Digital BW, The Print

Ernst,

... 
> The message wasn't meant to be harsh ...

Nor was it taken as such.  I always appreciate your very 
knowledgeable comments.

>... B&W inkjet prints improved a lot ... 
> but will not yet equal the best archival processes of the 
> past. 

It'll be tough to rival the image stability of the noble metals 
(silver not being among them).  It would be interesting to see a good 
test that compared the typical lightly selenium toned silver print to 
a 100% carbon image, but I suspect it'd take a very long time to see 
any significant difference.  Frankly, I stopped the fade testing 
because the good carbon pigments are so good the issue is just not a 
serious factor for me.  Additionally, other factors, such as 
oxidizers (some of which silver is very susceptible to, protected 
mostly by the gelatin), have become limiting factors and are hard to 
test, at least by me.


> That copper wire represents quite accurate the difference 
> between the analogue B&W chemistry and today's inkjet 
> chemistry ... the absence of heavy metals in inkjet prints. 
> The archival quality of analogue B&W depended a lot on that 
> whether it was its toxic quality or to harden the gelatine 
> emulsion in alternative processes, both making the prints 
> less biodegradable :-) That will be much harder to achieve 
> in inkjet prints in the eco political climate of today and 
> right so. With that in mind a lot of the "archival" 
> knowledge of the past can not be used in inkjet printing.

So, here I am suggesting a way to add heavy metal ions to our brew.  
At the risk of losing my green credentials, the biodegradability of 
my prints has not been a major focus for me.

 
> Patents in the USA can be applied for whether there was 
> prior art or not. ...

They've become major weapons of the large companies in their attempts 
to suppress competition.  In my previous life I discovered and 
initially worked up a case the involved AT&T using its silicon patent 
portfolio against competitors, including a little company called 
Intel.  The good news is the the little fish can swim circles around 
the whales.

Genug ...

Paul
www.PaulRoark.com