What are the speed specs for different drives?
——————————————————— **Reliability** Reliability is measured in Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF). A drive’s MTBF is a statistical extrapolation of a controlled study of drive reliability. The drive will not last as long as its MTBF, nor is the drive warrantied for that long. Note that 300000 hours is over 34 years of continuous use! MTBF ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. DAT and magneto-opticals have a much better reputation for reliability that their MTBF ratings suggest. **Speed** There are a number of factors that affect drive speed. Consequently, there are several ways to measure drive speed. To understand these factors, it helps to visualize a disk mechanism in operation. In simple terms, the disk surface is divided into concentric circles called tracks, like a bullseye. Each track is further divided into sectors. You can visualize the whole thing like a dartboard divided into circles and pie pieces. Now imagine that the computer r
——————————————————— **Reliability** Reliability is measured in Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF). A drive’s MTBF is a statistical extrapolation of a controlled study of drive reliability. The drive will not last as long as its MTBF, nor is the drive warrantied for that long. Note that 300000 hours is over 34 years of continuous use! MTBF ratings should be taken with a grain of salt. DAT and magneto-opticals have a much better reputation for reliability that their MTBF ratings suggest. **Speed** There are a number of factors that affect drive speed. Consequently, there are several ways to measure drive speed. To understand these factors, it helps to visualize a disk mechanism in operation. In simple terms, the disk surface is divided into concentric circles called tracks, like a bullseye. Each track is further divided into sectors. You can visualize the whole thing like a dartboard divided into circles and pie pieces. Now imagine that the computer r
