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Comment by beervirus | Hacker News Reader

Is HEVC really the best option for a long term format that will still be readable in a decade or three? Something more open and standardized seems preferable.

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I chose HEVC for this article because all modern devices can play it, it’s very storage-efficient, and it can be nicely imported into Apple Photos. However, I’m also keeping the original .dv files in case a better codec is developed in the future.

MPEG-1 and -2 are still largely readable nowadays (even if the OS doesn't always include the codec) and they're a lot older. I don't see AVC or HEVC going anywhere, either. They both have tons of hardware support. Hell, Xvid AVI still floats around the pirate scenes sometimes

Why do you feel HEVC is any less viable than AVC? At this point in time, as long as you have a digital file and a copy of FFMPEG (the Swiss army knife of video), you'll more than likely be able to convert to anything else later.

Will FFMPEG exist in 30 years? Will it still have all the same capabilities it has today? Will it run on modern hardware?

I have more faith in a project like FFMPEG to be around (it's way too embedded in almost everything now) or a viable replacement. Definitely more faith than someone will still be around with a tape deck.

However, that's still not answering why you think HEVC (supported by some puny little company called Apple on all of their hardware) vs any other codec. It's not like they chose Cinepak or something else as ridiculous. It's the most modern codec with the longest legs of viability.

The most modern codec, which is patent-encumbered and supported mainly by one company. If Apple changes their mind about it in 5 years, everyone else might well follow suit. I don’t have concerns like that for open, non-bleeding-edge formats.

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