Technology Never Dies

Archive for the ‘ Gadged ’ Category

Benefits Of Digital Linear Tape Drives

Tuesday, March 9th, 2010

In our world where data is power, large companies put a high priority on their data back-up and data storage. Unfortunately, this kind of data storage is typically very expensive and impractical for the small home PC user. Luckily, with the introduction of two new formats of digital storage that are now available, there is a solution. With the DLT or Digital Linear Tape and the LTO or Linear Tape Open, the need for data storage has far exceeded past levels (as compared to previous had 8mm or DDS backups).

1. Recent Boost In Performance

The Digital Linear Tape or DLT systems have been available for use to everyone since 1985, and recent increases in both speed and capacity has given this technology a new lease on life. In fact, they have been the leading technology in the past several years for small to medium-sized systems. The only competitors for DLT were DDS or DAT tapes. The advantage of DLT tapes above these two leading competitors is that the tape heads had a tendency to drift that meant technicians had to constantly monitor them to ensure storage. Unlike DLT reliability that is based on a straight up and down recording mode.

2. Super DLT

A newer version with higher capacity and improved features is called Super DLT (SDLT). Super DLT uses a new recording format, but it also maintains a limited form of backwards compatibility with previous iterations of DLT. It incorporates the ability to read older tapes, although it cannot write to them. This means it would probably be quite useful in allowing organizations to maintain their present archives in a useable form. This would mean that there can be a very big saving both in time and money for companies because older tapes don’t have to be re-recorded onto newer ones.

4. Tremendous Boost In Speed And Capacity

With the introduction of Super DLT earlier this year, the capacity has soared as much as 110 gigabytes on one cartridge, at a speed of 10 megabytes per second. A tremendous boost in performance was seen with the speed of backup doubled, and capacity more than doubled, the technology is now capable to handle large systems and networks that DLT previously couldn’t handle. Competing technologies can offer very fast backups, but the tapes themselves contain very little data – hundreds of megabytes as opposed to the hundreds of gigabytes that DLT offers.

5. Linear Tape Open

Another technology that has recently emerged that is comparable, if not a bit more advanced than DLT is LTO or Linear Tape Open. A consortium product from Seagate, IBM and Hewlett-Packard. LTO can put 100 gigabytes on a cartridge and can store data at speeds up to 15 megabytes per second. But there are a lot who still prefer to use the more known and reliable Super DLT. There are very cautious system administrators who don’t wish to try LTO, one technician even said that DLT is a more than acceptable choice: Thirty million cartridges and a million tape drives can’t be wrong. Of course, LTO can’t be totally neglected. Of course, Super DLT uses a good deal of new technology as well, so even though LTO is a completely new technology, it has able to pave a nice pathway for it that may help establish itself for future preference.

6. Long Life

These kinds of storage media are guaranteed to last for 30 years of data retention under very specific environmental conditions; however, mishandling can easily damage these storage devices for example, dropping or improper packaging during shipment may easily damage or destroy the device’s capability to store data properly. With today’s ever increasing demands for storage capacity because of our need to protect and store our data, it is possible that there is going to be more pressure on hardware developers to produce a lot more faster and bigger storage and backup devices to back up, store, protect and retrieve important data be it business or personal. Now both medium and small size users are given a choice: Super DLT, based on generations of thorough development and refinement, or LTO, a new technology from a high-powered and stable group of advance technological companies.

Digital Photography – Fast Food Memories

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

A quick search in Google or one of the other search engines can easily yield dozens of images from everyday life, snapped on camera phones, small pocket-sized digital cameras, or high-end digital SLR’s. In many cases, camera phone images are so blurry as to be of little value, but they abound in the wide world of the Internet, and as small portable imagery devices get into more and more hands, the sheer volume of electronic images just continues to increase.

Some people ask the question of whether the digital photography revolution is necessarily a good thing. It is easier, faster and cheaper than ever before to capture memorable moments for later viewing. Because of this, digital photos often feel more “real” than traditional film-based images, as dozens or hundreds of images can be snapped continuously at no cost without interrupting the flow of a moment in order to have participants re-create it “for a picture”.

Because of this essential freedom to review, arrange, and remove unwanted images, we are far more generous with our shutters than was generally the case with more expensive film-based methods of image capture. Because of inexpensive storage however, many people never bother to remove most unnecessary images, resulting in bloated virtual albums with duplicates, accidental pictures of thumbs, uninspiring shots of brick walls, pavement, and more.

However, because of this essentially greater freedom to snap, some make the argument that many of our images have less value. This is tricky territory, however – who’s to say that a plastic bag lying on the sidewalk isn’t lovely, or that an overexposed picture of Fluffy the dog isn’t artistic or as valuable as a more traditional family photo? In the end, there’s not much point arguing about taste.

One thing is certain, though – as more and more cameras find their way into more hands, the numbers of images available on line are sure to continue to multiply – and whether good, bad, or ugly, each of these images has meaning for someone. And when you get down to it, individual freedom is one thing we can all likely agree on.

Error Loading Operating System

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

This error appears when the Operating System of a computer fails to load from the hard drive into the Random Access Memory. The operating system is what makes the computer respond to user interaction and coordinates the various systems within the computer. This system software needs to load itself into memory from the hard drive before it can start functioning. When this does not happen properly, the computer displays the “Error Loading Operating System” message. There can be a number of reasons for the operating system’s inability to load itself into memory. The reasons can be hardware-related, software-related or a combination of both.

Hardware-related Causes:

A defective hard drive can be a source of this problem. When the hard drive malfunctions, the computer may not be able to read and load the operating system files properly into memory. A defective cable connecting the hard drive to the motherboard can also cause this error.

Sometimes, an incompatibility between the BIOS of the motherboard and the operating system can give rise to this problem. Each operating system comes with its own set of minimum hardware requirements. When the computer’s hardware does not meet this requirement, the operating system fails to function properly. A more recent operating system would require a later version of the BIOS. A FLASH BIOS can be updated to the latest version by downloading files from the Internet.

Software-related Causes:

This error can also occur when certain critical files in the operating system get corrupted or deleted. Corruption of files can happen due to virus activity, improper maintenance of software, accidental deletion of files or defects in certain portions of the hard drive.

Since there are a variety of causes for this error, and each cause needs a different mode of handling, the error can be rectified only when its cause is diagnosed properly.