Family videocamera enthusiasts of the last couple decades, please wake and see you need to get going on saving your works !

   One only has to consider the number of years that have passed since you may have started making family videos on BETA, VHS, 8mm, VHS-C and HI-8 tapes, to realize th at you're probably close, or may have even passed, the functional service life of your equipment. Remember,as we have come forward in time, technology has gotten to be more of the, "throw away rather than repair" school of thought. Yes, it can be repaired in some cases, but for the most part, "parts are no longer available" and it is a risky for anyone to try to repair them.  Many electronics manufacturers shy away from keeping stocks of parts for older formats, because there's just too little profit in doing so, for the long term. Your camcorder may still be fuctional, but can it hold up for replaying all of your library as you copy them to DVD's ?  The answer is, "probably not". You need to pick up a vcr (maybe even two of the same model)  which will play your library NOW, before all the time and effort you took in recording family activities and what have you, is "lost" to the march of technology. You also should invest in at least one tape rewinder for your tapes, to save wear and tear on your camcorder and the home videocorder, too !  The fewer times you use your equipment, which could be several decades old, the better the chances of your using it successfully to dub videos to DVD.  You should also find a repairman who can help keep the home vcr going, in case it gives out before you are finished.   Just think of all the hours involved in performing the archiving of family activites.  The good new is that DVD technology is markedly better in longevity, as far as preserving video, and whatever follows it, may be down right eternal !   If things work out, many, many family generations from now, your descendants will be wondering at your efforts.