Image archival technologies.

A typical radiology department can create many gigabytes of image data per day and as much as 1 terabyte of data per year. Archiving and accessing this much data are substantial problems. One solution is data compression, which decreases data storage requirements and increases the rate of data transfer; however, standards are not yet available. Other solutions involve improvements in archival media. Jukebox subsystems allow automated access to multiple units. Digital magnetic tape, the standard medium, can store large amounts of information and enables easy updates or replacements; more practical technologies have been introduced in recent years. Digital videotape allows storage of digital video data and features a high rate of data transfer. Optical disks, now the preferred permanent archival medium, have a large storage capacity and provide excellent long-term stability. Optical tape is also being investigated as a solution to the archiving dilemma. Which technology to choose depends on many factors, including needs of the institution and the cost, stability, transfer time, and storage capacity of the system.