File Storage Medium and Technology

Prepared by: BONOY, Keren T SALIPEN, Karen E. BLIS-2A

Storage Medium

the device that actually holds the data the physical materials on which data, information and

instructions are kept. is any technology (including devices and materials)

used to place, keep, and retrieve data. devices that store application and user information ‘storage media’ in plural

1. Hard Drive comes with the computer and is always inside the computer. It stores all the programs that the computer needs to work. sizes are generally 3.5" and 2.5" for desktop and laptop

computers non-volatile memoryhardware device that permanently

stores and retrieves information. can be used to store just about any type of data, including

pictures, music, videos, and text documents. and use it to store files for the operating system and

software that run on the computer, as well as files created or downloaded to the computer by a user.

2. Floppy Disk considered to be a portable storage medium You put it into the computer save your information on

it, take it out, and take it with you wherever you go. is a computer disk drive that enables a user to save

data to removable diskettes A 5 1/4"floppy disk was capable of storing between

360KB and 1.2MB of data and the 3 1/2" floppy disk was capable of storing

between 360KB and 1.44MB of data.

due to their extremely limited capacity, computers no longer come equipped with floppy disk drives. This technology has largely been replaced with CD-R, DVD-R, and flash drives.

3. Tape

A magnetically thin coated piece plastic wrapped around wheels capable of storing data.

much less expensive than other storage mediums but a much slower solution that was typically only used for backup.

tape has mostly been abandoned for faster and more reliable solutions like disc drives, hard drives, and flash drives.

4. Zip drive or Zip Disk

a hardware data storage device developed by Iomega that functions like a standard 1.44" floppy drive and diskette

bigger than a floppy diskette and made of a much harder plastic.

contains a magnetic circular disk that holds information.

its capability to hold up to 100 MB of data or 250 MB of data on the later models

To read and write information on a Zip diskette, it is placed into a Zip drive that moves the metal cover exposing the magnetic disk.

became very popular in late 1990s but quickly became less popular as users needed larger storage capabilities.

Eventually replaced by CD-R and CD-RW drives and discs as they became cheaper since they offered much more storage and compatibility.

Technology Advantages Limitations Applications

Removable storage(ZIP disks, JAZ disks, etc.)

Simplicity Portability Unlimited

capacity with multiple disks

Convenient for use with single computer

Proprietary media

Limited read/write speed

High cost per megabyte

Personal computing

Local data transfer of small files

Local backup Local archiving

5. Compact Disc (CD) is a flat, round, optical storage medium

invented by James Russell. the standard CD is capable of holding 72

minutes of music or 650 MB of data. 80 minute CDs are also commonly used to store data and are capable of containing 700 MB of data.

a.CD-ROM (Compact Disc-Read Only Memory)

is an optical disc which contains audio or software data whose memory is read only.

CD-ROM Drive or optical drive is the device used to read them.

b.CD-R (CD-Recordable) a low-cost solution for backing up software and only costs a

few cents can hold up to 650 MB (74 minutes of music) or 700MB (80

minutes of music). still a very popular solution for backing up data, more users

are turning to DVD-R and USB thumb drives to backup and transfer their data today.

6. DVD(Digital Versatile Disc or Digital Video Disc)

disc capable of storing large amounts of data on one disc the size of a standard Compact Disc.

widely used for storing and viewing movies and other data.

To play DVDs on a computer, you must have a DVD drive and a software DVD player.

Similarities and Difference of DVD and CD Physically, a DVD and CD look the same. Both discs are the same size and typically have one

side with a label and the other side that the laser reads, unless it is a double-sided DVD.

But DVD hold a lot more data than a Compact Disc.

CD & DVD

These types of storage media hold much more information than a floppy disk

They are also considered portable storage. there are CDs and DVDs that you can only save

information on but you cannot erase the information. but there are also those that can both save

information on and erase the information you have saved.

Technology Advantages Limitations Applications

Compact disc, recordable( CD-R ) or rewritable ( CD-RW ) and DVD

Low cost per megabyte

Unlimited capacity with multiple discs

Portable Widely-supported I/O

interfaces Can be formatted for

different data formats

Long life High data density Immune to corruption

once data is written (CD-R and DVD only)

Limited capacity on one disc(though much greater than diskette)

Slow to moderate read/write speed

Data archiving Data distribution Data migration Localized file

sharing Offsite storage

7. Blu-ray Disc, BD or BD-ROM an optical disc can store up to 25 GB single-layer disc and 50 GB on a

dual-layer disc, each disc being the same size as a standard CD.

a Blu-ray is read with a Blu-ray drive. Drives such as a CD-R and DVD-R drive that can read and write information to discs are known as magneto-optic (MO).

*Another advantage that optical media have over the floppy disk is that it can last up to 7 times longer, due to its improved durability.

8. USB Flash Drive a storage medium that is very easy to carry around and it

also holds more data than a floppy disk. often the size of a human thumb and it connects to a

computer via a USB port. portable storage device Today, flash drives are available in sizes such as 256MB,

512MB, 1GB, 5GB, and 16GB, and are an easy way to transfer and store information.

Unlike a standard hard drive, the flash drive has no movable parts, containing only an integrated circuit memory chip where data is stored. It usually has plastic casing surrounding the memory chip inside and has a USB connection that is plugged into the USB port on a computer.

9. Memory card

often used to store photos, videos, or other data in electronic devices

Devices that commonly use a memory card include digital cameras, digital camcorders, handheld computers, MP3 players, PDAs, cell phones, game consoles, and printers.

Types of computer memory cards CompactFlash (CF) MicroSD MMC SD Card SDHC Card SmartMedia Card Sony Memory Stick xD-Picture Card

Sony Memory Sticka flash memory card used with Sony digital cameras and other Sony products.

Solid-State Drive or Solid-State Disk(SSD)

is a drive that uses non-volatile memory as a means of storing and accessing data, much like computer RAM

SSD has no moving parts, which gives it advantages such as accessing stored information faster, no noise, often more reliable, and consume less power.

Technology Advantages Limitations Applications

Solid-state storage

(USB devices, flash memory, smart cards, etc.)

No mechanical parts

High read/write speed

Small form factor

Limited storage capacity

High cost per I/O operation

Swap files Local data transfer Internet service

providers Video processing Relational

databases High-speed data

acquisition

Sources: http://whatis.techtarget.com/reference/Fast-Guide-to-Storage-

Technologies http://www.computerhope.com/jargon/s/stordevi.htm http://people.bu.edu/baws/storage%20media.html http://uwf.edu/clemley/cgs1570w/notes/concepts-7.htm http://www.forensicon.com/resources/articles/what-is-storage-me

dia/ http://searchstorage.techtarget.com/definition/storage-medium http://www.computerhope.com