the file?

No way to compress and uncompress "without" losing quality.

You will need a basic editor. My approach to archiving has been to produce "meaningful" clips--e.g. halloween party, Thanksgiving dinner, Chrismas Eve, etc. before writing to DVD. As I recall, you can get a max of roughly 20 minutes, 40 seconds of DV onto a single DVD. I simply add clips to be written and "split" only when necessary. Since each DV "frame", unlike MPG, is "complete" and contains all information so it can be rendered, you can split at any point without loss of quality. Hope this helps.

wwaag

[tchambers]

Yes, that is what I do. I produce some pretty nice dvd's via Sony Vegas and those go out to friends and realatives. I was hoping to archive some old Hi-8 that I have converted to DV-Avi as to keep for the generations to come. The files are huge and if I compress down say with Nero, I cannot un-compress that file for editing down the road. I am always looking for the impossible. I guess we are just not there yet.