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About Joe...
Joe Farace is a Colorado based writer and photographer who photographs a wide
variety of subjects. You can see more of Joe’s work online at; www.joefarace.com
or joefaraceshootscars.com.
DEAR DIARY: Hard disks are wonderful devices. They’re
available in ever-growing sizes and as capacities increase, prices decrease.
Yet, all hard disks share a common fault; they are fixed drives. Some think
they are called “fixed” because these drives are attached to the
computer’s chassis, but I prefer to think it’s because their capacity
is fixed. Compression software theoretically increases the disk’s size
by shrinking the size of the files stored on it, but all that compression and
decompression seems like asking for problems—especially for photographers
actively using their computers. Enter the drive that never fills up: removable
media.
The Media Is The Message
A drive’s performance is measured by seek or access time. Seek time is
the amount of time required for a read head to be positioned over the appropriate
track. Access time is the interval between asking for the data and delivering
it. Transfer rate measures the number of bytes per unit of time passing between
the disk and your computer’s microprocessor.
Magnetic removable drives are based on hard disk technology and use off-the-shelf
components housed in a proprietary plastic shell and that’s how Iomega’s
(www.iomega.com) Jaz disk
was constructed. The company’s Zip cartridge uses a flexible disk made
of material similar to floppy disks. At high speeds, the disk bends to be close
enough for the head to read it, but during a power failure the disk bends away,
eliminating the kind a crash that could occur with a rigid disk.
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Pioneers
DVR-S806 can be connected to any computer through FireWire (IEEE
1394) and USB 2.0 ports for DVD and CD burning. At up to 16x,
you can burn a DVD-R or +R disk in 6–7 minutes, depending
on the computer’s speed and the media used.
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Optical Media
There’s an old computer axiom that goes “magnetic is fast, optical
is slow” but as the cost of optical media fell through the floor, the
winner in the removable media sweepstakes is Recordable CD and DVD. CD-R disks
are inexpensive and can store up to 650MB but may only be written once. CD-RW
(Re-Writeable) disks cost more but allows you to write many times to the same
disk. DVD-R and DVD-RW disks include single-sided (4.37GB) and double-sided
(8.75GB) disks. More and more DVD burners read and write to both the +R and
–R disks.
Hardware
My digital workflow includes copying files to a hard drive where I use Adobe’s
Bridge to rotate the images (see Why Rotate?), edit and sort them into folders
based on content. My Mac G4 was originally delivered with an internal CD-RW
drive, although I seldom use these kind of disks, preferring the cheaper CD-R
disks. After too many multi-disk shoots, I replaced that drive with an internal
Pioneer (www.pioneerelectronics.com)
DVD drive so I could store lots more images. It worked perfectly and was fast
for its time. That’s why I recently added Pioneer’s DVR-S806 external
drive. Instead of the 4x speed of my old drive, the DVR-S806 enables DVD writing
up to 16x, allowing me to burn a full DVD-R disk in 6–7 minutes. The DVR-S806
is compatible with DVD-R and DVD+R disks and uses Quiet Drive technology to
minimize noise and vibration allowing the drive to be placed in a vertical position
to save desktop space. It’s small enough so that you can take it on the
road to burn DVDs with your laptop. The DVR-S806 costs $229.99 and a $30 rebate
brings the cost down to less than $200.
Memories Are Priceless
In addition to their long lasting CD-R disks, Delkin Devices, Inc. (www.delkin.com)
offers the eFilm Archival Gold DVD-R. The use of gold in the disk’s reflective
layer is a key component of DVD-R’s durability. Gold is one of the most
inert, reflective elements available, resisting temperature and humidity to
prevent oxidation—a common cause of recordable media failure. Some cheapo
DVD-Rs deteriorate quickly due to common environmental factors such as ultraviolet
light, heat, and humidity.
The results of an accelerated aging test showed that eFilm Archival Gold DVD-Rs
could safely store images for more than 100 years. The $29.99 10-pack includes
a protective plastic case that holds the disks in polypropylene sleeves. Other
options include a binder available with 16 eFilm Archival Gold DVD-Rs in protective
sleeves ($46.99), 25 disks on a spindle ($72.99), and a 100 pack in retail packaging
($279.99).
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A
key component of Archival Gold DVD-R’s durability is the
use of gold in the disk’s reflective layer. Gold is one
of the most inert, reflective elements available, which makes
it perfect for preventing
oxidation—a common cause of media failure.
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