SSD's Versus Traditional Hard Discs - What Are The Main Differences?
SSD or 'Solid State Drives' are an increasing term we hear these days, and by the looks of it this technology may just be getting more popular.
SSD or Solid State Drive is the alternative for the more traditional hard drives found on laptops and pc's, and there are a number of differences between the two storage devices.
The traditional hard drives found on pc's and laptops have some moving parts which include the spinning disc (where the magnetic data is stored) and an arm that moves around inside (which actually reads the data from the disc)
A SSD has no moving parts though, but it does have a limited amount of times that data can be writen to the device. Because there are no moving parts, it is also silent and accessing the data is much faster than a conventional hard disc. One of the biggest advantages also, is the fact that a SSD normally uses less energy, and is much more robust, being more resistant to external impact such as bumping or dropping which would normally damage traditional hard drives.
Probably one of the biggest manufacturers of SSD's - SanDisk, released their SanDisk Netbook SDHC Removable Flash Memory Card in June 2009. One drawback for SSD's are that until now, they have been fairly expensive compared to normal hard drives.
SDD's will probably become the norm eventually, replacing the normal hard drives we have today, but for that to happen the technology needs to become cheaper. This will most likely happen over time, as new technology continues to improve on, and even replace more traditional technologies.
Source : http://www.new-technology-world.com
Showing posts with label Computer Software. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Computer Software. Show all posts
Monday, November 2, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
What is Software Escrow?
Getting someone to write software for you can result in a wonderful, custom solution to your problem. It can also incur a significant amount of risk if things go wrong.
Software escrow is one way of protecting you in certain types of projects when certain things go wrong.
When you contract out for software to be written for you, there are several decisions that are part of the process. One that's often overlooked is whether or not you get a copy of the source code when the project is done.
The source code is the collection of written instructions that the programmer actually writes to create a program. For many types of programs, the source code is then transformed into the "executable" that you actually run. For example "notepad.exe" is a executable program that comes with Windows. Somewhere back at Microsoft they keep the written instructions, or source code, that the programmers used to create it.
Open source software projects make the source code publicly accessible. Anyone with enough knowledge can create the software executable using the source code. Closed source, or "proprietary" software is just the opposite ... the source code is not available publicly, only the executable. Companies use this approach to retain their intellectual property, and trade secrets.
When you contract with someone to write software for you one decision, implied or explicit, is whether the source code belongs exclusively to the developer, or whether you get a copy. If you do, you have the safety of being able to have someone else make changes or fix bugs in the future, but the developer is giving up some of his or her potential control of that software. If the developer retains the source code and you don't have access to it, then you are dependant on the developer for all future updates. Typically developers will charge more if you get the source code.
It's common to opt for the cheaper option, or to have the developer simply not give you the option.
So what happens if your developer goes out of business? What if all of the source code simply disappears?
That's where software or source code escrow comes into play.
As part of arranging for your software to be written, you and the developer can agree that a copy of the source code will be given to a neutral third party - an escrow agent. The agreement would then specify under which conditions that agent would be allowed to release the source code to you. For example one of the conditions might be the developer's bankruptcy or going out of business for other reasons. By using software escrow, the developer is protected as long as it makes sense for them to retain control, and you are protected should the developer disappear. (Naturally other conditions might trigger the release, but the developer's going out of business is a clear example.)
Software escrow is not fool proof. For example, what happens if the escrow agent goes away? And escrow typically adds some cost to your transaction.
Source : http://ask-leo.com
Software escrow is one way of protecting you in certain types of projects when certain things go wrong.
When you contract out for software to be written for you, there are several decisions that are part of the process. One that's often overlooked is whether or not you get a copy of the source code when the project is done.
The source code is the collection of written instructions that the programmer actually writes to create a program. For many types of programs, the source code is then transformed into the "executable" that you actually run. For example "notepad.exe" is a executable program that comes with Windows. Somewhere back at Microsoft they keep the written instructions, or source code, that the programmers used to create it.
Open source software projects make the source code publicly accessible. Anyone with enough knowledge can create the software executable using the source code. Closed source, or "proprietary" software is just the opposite ... the source code is not available publicly, only the executable. Companies use this approach to retain their intellectual property, and trade secrets.
When you contract with someone to write software for you one decision, implied or explicit, is whether the source code belongs exclusively to the developer, or whether you get a copy. If you do, you have the safety of being able to have someone else make changes or fix bugs in the future, but the developer is giving up some of his or her potential control of that software. If the developer retains the source code and you don't have access to it, then you are dependant on the developer for all future updates. Typically developers will charge more if you get the source code.
It's common to opt for the cheaper option, or to have the developer simply not give you the option.
So what happens if your developer goes out of business? What if all of the source code simply disappears?
That's where software or source code escrow comes into play.
As part of arranging for your software to be written, you and the developer can agree that a copy of the source code will be given to a neutral third party - an escrow agent. The agreement would then specify under which conditions that agent would be allowed to release the source code to you. For example one of the conditions might be the developer's bankruptcy or going out of business for other reasons. By using software escrow, the developer is protected as long as it makes sense for them to retain control, and you are protected should the developer disappear. (Naturally other conditions might trigger the release, but the developer's going out of business is a clear example.)
Software escrow is not fool proof. For example, what happens if the escrow agent goes away? And escrow typically adds some cost to your transaction.
Source : http://ask-leo.com
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