WEEK 4 – COMPUTER ENGINEERING VOCABULARY COURSE

READING

STORAGE DEVICES

Computer technology grows rapidly. The capacity of data storage is no exception. Hard
drives and storage devices improve all the time. Early computers relied on magnetic tape.
Developers soon replaced these with more efficient floppy disks. However, these still had
limited space. For a while, Zip® drives were a larger-capacity solution. Then CDs came
along. These lightweight, inexpensive devices are easy to store and discard. DVDs have
similar benefits, and hold much more data. However, erasing and reprogramming these
devices is often unreliable. Today, we have compact flash memory. Tiny flash drives hold
more information than earlier devices, including DVDs. Unlike most DVDs and CDs, flash
drives are easily erasable. 

Read the article. Then choose the correct answers.

1. What is the main idea of the article? 

A) the rising cost of data storage devices
B) a history of data storage devices
C) materials used to make data storage devices
D) addressing orders with data storage devices 

2. Which of the following is NOT a benefit of CDs? 

A) They are easy to store.
B) They are lightweight
C) They can be erased and reprogrammed.
D) They have a lower capacity than DVDs. 

3. According to the article, what makes Zip drives better than floppy disks?
A) a smaller size
B) more affordable cost
C) a higher capacity
D) the ability to be erased 
 WEEK 4 – COMPUTER ENGINEERING VOCABULARY COURSE

VOCABULARY 
Write a word that is similar in meaning to the underlined part.
1. The engineer could not erase the data from the flat, round data device. 
___

2. Most new computers cannot read flat, square, low-capacity data devices. 

_ lo _ _ _ d_ _ ks

3. The firm needs a new method of saving information for its electronic files.

s_ _ ra _ _
4. New devices have a much higher amount that can be stored than old devices.

_ a _a _ it _ 

WRITING

Hi Jenny,
I picked up a storage device at the electronics store today. I know you said that you wanted
__________________. However, I got _______________________ instead. The salesperson
recommended that because ________________and __________________. I hope that's
okay. 

-Glenn 

WEEK 4 / TARGET VOCABULARY

capacity magnetic tape CDs flash drives

storage floppy disks DVDs

hard drives Zip® drives flash memory

 WEEK 4 – COMPUTER ENGINEERING VOCABULARY COURSE

Prefix Meaning Example

co- together co-operation, co-author

bi- two biweekly, bilateral

tri- three tricycle, triangle

re- again return, rebuild

Prefixes of the Week

EXAMPLES:
Co-worker: Does the co-worker need sales information to complete a report?
Coexist: Usually the new system must coexist with some older system.
Co-pilot: The co-pilot peeked out from the front cabin.
Bicycle: Caner goes to school by bicycle.
Bilingualism: Bilingualism is the ability to communicate in two different languages.
Binoculars: It's also a good idea to bring a pair of binoculars.
Tricolour: They can also be black, red, or tricolour.
Trigonometry: The earlier editions did not contain the trigonometry.
Trivial: Beside his problems, hers seemed trivial.
Refrain: She could not refrain from weeping at these words.
Recall: She definitely didn't recall this place.
Repeat: It is needless to repeat here the analysis given in that article.