If each dot could represent a 3-bit data in grayscale, it could theoretically store 270GB of data in 10 reams. One could even increase the density by incorporating the color elements into the dot. Calibration dots could be provided within each sheet to compensate aging on the paper.This was an interesting little find, apparently you can back up to a MB of data per double-sided printer page:
https://www.extremetech.com/extreme/134 ... -it-sounds
https://ollydbg.de/Paperbak/
I’m curious if anyone has ideas on how to compress the data to increase the amount that could be stored on a single page, there was a wild claim that multiple GB were possible but the example used is widely regarded as untrue: https://infogalactic.com/info/Rainbow_Storage
But to me still I imagine someone could improve upon this for the future it would seem
A more accessible example is backing up text to QR codes which are widely readable, they can hold up to around 4k characters while a printed page often holds up to 10k, and since they are about a square inch, that means you could have thousands of lines’ worth of text in QR codes on a single side of paper, like a full book in a couple pages double sided. If printed pages are 8.5"x11", that’s about 88 QR codes or 350k characters per page with some room to write data about the qr codes on the page (metadata?), but I don’t know if you would be able to jam them in side by side that much.
https://blog.codinghorror.com/the-paper ... ge-option/
Someone created a project for breaking up files in to QR codes: https://github.com/cyphar/paperback
Another project wants to port the original link project above to linux: https://github.com/timwaters/paperback
The best long term storage option I’ve seen is the millennium disc or M-disc, they claim to be able to last hundreds of years or a millennium and go for a buck for a few (7?) GB: https://infogalactic.com/info/M-DISC
Only thing is that certain papers have already been time tested as durable - there are acid free papers (a few cents a page) that can reportedly last 100 years, or archival quality paper that can last centuries (can cost $.50-$1 roughly per page).
What led me to look at all this was being a bit startled to read that hard drives can fail within years, and various other media like CDs or tapes can also fail with however many years, I assumed for some reason that these storage devices were as durable as rock and once created would essentially last indefinitely: https://cdm.link/2017/02/a-generation-o ... and-dying/
In practice, I have not experienced these storage devices fail much so they may end up staying around a long time. But I was intrigued by how paper could be used for long term storage of small files.
What do you think about the use of paper for long term storage, or long term storage options in general?
It may seem interesting on paper. But the energy required going into the maintenance is just not worth it.