USPS irradiation

[Doug Nelson]

Since 9/11 and the anthrax scare the US Postal Service has taken to irradiating our mail to kill possible malicious germs. I've read of some real problems with this (harm to flash memory cards, unprocessed film, etc.) and also some problems under investigation, including some paper problems.

I'm currently discouraging mail shipment of user originals, just to be safe. And I don't use the mail for return shipments.

Have you taken any steps like this?

[fugitive]

This is scary. I bought a another stick for my puter a while back, and can't remember if it was before or after 9-11. What about hardware? Is there a danger if we buy a new video card or some CDs?

[Doug Nelson]

There seems to be a large FUD factor (fear, uncertainty, doubt) about the whole irradiation thing. Officially, USPS claims they only irradiate incoming mail to certain zipcodes. But mail distribution routes can be very complex nowadays. The notice of compactflash damage was released by the Compact Flash Association.

I did some searching and wasn't able to come up with anything but anecdotal information (though the USPS does admit the process can turn paper brown).

Anyone more knowledgeable than me about this around?