Imaging vs Microfilm                                       

     There are pro's and con to any information record keeping.  Unfortunately for the consumer, they will only get the information that a particular salesman or company is pushing.

     Microfilm is sometimes classified as a dying business but the fact is is it can still be the most cost efficient and safest form of record detention available. 

     How many operating systems have you gone to and found that your software was uncompatible. (Win95, 98, ME, 2000, XP, NT now Vista)  Microfilm on the other hand is still readable by a light, lens and eye.  Microfilm if properly stored has proven to last indefintely, provided you use duplicates for everyday use.

     I was an early advocate for digital imaging as I am basically a technical minded person, however it became clear in the early days that digital storage could be both volatile and extremely expensive.  Many were told that a CD would last for a hundred years only to find that there important data wasn't there when they went to retreive it.  A scratch on a CD was all it took to make it totally useless.  Some CD's actually flake after awhile making them useless.  Manufacturers claims of lasting a hundred years was and is without basis as they have not existed that long.

     Kodak pushed their customers as did other companies into digital only to turn around and convince them to buy equipment to convert digital information back to film.  That was an extraordinary accomplishment by their sales department, don't you think.  First they were hooked into the notion that you don't need film because our equipment is so good and then coming back and convincing them that they must convert the information backto  film.

     Memory and storage are somewhat cheaper now and optical media has improved, but digital can still be questionable.  The choice is yours ultimately so don't let a salesman lock you into an endless sale of proprietary equipment.

     A major question also would be to ask about support and service.  The cost of these with large companies is extremely high.  It also appears that products life cycle with companies is much shorter than it used to be.  Kodak has made two or three year old equipment obsolete and  not supported, something that they never did ten years ago.  They are not the only ones to do so. 

     Shop around and ask questions, it could save you major money and save alot of headaches.