The Information Professional

With computers growing smaller and lifestyles going mobile, less and less devices offer sufficient space for internal optical drives.

Option 1: USB Stick

Option 2: SD(HC) Card

Option 3: External Hard Drive (HDD)

Option 4: External Solid State Drive (SSD)

Option 5: Cloud Storage

"Many alternatives for optical drives exist, but few can compete with the price and theoretical lifetime of Blu-ray discs. On the other hand, many make for better long term investments. In the long run, you should always have your data stored in at least two future-proof locations. But for the moment, Blu-ray discs and DVDs are a viable storage method. Just make sure you move your data before your last way to access them disappears.
Do you still use optical discs to store or transfer data?"

RT @librarythingtim: How to Prepare for the End of Optical Media http://t.co/vYQAKBQs ;

Although written from a personal digitization viewpoint, it is also valid information for librarians and archivists.

- Audio discs

- DVDs

- Software

- Backups (including cloud)