Early storage types – now obsolete

• Paper cards
• Paper tape
• Magnetic card
• Magnetic core
• Magnetic drum

Magnetic tape

• Reel-to-reel
• Cartridge

Magnetic disk

• Removable hard
  • Disk cartridge
  • Disk pack
  • Jaz, SyJet for PCs
• Non-removable hard
  • Individual drives
  • RAID drive arrays
• Flexible media (floppy)

Optical

• Large format (varies, no standard)
  • WORM – Write Once Read Many
• CD format (650 MB on one side)
  • CD-ROM – mass-produced, read only
  • CD-R – CD Recordable, write once, read many
  • CD-RW – Phase change media, read and write, limited life
• DVD format (5.2 GB on two sides)
  • DVD+RW – Phase change read and write, limited life
  • DVD-RAM – Same as DVD+RW
  • DVD-ROM – mass-produce, read only, new format to 18 GB
• Recordable optical cards – 2.8 MB

Magneto-optical

• ZIP disk – 100 & 250 MB
• Super disk – 3.5", 120 MB

IC Memory

• Memory arrays
• Flash memory cards – PCMCIA and palmtops
• Memory sticks – a variety of formats for entertainment products

Other

• 2-D bar codes
• magnetic stripe