There are many different ways to store data that is used on a computer. Since the beginning of computers many different devices have been developed that have increased the storage ability and decreased the size of the storage device. The most recent storage device for computer data is known as a Flash memory.
The decade of the 70's was a big period for computers. It is when they really started to become popular. There were top of the line systems being developed that had new abilities. One such machine was the Digital PDP1170. This $200,000 machine had a 100Mb internal memory and 20MB of storage on 9 track reel to reel tapes. It was a common problem for the tapes to break.
In time these tapes were replaced by floppy disks that were designed to hold storage in a smaller space. The original floppy's were 8 inch floppy's and held 1. 5 megabytes of information. In the 1975 a 5 inch floppy was designed but it only held 110k bytes of data. By 1978 this increased to 360k bytes. By 1984 progress had pushed the limit of storage up to 1MB on a 3 ? "floppy.
This information shows clearly the pattern that was developing and has developed to the point of modern times and Flash memory. Floppy's were replaced by CD's and they had much greater capabilities. Depending on how a CD is formatted it can contain up to 650MB's, or 650 times that of a 3 1/2" floppy.
There was great importance put on the need for even more capabilities. While devices did not get any smaller they became capable of storing much more data. DVD's were the next device for data storage DVD's are formatted differently than CD's. The creation of DVD's and CD's made it possible for zip drives to become just about obsolete. CD's were originally only able to be written on once. This meant that once they had data on them they could not be added to. CD's and DVD's are now rewritable and this means they can be reused numerous times.
DVD's are now being created that have an extra layer of transparent writing space. Which means that they basically have the ability to hold 2 layers of data. These DVD's known as 9 tracks push DVD's ability up to 8GB's of data storage. With this new layer capability there is belief that DVD's could be created to hold mush more data. Their current ability means they can hold as much as 6,000 floppy's.
All of this seems amazing and makes you wonder where the limit might be for data storage. Flash drives are the latest data storage technology. These little drives which are about the size of a lighter, plug directly into a USB port and vary in their storage capabilities. The basic flash drives can carry 16 gigabytes, but have the capability of carrying 256 gigabytes. Or the equivalent of more than 40 DVD's, almost 400 CD's, or 256,000 3 1/2" floppy's (the 1 megabyte formatted floppy's).
The benefit of flash memory is obvious. It is also a sign of things to come. There is technology currently being developed that will allow 1 trillion bytes of data to be stored on a device the size of a postage stamp. Until this is mass produced Flash memory will continue to provide the best way to store data. - 30431
The decade of the 70's was a big period for computers. It is when they really started to become popular. There were top of the line systems being developed that had new abilities. One such machine was the Digital PDP1170. This $200,000 machine had a 100Mb internal memory and 20MB of storage on 9 track reel to reel tapes. It was a common problem for the tapes to break.
In time these tapes were replaced by floppy disks that were designed to hold storage in a smaller space. The original floppy's were 8 inch floppy's and held 1. 5 megabytes of information. In the 1975 a 5 inch floppy was designed but it only held 110k bytes of data. By 1978 this increased to 360k bytes. By 1984 progress had pushed the limit of storage up to 1MB on a 3 ? "floppy.
This information shows clearly the pattern that was developing and has developed to the point of modern times and Flash memory. Floppy's were replaced by CD's and they had much greater capabilities. Depending on how a CD is formatted it can contain up to 650MB's, or 650 times that of a 3 1/2" floppy.
There was great importance put on the need for even more capabilities. While devices did not get any smaller they became capable of storing much more data. DVD's were the next device for data storage DVD's are formatted differently than CD's. The creation of DVD's and CD's made it possible for zip drives to become just about obsolete. CD's were originally only able to be written on once. This meant that once they had data on them they could not be added to. CD's and DVD's are now rewritable and this means they can be reused numerous times.
DVD's are now being created that have an extra layer of transparent writing space. Which means that they basically have the ability to hold 2 layers of data. These DVD's known as 9 tracks push DVD's ability up to 8GB's of data storage. With this new layer capability there is belief that DVD's could be created to hold mush more data. Their current ability means they can hold as much as 6,000 floppy's.
All of this seems amazing and makes you wonder where the limit might be for data storage. Flash drives are the latest data storage technology. These little drives which are about the size of a lighter, plug directly into a USB port and vary in their storage capabilities. The basic flash drives can carry 16 gigabytes, but have the capability of carrying 256 gigabytes. Or the equivalent of more than 40 DVD's, almost 400 CD's, or 256,000 3 1/2" floppy's (the 1 megabyte formatted floppy's).
The benefit of flash memory is obvious. It is also a sign of things to come. There is technology currently being developed that will allow 1 trillion bytes of data to be stored on a device the size of a postage stamp. Until this is mass produced Flash memory will continue to provide the best way to store data. - 30431
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