It is now almost impossible to find optical drives on computers. A DVD drive is heavy and bulky and requires too much energy. One company is now looking into what to replace the optical drive.
Let’s face reality, DVDs and CDs are too large to last.
Disks, measuring nearly five inches by five inches in circumference, are large compared to other storage media. Read and write speeds are slow. Even though the optical drive has been reduced to its smallest and lightest dimensions, it is still not sufficient to fit into laptops.
Today’s laptops can be as small as a pencil and are light. An optical drive’s space can be used to house more practical components. It could house larger batteries that increase performance or be used to host higher-performance graphics cards for gamers or graphic designers. A laptop’s ultimate goal is to deliver the highest performance in the smallest package possible.
Despite this, optical drives are no longer an outdated technology.
The optical disk, whether CD or DVD has many valuable characteristics that can’t be forgotten. One company works hard to keep those memories alive.
Nexcopy is a California company that specializes in flash drives featuring advanced configurations and feature-rich USB drive products. This company’s primary goal is to offer flash drives as an alternative to optical discs.
The Company Offers Five Solutions
Two of the most sought-after features on an optical CD are the auto-run feature and the “read-only” feature.
Everybody loves the auto-run feature of an optical drive. The company can provide software that will automatically be installed when the optical drive is accessed. But, standard USB flash drives do not provide the auto-run capability. Standard flash drives also don’t mount to a computer system in the same way as optical discs.
#1 Disc License
Nexcopy addressed this issue and has created a product that fixes the auto-run feature. USB device which appears as a USB CD-ROM device, when connected to a computer. Any ISO file may be written to the Disc License device by the product owner. The device is fully functional and can run auto-run. It functions the same as an optical CD.
A disc duplication service can use ISO files they have stored to make CD and DVD copies. They can also use these ISO files to create a USB CD-ROM flash drive. Although optical discs are on the decline, this doesn’t mean they will go extinct.
Another feature that is very popular on optical discs is the read-only function. This feature assures that data stored on an optical disk cannot be changed or altered and that it will remain the same forever.
The standard USB flash drive lacks a feature that allows you to read-only. There is no universal feature that makes all flash drives “read-only” (write protected). This makes it difficult for users to find this feature. Flash memory acts as a mini hard drive. Since flash memory’s default nature is read/write, configuring this “mini hard drive” to not allow data modifications takes some technical know-how.
Many companies find themselves in a position where they are unable to provide optical disks to clients due to the difficulty of finding optical drives in computers. These companies are now looking for alternate options for optical media. The read-only feature is as crucial as the content.
#2 Lock Licence
Nexcopy came up with a unique solution to the USB drive-read-only issue. The Lock License USB flash drive is read-only by default.
Another way of putting it is that the Lock License USB works in the opposite direction to all other flash drives. It can be used to read or write from the USB but not to write. You must force the Lock License to become writeable.
Lock License drive’s unique approach means that no content can be altered or manipulated. Furthermore, viruses cannot get onto the USB because it is always read-only. This makes the Lock License USB drive the ideal solution for those who write protection with a USB stick.
It is worth noting, that the USB can be writable and the write protection removed. This process is secured and requires that the content owner provides write access privileges.
The Lock License driver’s subtle, yet beautiful, the feature is that the default state of the USB sticks reverts to read/only status even after they are unlocked and writable. It is almost impossible to prevent the Lock License from being writable. This is a great way to make your content permanent on a USB drive.
#3 USB Copy Protection
With optical media, sharing videos was simple via CDs or DVDs. There wasn’t any risk of the video being shared with anyone else. Yes, you can “rip” the DVD video with tools, but this is quite complicated and most people are not tech-savvy enough to do it. But, the optical drive is no longer available. How can you place a video onto a USB that is protected from being copied?
The USB flash drive is similar to a mini disk drive. By default, it can read and write. The question now is how do you share an audio file or video from a flash drive that cannot be copied?
Nexcopy offers USB Copy protection with their Copy Secure flash drive. The flash drive gives users the ability to access the file but no more. The flash drive can’t save, copy, store, share, screen grab, or delete files.
Copy Secure drives can be viewed with no password.
Copy protection with optical media was possible using the DVD Copy Control Association Protocol. This system synchronized DVD players’ playback chipsets with encrypted content on a disk. This allowed big studios and software corporations to invest in a security system that would protect their intellectual property. But, USB flash drives are not universally secure.
Nexcopy addressed the issue by allowing popular file types such as MP3, MP4, HTML, PDF, and HTML to be copy-protected while being viewed from a flash device. The solution allows content viewing and playing on both Apple computers and Microsoft Windows computers. Although the solution does not work for all devices, such as TVs and car stereos; the copy-protected content works in both of the most popular operating systems.
Copy Secure drives, just like Lock License drives are read-only (write secured), so the user cannot claim, “a file deleted off, can we get another?” simply to get a new copy at no additional charge.
#4 USB Encryption
Copy Secure drives act as encryption but are not protected by passwords, as we have already mentioned. There is an important distinction between encryption and copy protection. The purpose of encryption is to scramble the data, and once the password is entered the content is played. However, encryption only protects honest people. Decrypting a file means that it can be used by anyone. Users can copy, copy, share, stream or save the file.
What about those who share the password? This is the benefit of copy protection.
The encryption solution by
Nexcopy is a smart choice. The USB flash drive will contain encrypted data. Once the password is correct, the content will display.
If the accounting department of large corporations has financial documents to transfer between office and home on a flash drive, it can be trusted. However, protection is required if the USB is dropped into a parking lot and stolen. The encryption will prevent the files from being seen.
The drive is protected by write protection (read-only) and cannot be formatted. Referring to the previous example, a person finding the drive could not place a virus or attempt to hack into it. The driver can be returned to the company by pretending to be innocent.
#5 Secure Disk
CD and DVD were missing one key feature: the ability to create a hidden partition that stores data. The optical disk writes data in an ordered fashion. The data writing process begins at the inside of a disc and proceeds to the outside.
Notice: Mass-produced CD/DVD media is “stamped”, the previous sentence refers specifically to writable CD/DVD media.
Secure Disk, a small product that hides the bulk of USB memory from users who connect it to computers, is clever. If the user doesn’t know the capabilities of the device, it’s impossible to find the hidden area.
For example, a small 20MB partition is the only partition available when the Secure Disk has been connected to a Windows PC system. This 20MB partition is accessible for reading and writing and contains any type of information. However, there is an additional hidden memory space that can also be used if the user has the right knowledge.
Let us assume the USB is 32GB. The user will see only the 20MB partition. If the user accesses a specific login.exe and enters the correct password, the public 20MB partition will be removed and replaced with the full 32GB secret partition.
Once you log in, you can access this 32GB private partition for any read/write process. It can also store any data. This private partition does nothing to provide additional security.
Secure Disk was intended to be a HIPAA-compatible flash drive. HIPAA compliance mandates that patients have access to secure areas for medical records, history, or other information. Secure Disk complies with HIPAA requirements. It hides the memory area and is protected by a password. Without the correct password, it’s impossible to access.
Secure Disk is more than just HIPAA Medical Records. It’s a great solution for travelers with sensitive data who are traveling internationally.
Although the Secure Disk can’t be used to replace specific optical media technologies, Nexcopy’s product shows that they are a forward-thinking organization.
With so many flash drive designs, it was vital to design efficient data load products for mass production. Nexcopy launched its business in 2004. Its first offering was the USB200PC duplicate, which is a PC-based 20-target USB flash disk duplicator. The company has since added many products, such as standalone USB systems, USB flash-drive printer systems, and memory data loading products.
