Why is Storage Mechanical?
I was cleaning out a “junk drawer” when I found an old audio tape. It struck me how the cassette contains mechanical parts that allow you to access its data. I thought about how DVD/CDs are superior because they contain no moving parts. Except that — when you put them in a reader — they are spun around mechanically to access data once again!
Having little parts spinning around in my computer to access data makes me feel like I have a Fred Flintstone computer with little dinosaurs inside making things work. I realize that these devices must operate within a physical world, but they should defer mechanical operation until required. My computer should be using data to light up pixels and undulate air into sound, but I shouldn’t hear platters spinning up like an airplane so I can read my e-mail.
We have solid state media today, but more data can be fit on a hard disk platter for less money. Lasers led to the invention of the Compact Disc. Hopefully, some new technology using molecules or quantum mechanics will lead to solid state storage for the masses. I can’t wait to have vast amounts of data on a little card that just plugs in.