[or-roots] the history of microfilm

[Carol Peterson]

Thank you, Layne, for the history lesson on microfilm. I appreciate you keeping us informed on the latest advances to preserve our history. 

Happy 4th of July everyone! 
Best, 
Carol (Holzgang) Peterson 

----- Original Message -----

From: "SAWYER Layne G" <layne.g.sawyer at state.or.us> 
To: "or-roots mail list" <or-roots at listsmart.osl.state.or.us> 
Sent: Wednesday, June 29, 2016 8:48:20 AM 
Subject: Re: [or-roots] the history of microfilm 



Pat, 



Properly stored in the right environmental conditions microfilm has a very long life expectancy. The working copies used on readers can get "compromised" pretty easily, with scratching of the emulsion going through readers that are not properly cleaned and maintained. Best practices dictates that the security copy of the negative never be used as a viewing copy but only used to make a duplication master, which is then used to create working copies. Motion picture film especially with an audio track, and if color film, has additional preservation issues. The silver negatives of microfilm can be susceptible to what is referred to as "redox" which is oxidation of the silver in the emulsion causing spots. (Think of tarnish on your silver hollowware or flatware). Certain vintages of acetate film also have a problem with "vinegar" syndrome, but again stored in a proper environment you can minimize this possibility. 



Big strides have been made in digitizing microfilm and making it available on the internet. If you have used any of the Digital Newspaper projects almost all of those images have actually been made from microfilm rather than the actual hard copy newspapers. Ancestry and Family Search have put up huge quantities of records based on microfilm copies. (The recent Probate and Wills collections on Ancestry are a good example, it even has the feel of microfilm as you advance through the images.) 



The biggest advantage to film from my perspective is a proven track record and it is "eye readable" you only need a light source and magnification to look at it. Ones and Zeros (binary code) doesn't have that simplicity. You need the correct software program to interpret the code and the hard ware to run it as well. I love the access that electronic information can provide, but like many in my profession I am often a bit uneasy about loss of information that isn't properly migrated forward and is left in a defunct format. 



Enough soapbox so early in the morning. 



Layne 








From: or-roots [mailto:or-roots-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us] On Behalf Of Kith-n-Kin 
Sent: Wednesday, June 29, 2016 8:21 AM 
To: 'or-roots mail list' 
Subject: Re: [or-roots] the history of microfilm 




Thank you, Layne! 

I really enjoyed this bit of history. I had no idea of the age of this technology. 

Only thing I didn't see (my age perhaps), was some discussion of the stability of the "plasticky" film. 

Certainly that has been a problem (the film, and the emulsion on the film) in the motion picture industry. 

Pat Dunford 

Tucson, AZ 




From: or-roots [ mailto:or-roots-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us ] On Behalf Of SAWYER Layne G 
Sent: Tuesday, June 28, 2016 3:32 PM 
To: or-roots mail list ( or-roots at listsmart.osl.state.or.us ) < or-roots at listsmart.osl.state.or.us > 
Subject: [or-roots] the history of microfilm 




Or-Rooters, 



For those of a certain generation of genealogical researchers you might find this short article interesting. Long live microfilm!! 



http://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-strange-history-of-microfilm-which-will-be-with-us-for-centuries?utm_source=Boomtrain&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=20160623&bt_email=layne1920@yahoo.com&bt_ts=1466678646416 






Layne 

(List Mom) 

_____________________________________________________ 
or-roots mailing list 
or-roots at listsmart.osl.state.or.us 
http://listsmart.osl.state.or.us/mailman/listinfo/or-roots 
Hosted by the Oregon State Library. The Library is not responsible for content. 
Questions related to message content should be directed to list owner(s) or the sender of the message, by phone or email. 
Technical questions? Call 503-378-8800. 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://omls.oregon.gov/pipermail/or-roots/attachments/20160701/6268feaa/attachment.html>