Optical Media Management Unit 1

[user127]

Hi all,

Does anyone have experience of the CD/DVD management products on the market - e.g.

http://www.imation.co.uk/products/disc_stakka/

I've seen so many mixed reviews on this particular product that I though it a good idea to see if anyone on here has actually used such a device in operational practice. If so, which product are you using and is it any good?

Cheers

Pixel

 

[tazuk]

My firm had just relocated when I joined them last Xmas and all their CDs were lumped together in a plastic crate. I convinced my boss to try one of the Disk Stakkas during the summer as part of the tidy up post-move, and we now have 4 of them running in a stack configuration attached to a standard Windows XP desktop.

As with all devices of this nature, the initial sort out and loading of disks can be a bit of a chore. I split the disks into 2 categories (Desktop Software and OS / Tools / Utilities), and allocated two of the stakkas to each category. In loading a master set of 212 disks, only 1 jammed in the loading bay (in all probability because of human error) but I was able to pop the unit's lid off and retrieve the disk without damage to either unit or disk.

The end result is we have a disk management system that is easy to search for disks, that logs disk checkouts by person and just works. Installation and upgrading / adding units is very straghtforward and the database can be verified and backed up; telephone support and firmware / software upgrades from the manufacturers seem good too. In case you haven't guessed I think they rock!

If you've got any specific questions post back and I'll do my best to answer them.

HTH

TazUk

Blue-screening PCs since 1998

 

[user127]

Thanks for your excellent reply TazUk!

Sorted then, I'm going to get a single unit to start off with and see how it goes.

To clarify: does the unit act only as a hi-tech storage cabinet, or is it possible to read and write data without removing a disc and putting it in the computers own CD/DVD drive?

Thanks once again for your help.

Pixel

 

[tazuk]

It's just a storage cabinet really.

You load a new disk in the standard CD-ROM drive in the attached PC, which then offers the option of adding it to the database or ignoring it (ie continuing with normal CD-Rom behaviour for your operating system).

If you choose to add the disk, the contents are scanned (dependant on the capabilities of the drive of course) and you have the opportunity to name the disk, add comments, etc.

You then place the disk in the loading bay of the cabinet, the disk is loaded and you are prompted to confirm which disk you're returning to storage (ie you select from a list of disks that have been added and are not yet stored, and those disks that are currently checked out).

It's really just a motorised caddy, but the engineers at my office rave about it - no more "where's that disk" drama on the way out the door to the next job .

HTH

TazUk

Blue-screening PCs since 1998

 

[PRPhx]

In reality, it's nothing more than a managed jukebox. And jukeboxes have been around for a long time, supporting a wide variety of applications, platforms and media.