An essential feature of every computer is the ability to save information. Secondary storage provides permanent storage. Using secondary storage devices such as a hard disk drive, data and program can be retained after the computer has been shut off. Some important characteristics of a secondary storage include media, capacity, storage devices, and access speed. Most desktop computer systems have hard and optical disk drives, as well as ports where additional storage can be connected.
Hard disks save files by altering the magnetic charges of the disk's surface to present 1's and 0's. Density referes to how tightly these charges can be packed on the disk.
Hard disks use rigid metalic platters that are stacked on top of another. Tracks are rigs of concentric circles without visible grooves. Each track is divided into invisible wedge-shaped sections called sectors. Head crash occurs when a read/write head makes contact with the hard disk's surface. Head crash is a disaster for a hard disk, fortunately they are rare.
Optical disks can hold over hundred GB of data. In optical disk technology, laser beam alters the surface of a plastic or
metalic disk to represent data, The types of optical disks are compact disks, DVD disks, and blue-ray disks.
Another secondary storage is solid state storage. Data and information are stored and retrieved electronically directly from these devices much as they would be from a computer memory.
Solid state drivers are designed to be connected inside the computer system the same way an internal hard disk would be. Some of the solid state storages are flash memory cards and USB drives.
Related Questions
Q13:
Which of the following is not an example of secondary storage? A)external hard drives B)RAID C)RAM D)flash drives
Q14:
The hard-disk's surface is scratched and some or all of the data is destroyed when there is a ________. A)head crash B)cylinder crash C)track crash D)sector crash
Q15:
This process improves system performance by acting as a temporary high-speed holding area between a secondary storage device and the CPU. A)data compression B)data access C)disk caching D)RAID
Q16:
Smartphones use which of these storage technologies? A)optical drive B)digital versatile disc C)flash memory card D)flash drive
Q17:
The large capacity,high-definition optical discs designed to store hi-def video and video games are ________, A)DVD-RAM B)HD DVD C)Blu-ray D)HD CD
Q19:
Optical discs use these to represent data. A)analog signals B)magnetic charges C)pits and lands D)laser beams
Q20:
Which of the following is true about an internal hard disk? A)variable amount of storage B)often stores the operating system C)portable D)slow
Q21:
________ improves hard-disk performance by anticipating data needs and reducing time to access data from secondary storage. A)File decompression B)Disk caching C)Formatting D)RAID
Q22:
________ expands compressed files. A)Disk caching B)File decompression C)Data caching D)File compression
Q23:
A(n)________ hard disk is typically connected to a USB or Thunderbolt port. A)internal B)cloud C)external D)ethernet
The hard disk's surface is scratched and some or all of the data is destroyedwhen there is a _______.
The large capacity, high-definition optical discs designed to store hi-def videoand video games are _______.
The process of accessing information from secondary storage devices isreferred to as _______.A.) backing upB.) writingC.) restoringD.) reading - D.) readingThe process of saving information to a secondary storage device is referredto as embedding. - False
These discs have a capacity of 50 gigabytes on one side.
This allows you to upload and store documents on the Internet.This process improves system performance by acting as a temporary high-
speed holding area between a secondary storage device and the CPU.Three ways to improve the performance of a hard disk include _______.
A.) disk caching, RAID, and file expansionB.) RAID, file compression, and disk expansionC.) disk caching, RAID, and file compressionD.) file compression, disk caching, and file encryption - C.) disk caching,RAID, and file compression