On Sat, Jan 14, 2006 at 09:26:06PM +0200, Peter wrote:
> 
> 
> On Fri, 13 Jan 2006, Mario Mendes Jr. wrote:
> 
> > Pen and paper, people!  Perfect example -> they just found the dead sea
> > scrolls a short while ago and they can still read it after nearly 2000
> > years without the need to find a drive that does not exist anymore or
> > costs a million bucks because it is the only one left in the world that
> > still works.
> 
> Correction: they just found some of the dead sea scrolls a couple of 
> years ago, and they are still trying to decipher parts thereof. Copper 
> scrolls did not fare much better.
> 
> My advice: clay tables. modifying a Braille or impact printer to print 
> on (thick) clay paper and then firing it should be perfect. And don't 
> drop the fired tables. ;-)

Hmm... Why not simply print it on stainless steel sheet? Stainless for
the most part doesn't rust if it's just sitting in an normal air
atmosphere. It's even a big part of current plans for long-term nuclear
waste storage.

I'd say laser etch, or CNC route, big sheets of the stuff, 1/8th thick.
Expensive as hell, but it'd probably be much easier than handling clay
tablets. I should know, I used to be a potter, clay's nice and all...
but cracks really easilly in the face of freeze-thaw cycles and simple
mishandling.

If you really want it to last forever, make it out of indium. That stuff
just doesn't oxidise, better than gold in that regard. Also expensive,
very, very expensive... But, imagine SS tablets sputtered with a
protective indium coating.

-- 
pete@petertodd.ca http://www.petertodd.ca
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