Cristalink of Auckland, New Zealand, has launched a software package that converts a digital video (DV) camcorder into a back-up data-storage device for a Windows PC. The software, called Firestreamer-DV, stores up to 12 gigabytes of uncompressed data on a 1-hour DV tape. It works in tandem with the back-up utility that is part of all Windows packages.
To ensure that no data is lost through imperfections in the tape, Firestreamer is designed to duplicate some of the PC data and record it in different locations on the tape. The system is robust enough for the backed-up data to be recovered even if 2 out of every 64 centimetres of tape is damaged.
