[justincormack]

It was just at the start of the microfilm boom, so they used microfilm. The quoted lifetime is 500 years, accelerated ageing tests indicate 1000 years. So the books probably wont be readable. The Egyptians did better with papyrus and ink.

[lachenmayer]

Well, the chamber is supposedly filled with an inert gas, so the lifetime of the microfilm should be much larger.

[justincormack]

It is not oxidisation that is the issue. Humidity and temperature are the main issues. Film is metallic silver in gelatine, and lasts ok, but thousands of years is a very long time.

[Retric]

They do mention a metallic storage system which should last a vary long time. I suspect the microfilm was there more for publicity than any real expectation that it would work in 8000 years. Still even if you can't directly read them they may degrade in such a fashion that you can reconstruct a useful significant percentage of the original message.

A backup metal film system resides in the crypt as well.[1][2]

[1]"The New Georgia Encyclopedia — Crypt of Civilization". Retrieved 2008-06-29. [2]"History of the Crypt of Civilization". Retrieved 2008-06-29.

[beej71]

I reckon they'll just use their time machines to travel back to when the microfilm is still intact.