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In 1988, Taiyo Yuden invented the
first recordable CD’s (audio or CD-ROM’s), which are called CD-Rs. However, data
can be written only once to the disc, and data cannot be erased or rewritten. Once
recorded, the duplicate CD is a digital replica of the original. CD-R is said to be the
optimal media due to distribution possibilities, the huge installed base of CD, its highly
durable unalterable data characteristics, and suitability for archival use. Compared to
other recording media, CD-R is also extremely lowly priced at about $0.0015 / 1MB. CD-R
discs also have a much longer shelf life than tapes or removable media. However, CD-R
isn’t a very effective backup medium because the CD can only be written once. Because
one can’t reformat and reuse the CDs, subsequent backups make previous discs
disposable at best. next |