Re: Testing/Wilhlem: Power

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J. Arthur Davis <jarthurdavis@earthlink.net> writes on 19 January 2000 at 22:00:45 -0500
 > Richard:
 > Again you completely miss the point.
 > 
 > My point is we are not getting testing that is verifiable by more than
 > one source. As an "engineer" you should be able to understand that.
 > 
 > For your information our papers are being tested under extremely tight
 > testing conditions, meeting all the specifications set down for archival
 > acceptance, but the results will never be accepted because Wilhelm has
 > not blessed them. 

I think you're simply wrong about this; while Wilhelm is the biggest
name in accelerated age testing of photo materials (including inkjet),
the procedures are known (standard in fact) and at least RIT also
offers testing services.  The *independence* of the tester is
important to many of us; while if you perform your own tests, claim
you've done them to the standard, and quote the results, I'll feel
I've gotten some valuable information, I won't trust it *as much* as
if it came from an independent testing lab.  That's just the way life
is; I cut the cards when playing with friends, too.

 > What are you going to do when he retires and quits testing?

Wilhelm Imaging Research is not, I believe, just one man.  When he
retires, it's entirely possible that the company will continue.  And
there's at least one other outfit in the market now, possibly more.
The barriers to entry are the cost of the equipment, mostly.  That's
fairly high, but any independent lab with a reputation for quality
work could add this sort of testing as another line of business, and
their reputation for integrity would carry over somewhat; they
wouldn't be starting totally from scratch, anyway.

 > There has been a great amount of distrust of the results that have been
 > published about liquid laminates, all because Wilhelm has not given his
 > blessing. At this point it would not matter who did the testing with
 > what equipment. If Wilhelm doesn't give his blessing it is no good.

You're wrong here, at least about why *I* hold the opinions I do.  I
can't speak for anyone else, of course.  First of all, it's not just
the *lack* of Wilhelm's blessing; he has said he's encountered
problems with various coatings, and specifically recommends *against*
them.  I also have some specific field experiences from other people
of coatings intended for photos and intended to improve longevity
actually *causing* trouble (over more than 10 years).  The issue here
isn't just lack of blessing; there are reports, credible to me, of
coatings causing problems, and recommendations, from sources I believe
reputable, against using them.  Doesn't mean I'd never consider it,
but it's a barrier to be overcome.
-- 
http://dd-b.lighthunters.net/ (photos) Minicon: http://www.mnstf.org/minicon
http://www.dd-b.net/dd-b (sf) http://ouroboros.demesne.com/ Ouroboros Bookworms
David Dyer-Bennet / Welcome to the future! / dd-b@dd-b.net
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