The Lifespan of Storage Media

storage_mediaAs each new form of data storage comes on the scene, the market is at first enamored with its compactness, convenience and hoped-for data longevity. But invariably, the reality of physical vulnerability and a limited lifespan remains. Eventually, all media fails, but Cloud backup is forever.

storage-media-lifespan

source

SkyDrive Gets a Major Redesign [video]

SkydriveGreat news for SkyDrive users: Microsoft has revamped SkyDrive with a more modern Metro-style design (alright, "Windows 8"-like design), added a bunch of new features, and finally announced an Android dedicated app is on the way.

The new interface brings a tile-based layout to your files and folders, complete with support for dragging-and-dropping multiple files. (Don’t worry, you can still access the normal details view.) A new contextual toolbar should make working with folders and docs quicker, and finding your files should be easier too with the new instant search. One handy feature is the customized sorting settings—so you can save your preference for arranging files by date created, modified, or saved on a folder-by-folder basis.

An official SkyDrive app for Android phones is finally coming—"in just a few weeks," according to the SkyDrive blog post. As with the Windows Phone and iOS apps, the Android SkyDrive app will give you access to your SkyDrive files on the go.

Desktop SkyDrive apps are also faster and more efficient now, especially when it comes to bulk photo uploading and syncing recent changed files.

Perhaps the best news buried in the announcement is that Microsoft is working on a "choosing what to sync" option. This means you’ll (most likely) be able to selectively sync certain folders or files, rather than maxing out your entire SkyDrive storage space. This is still a "stay tuned" feature, though.