DISKS AND DRIVES PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR COMPUTER

 

PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH IN USE FOR COMPUTER 9. DISKS AND DRIVES

 

A Magnetic storage Magnetic devices store data magnetically. A disk drive spins the disk at high speed and reads its data or writes new data onto it. ·         A floppy disk drive uses 3.5 inch diskettes which can only hold 1.44 MB data; it’s often called A: drive and is relatively slow. ·         Most PCs have one internal hard disk, is usually called C: drive, which can hold several gigabytes of data. It’s used to keep the operating system, the programs and the user’s files easily available for use.     B Optical storage Optical drives use a laser to read and write data, so they are not affected by magnetic fields; but they are slower than hard drives. Modern DVD recorders accept all CD and DVD formats. CDs (compact discs) can store up to 650-700 MB of data. ·         CD-ROMs (read only memory) are ‘read-only’ units, so you cannot change data stored on them (e.g. a dictionary or a game.) ·         CD-R (recorded) discs are write-once devices which let you duplicate CDs. ·         CD-RW (rewritable) discs enable you to write onto them in multiple sessions, like a hard disk   C Removable flash memory Flash memory is solid-state. Rewritable memory; it is non-volatile, so it retains data when the power is turned off. This explains its popularity in small devices. EXERCISES 9.1 Read A Opposite. Choose a term from this word wen to complete the sentences below. 1 The first rule of data storage is to make a ____________ of all important files. 2 A ____________ is slower than a hard drive and can only hold 1.44 MB disks. 3 The ____________ inside your PC is made of aluminium alloy covered with a magnetic coating. This makes the disk itself a rigid plate, hence its name. 9.2 Look at the opposite page and find: 1 the CD and DVD formats that can be rewritten many times 2 the CD and DVD formats that can be written to by the user only once 3 the CD and DVD formats that can be read by a computer but not written 9.3 Complete this product description with words from B opposite.

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