When users access data sets via their storage devices it is important to present them with a clear view of http://virtuadata.net/technologies-for-everyday-usage/ the file’s most crucial properties. This is especially true for storage devices with unique features, like molecular storage media and new media that are developing. The ideal user interface allows the user to visualize the properties using a variety of visual methods and display them in the order of importance for the user.

For example, the capacity property is one of the most important for users when using an old-fashioned hard disk drive. The first systems had built-in tools that gave specific information about a user’s storage device, yet they primarily focused on displaying the total capacity of the device using stacked bar charts and their variations (e.g., doughnut charts).

Modern systems present the user with a variety of attributes, including the capacity of the file. For instance some systems show the lifespan of a file with either a pie or graph chart that also lists the number of segments that have been accessed within the storage device and supplemental information such as lifetime prediction is displayed when the user hovers over stacks.

The challenge is that IT teams must now work with departments and users to facilitate more cost-efficient storage and quicker and more secure access to the right data sets to support new initiatives and ideas. This change requires IT teams to concentrate less on procurement of technology managing configuration and spending and more on helping line-of-business users to support themselves in their own self-service needs.