Why not have and SD card reader that has lots of spare SD slots. Then you could make a SD RAID drive for faster access speeds and/or more secure storage.-- Pat-O-Cake, Jan 03 2008 iPod Shuffle RAID array http://www.wrightth...rticles/000154.htmlbaked for NAND memory devices [ed, Jan 04 2008] 2GB Micro SD card w/ adapters http://www.amazon.c...d=1222046301&sr=8-9I found them on the cheap ($4.25 apiece), if anyone wants to finish baking this idea. [Fordi, Sep 22 2008] Basically sensible.-- RayfordSteele, Jan 03 2008 Since SD cards are now into the gigabyte capacity ranges, and the RAID idea would overcome some (though not all) of the speed limitations, there's probably some merit in this. But it would need to couple to a SATA interface to be really useful. [+]-- 8th of 7, Jan 03 2008 You'd probably have to fix the SD cards to the reader since the reader would need to know the RAID configuration information.
You'd end up with something slower and more expensive than conventional memory and with less capacity than a hard drive. The only advantage I can foresee is being able to easily swap out a failed member.-- phoenix, Jan 03 2008 SD-RAID would be silent for Media Pc's, It would be more reliable, but the main advantage being easy swap out, even by computer novices of damaged units and availability of spares from many outlets.-- Pat-O-Cake, Jan 04 2008 //It would be more reliable//
SD is much less reliable than standard hard disks and has a maximum number or writes of about 10k or so so it's perfectly possible to kill the media in a very short space of time.
This is one reason why many systems that boot from flash media actually copy the image into a ramdisk because it's much faster (even than HD) and doesen't wear out like flash does.-- webfishrune, Jan 04 2008 If, when you say "SD RAM" or "SD card" you are really talking about a removable card-based flash memory device, then the answer is "baked". The CF cards are commonly used with an IDE adapter, and can be plugged in to any RAID card supporting IDE.
They are often used in rocketry (8th must be spending too much time in warheads, not enough in delivery vehicles - I thought he'd be on this) for datalogging - particularly when the retrieval mode may be a matter of combing the desert for small pieces. Multiple mirrored storage units greatly increases your chances of recovering data. (Sorry about the jab, Mr[7] - just joking. The big boys have real-time telemetry downlinks; it's the amateurs that need the cheapest thing they can find that'll tolerate 500+ gees.)-- lurch, Jan 04 2008 // The big boys have real-time telemetry downlinks //
We do, for good reasons; if it goes wrong, there's usually not a great deal left to retrieve, and if it works properly, there's also not a great deal left to retrieve.......... sad but true.-- 8th of 7, Jan 04 2008 Quantity has a quality all its own. RAID systems are designed to cope well with failure of individuel units. SD cards are small and a 5 1/4 inch panel could be fitted with many SD slots. I invisage the memory to be laid out like HALS in the film 2001.
Each unit is hot swappable.
If a unit fails, an LED flashes above the slot which needs a new unit inserted.
A replacement blank SD card could be easily obtained and inserted by a non skilled operator and the RAID array rebuilds.-- Pat-O-Cake, Jan 04 2008 // memory to be laid out like HALS //
// inserted by a non skilled operator //
Errr.... you mean, hovering in zero-G in a pressure suit with thick, clumsy gloves, while the computer sings to you ? That's a skilled job, boy ...-- 8th of 7, Jan 05 2008 I wouldn't mind giving it a shot. Just ordered eight 2GB Micro SD cards with adapters, which should provide me with the basic parts (slots + memory) to start with. If anyone's aware of an IDE<->SD or SATA<->SD interface, I'd like to know.
(link to Micro SD cards above; found 'em good and cheap)-- Fordi, Sep 22 2008 random, halfbakery