Storage Media

A Macintosh computer can read data from, or write data to, a wide range of storage media, including:

• Hard disks high capacity magnetic media.

• CD-ROM, CD-R, DVD, and DVD-R discs high capacity, removable optical media.

• Zip, or other disks or cartridges high capacity, removable magnetic media.

• Floppy disks or diskettes low capacity, removable magnetic media.

To use storage media, it must be:

• Mounted inserted, attached, or other-wise accessible to your computer.

• Formatted or initialized specially prepared for use with your computer.

All of these things are covered in this section.

Tips

• Don't confuse storage media with memory. The term memory usually refers to the amount of RAM in your computer, not disk space. RAM is discussed in Chapter 7.

• At a minimum, all new Macintosh computers include a hard disk and CD/DVD drives.

• Storage devices can be internal (inside your computer) or external (attached to your computer by a cable).

• Some external storage devices must be properly connected and turned on before you start your computer or your computer may not recognize the device.

• Disk storage media capacity is specified in terms of bytes, kilobytes, megabytes, and gigabytes (Table 1).

  Table 1. Terminology for Storage Media Capacity

  Term	Abbreviation	Size
  byte	byte	1 character
  kilobyte	KB	1,024 bytes
  megabyte	MB	1,024 KB
  gigabyte	GB	1,024 MB

  
  

• If a disk is write-protected or locked, files cannot be saved or copied to it. A pencil with a line through it appears in the status bar of write-protected or locked disks (Figure 48). I tell you more about the status bar in Chapter 4.

  Figure 48. A write-protected icon appears in the status bar of CD-ROM discs and other write-protected media.

  
  
  

• You cannot write data to a CD-ROM. But if your Mac has a CD-Recordable (CD-R) drive or SuperDrive, you can use special software to create or burn your own CDs.