Does DVD-R/RW Work for File Storage?
With drive prices dropping and format issues fading, DVD-R/RW technology may be your best storage option. By Ron Eggers and Wendell Benedetti Over the last few years, recordable CDs have become the most popular and cost-effective method to store digital data in almost any format. CD (CompactDisc) burner technology has made it easy to roll documents, graphics and images off of primary computer hard drives and onto high-capacity secondary storage devices such as disc RAIDs and data juke-boxes. Theyve also made it easier, and less expensive, to archive data for long-term storage. In the early days of the PC and desktop publishing revolution, storage was measured in hard drive size and cost more than $200 per megabyte. Today, CD-R technology has dropped the cost of storage to a fraction of a penny per megabyte. (See sidebar, page 25.) CD-R drives (CD-Recordable) and CD-RW drives (CD-ReWritable) are the cheapest, easiest and most popular storage and distribution option for the majority of t
