In article <1185999049.499128.278750@b79g2000hse.googlegroups .com>, p_s_charles@hotmail.com says...
> Haven't flown yet with digital cameras or DV tapes - any effects on
> them from airport scanning equipment?
>
> Thanks
>
> Peter
>
>
I did eight flights in six weeks back in the spring. No effect on my
350D and SanDisk CF cards..
Can't help with DV tapes, but as Laptop HDDs survive I'd be surprised if
they suffer..
p_s_charles@hotmail.com wrote:
> Haven't flown yet with digital cameras or DV tapes - any effects on
> them from airport scanning equipment?
>
> Thanks
>
> Peter
>
Digital cameras, no problem, but keep them in carry-on as some of the
new baggage scanners are too new to have a 'track record' yet. As for
DV tapes, these may be a problem. I would keep them in a shielded
container, and have them inspected by hand.
Ron Hunter wrote:
> p_s_charles@hotmail.com wrote:
>> Haven't flown yet with digital cameras or DV tapes - any effects on
>> them from airport scanning equipment?
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Peter
>>
> Digital cameras, no problem, but keep them in carry-on as some of the
> new baggage scanners are too new to have a 'track record' yet. As for
> DV tapes, these may be a problem. I would keep them in a shielded
> container, and have them inspected by hand.
Whilst I agree with Ron's advice, in the UK hand inspection simply may
/not/ be an option. But I have travelled with much digital photography
equipment and had no problems with carry-on x-rayed items. Actually, I
don't recall ever having problems with film either....
On Aug 1, 3:10 pm, "p_s_char...@hotmail.com" <p_s_char...@hotmail.com>
wrote:
> Haven't flown yet with digital cameras or DV tapes - any effects on
> them from airport scanning equipment?
>
> Thanks
>
> Peter
Theoretically a high X-ray flux will either damage flash cards or
create so-called single event upsets (change the value of a number
stored in a location, though the card is not damaged. However, as
long as the machine is operating normally the level of airport X-rays
is way below the level that brings this about.
The magnetic machines will NOT affect either cards or tapes. Again,
while tapes can be scrambled by a strong enough magnetic field, it has
to be VERY high, well beyond the capability of airport metal
detectors.
In article <0IednT8phs6eDizbnZ2dnUVZ_gGdnZ2d@giganews.com>,
Ron Hunter <rphunter@charter.net> wrote:
> As for
> DV tapes, these may be a problem. I would keep them in a shielded
> container, and have them inspected by hand.
I think this may be a little overkill, and I say this as a confirmed
data-paranoid. (I used to get all my camera equipment hand-inspected
when I was shooting a lot of film, even the low-ASA stuff.)
I've done a lot of post-9/11 traveling with MiniDV tapes and gear, and
I've never had any trouble with any of it, going through either the
carryon scanners or the checked-baggage ones.
I think I've even taken a tape or two through the magnetic-flux machines
(metal detectors) without any noticeable ill effects, although I
wouldn't recommend that one. For magnetic media, I think X-rays are
definitely preferable. Although to really start demagnetizing tapes, I
think you'd have to be talking about flux levels that would rip people's
metal surgical plates out ... more like an MRI machine than a metal
detector.
Since MiniDV tapes are cheap and copying them is trivial if you have
more than one camera, I think the best way to cover your behind (and not
get it probed by the fine folks at the TSA...) would be to clone the
tapes prior to traveling, and stick one in the carryon and one in the
checked bags. Or one on your person, one in the carryon. As many
different paths through security as you can.
Helps mitigate against them getting lost, too, which is honestly what
I'm more concerned with whenever I travel than accidental erasure...
Airport X-Ray equipment 
Linear Mode
