Magnetic Storage

Start with hard drives

The Magnetic Storage page brings together user-made resources on several kinds of storage media. For an introduction to hard drives, start with the Hard Drives mind map. It describes hard disk drives as magnetic secondary storage and introduces the platters inside them.

Next, explore the mind map on magnetic storage devices that describes platters, tracks, sectors and blocks. Use it to connect the parts of a disk with the way its storage is organized. The hard drive technology flashcards offer another way to go over device terms, including reading and writing to a hard disk.

Explore other storage media

The Magnetic Disks mind map includes internal and external hard disks, magnetic tape and solid state drives. Use those headings to compare the devices mentioned, then return to Hard Drives for more detail on hard disk drives.

The Floppy Disk mind map describes portable storage on a thin plastic disk and explains how a drive reads and writes as the disk rotates. Another floppy disk map covers uses and write protection. Magnetic Media also brings hard disks, floppy disks and tape backups into view.

Use the resources together

After studying a map, try a quiz on the page. Use the questions as a prompt to return to the maps or flashcards and look again at terms you want to understand better. You can also use the notes on hard drive technology to explore interfaces such as PATA, SATA and SCSI.

Magnetic Storage is a section of the Memory and Storage unit in Computing and ICT (programming, computer science, digital skills, educational technology). The resources here let you focus on storage devices within that unit. Choose a resource and follow it with a quiz.