Storage+Devices

__Storage Devices __ · ** **Explain the technology. ** Storage Devices allow you to transfer almost any types of documents or applications to various sorts of devices; some devices include ‘floppy discs’, USBs, external hard drives, iPods and even phones. There are many forms of storage devices that have been developed over the years and each form has changed significantly and become more accessible by the public.
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 * For Desktop Publishing - better to compare USB device with external harddrive or memory cards - large capacity is required for desktop publishing files (lots of gigabytes).**

**·** **Compare 2 examples. ** __Floppy disc vs USBs __  __Floppy Disc:__ The ‘floppy disc’ is a small magnetic storage medium, which is encased in a square or rectangular plastic shell. They were greatly used for three decades, the nineteen seventies on to the late nineteen nineties but have recently been trumped by the USB (universal serial bus).

This ‘new’ technology revolutionized the world of computer disk storage in the early nineteen seventies, it enabled people to store and therefore back up all files that they had on their computer in an event the computer might crash.

The eventual fall of the ‘floppy disc’ was due to the inability for the device to store huge files that were needed in all sorts of work. Applications such as Adobe Photoshop or Windows were simply too big for the ‘floppy disc’ to handle. This is where the revolutionary USB helped our struggling space problem.

__USB:__ The concept of a USB originated in 1990 by Wynn Smith at Intel, this quickly turned into a team of people developing the first USB. This project was shut down by Intel in 1991 as they saw the product with no potential, they were of course very wrong.

The USB was introduced in 1996 and was invented with the purpose to make it easier to connect external drives and devices to PCs and therefore replacing the use of connectors at the back of PCs.  The big advantage of having a USB is the ability to install new applications and open files without having to reboot the computer if an error occurs with the installation or there is a corrupt file. The USB has a huge advantage as well because of its universal port and its small light weight design.

 The only hardware needed for storage devices is the computer itself to transfer all of the files. The software needed can range from any amount of installation applications for different USB devices, they all have a different set up, especially in cases of Mac and PC compatibilities.
 * · ** **Describe what hardware/software is required. **


 * · ** **Compare costs (capital/recurrent) and reliability of the products. **

__Floppy Disc: __ <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The ‘floppy disc’ was very reliable considering the time era in which it was created, it was the latest technology at the time and was the most easily accessible way to back up your files from a computer. Although they are very reliable, there is not a range of storage for these devices and to fully back all your files on your computer, you would need more than a few of these discs. Due to lack of popularity, ‘floppy discs’ are relatively cheap, cost anywhere between $40-$60 for a pack of 100.

__<span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">USB: __ <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">The USB is a very reliable piece of technology because of its universal bus port, it connects with almost every computer and is recognised by almost every computer. It is also a sound investment to purchase a USB device because it is the current trend of the decade; most businesses use them as a portal of transport for information. Small USB devices are surprisingly cheap for what they offer, 4GB USBs range from $20-30 and the big drives like the 320GB hard drives range from $110 - $140.

Considering the manufacturing costs, reliability of the product and the product quality, these prices are relatively cheap. For a reliable good quality device, that is not too costly and is useful in the new technology world, I recommend the USB rather than the ‘floppy disc’.


 * <span style="font-family: Calibri; font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-AU; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin;">Bianca Salim **