Floppy Disks Get Second Life at Recycling Service

2022-10-26

00:00 / 00:00
复读宝 RABC v8.0beta 复读机按钮使用说明
播放/暂停
停止
播放时:倒退3秒/复读时:回退AB段
播放时:快进3秒/复读时:前进AB段
拖动:改变速度/点击:恢复正常速度1.0
拖动改变复读暂停时间
点击:复读最近5秒/拖动:改变复读次数
设置A点
设置B点
取消复读并清除AB点
播放一行
停止播放
后退一行
前进一行
复读一行
复读多行
变速复读一行
变速复读多行
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1
  • Do you know the "save" icon on your computer?
  • 2
  • It is a picture of a floppy disk.
  • 3
  • Back in the 1900s, they were the main way computer files were saved and stored.
  • 4
  • Back then, there were no USB flash drives and there was no cloud-based storage.
  • 5
  • Today, floppy disks are hard to find. And demand for them is rising.
  • 6
  • Tom Persky runs the website floppydisk.com, a seller of the well-known palm-sized floppy disk.
  • 7
  • The 73-year-old says business is growing.
  • 8
  • The California-based business recycles new and used disks, removes the information stored on them and sells them to a dependable customer base.
  • 9
  • He estimates that he sells about 500 disks a day.
  • 10
  • So, who buys floppy disks in the year 2022? Persky says there are many kinds of people who make such purchases.
  • 11
  • They include people who work in the embroidery industry and in the airline industry.
  • 12
  • "If you built a plane 20 or 30 or even 40 years ago, you would use a floppy disk to get information in and out of some of the avionics of that airplane," Persky said.
  • 13
  • At his warehouse, there are huge numbers of colorful disks - bright green, orange, yellow - sent from around the world.
  • 14
  • He uses a large magnetic machine with a conveyor belt to remove the information from the disks, and then another machine puts written information on them.
  • 15
  • His warehouse even has older versions of floppy disks that were used in the 1970s and 1980s.
  • 16
  • One even is labeled with the 1960 John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon U.S. presidential debate.
  • 17
  • Despite being "the dinosaurs" of the tech world, Persky said floppy disks still have some good qualities.
  • 18
  • "Floppy disks are very reliable, very stable, a very well understood way to get information in and out of a machine," he said.
  • 19
  • Persky went into the floppy disk business after working for a tax company in the 1990s doing software development.
  • 20
  • He used to make copies of the software on floppy disks.
  • 21
  • After that, he said that he fell in love with the floppy disk business.
  • 22
  • He was not expecting his business to last as long as it did.
  • 23
  • "When I see the 'save' icon, I see a floppy disk. But most people just see the 'save' icon," Persky said.
  • 24
  • "I'll be here for as long as people continue to want to have these disks. But it's not forever."
  • 25
  • I'm Faith Pirlo.
  • 1
  • Do you know the "save" icon on your computer? It is a picture of a floppy disk. Back in the 1900s, they were the main way computer files were saved and stored. Back then, there were no USB flash drives and there was no cloud-based storage.
  • 2
  • Today, floppy disks are hard to find. And demand for them is rising.
  • 3
  • Tom Persky runs the website floppydisk.com, a seller of the well-known palm-sized floppy disk. The 73-year-old says business is growing. The California-based business recycles new and used disks, removes the information stored on them and sells them to a dependable customer base. He estimates that he sells about 500 disks a day.
  • 4
  • So, who buys floppy disks in the year 2022? Persky says there are many kinds of people who make such purchases. They include people who work in the embroidery industry and in the airline industry.
  • 5
  • "If you built a plane 20 or 30 or even 40 years ago, you would use a floppy disk to get information in and out of some of the avionics of that airplane," Persky said.
  • 6
  • At his warehouse, there are huge numbers of colorful disks - bright green, orange, yellow - sent from around the world. He uses a large magnetic machine with a conveyor belt to remove the information from the disks, and then another machine puts written information on them.
  • 7
  • His warehouse even has older versions of floppy disks that were used in the 1970s and 1980s. One even is labeled with the 1960 John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon U.S. presidential debate.
  • 8
  • Despite being "the dinosaurs" of the tech world, Persky said floppy disks still have some good qualities.
  • 9
  • "Floppy disks are very reliable, very stable, a very well understood way to get information in and out of a machine," he said.
  • 10
  • Persky went into the floppy disk business after working for a tax company in the 1990s doing software development. He used to make copies of the software on floppy disks. After that, he said that he fell in love with the floppy disk business.
  • 11
  • He was not expecting his business to last as long as it did.
  • 12
  • "When I see the 'save' icon, I see a floppy disk. But most people just see the 'save' icon," Persky said. "I'll be here for as long as people continue to want to have these disks. But it's not forever."
  • 13
  • I'm Faith Pirlo.
  • 14
  • Phil Lavelle wrote this article for Reuters. Faith Pirlo adapted it for Learning English.
  • 15
  • ______________________________________________________________________
  • 16
  • Words in This Story
  • 17
  • icon - n. a small picture or design on a computer screen that represents a program or function
  • 18
  • palm-sized - adj. fits in the palm or middle of your hand
  • 19
  • recycle - v. to put used paper, glass, plastic, etc. through a process so that it can be used again
  • 20
  • embroidery - n. cloth with special designs made using a small, very thin object that is used in sewing and that has a sharp point at one end and a hole for a long, thin piece of cotton, silk or other material
  • 21
  • avionics - n. a blend word meaning aviation and technology or the plane's technology
  • 22
  • warehouse - n. a place where goods are stored
  • 23
  • conveyor belt - n. a mechanical apparatus for moving articles or bulk material from place to place
  • 24
  • label - v. a slip (as of paper or cloth) inscribed and affixed to something for identification or description
  • 25
  • reliable - adj. able to be depended upon to do something
  • 26
  • stable - adj. not likely to change or end suddenly