The innovation-development process of the

USB flash drive.

By: Sheila Cuffy

Need:

• may occur when a social problem rises to a high priority on the agenda of topics which deserve research (Rogers, 2003).

Prior to USB drives, it was difficult and inconvenient to move large amounts of data from place to place. CD-

writing technology was almost unavailable on personal computers until the late 1990s; the largest commonly-available portable storage media were floppy disks that could at best hold 1.44 megabytes. Large files (over 1.44 MB) had to be split up across many floppy disks, or put on expensive and rarely-compatible high-density disks, such as Zip disks. Those required special, expensive hardware, which limited their popularity (Champion, L. (n d).

Research:

• addresses the need of solving the problem identified (Rogers, 2003).

The Use of Portable Applications as e-Portfolio Tools in Teacher Education was the research article I chose. In

summary, the research showed the benefits of the USB flash drive as: a significant reduction in the amount of paper used; a user-friendly portfolio which can be shared electronically with others; the ability to use the USB drive applications on any PC; easy access to applications and the user's own material no personal data left behind on the 'host' computer. This study supports the importance of the need of the USB flash drive (Mackrill & Taylor, 2008).

Development:

• the process of putting a new idea into a form this is expected to meet the needs of an audience of potential adopters (Rogers, 2003).

Even though the original vision was not fully realized, USB storage devices have become the storage devices of choice for most users. Since 2004, most PC manufacturers have eliminated floppy drives from the desktop due to the popularity of a USB keychain-type add-on memory (Koon, 2005).

Commercialization:

• the production, manufacturing, packaging, marketing, and distribution of a product that embodies an innovation (Rogers, 2003).

Nowadays there are not only different in capacity of USB flash drives, but also diversiform appearance of them. It’s not surprising at all to see a novelty USB flash drive that looks like a piece sushi or an animal. The manufacturing meets the appeal of the user.

Reference:

• Champion, L. (n d). The History of USB Flash Drives. eHow website http://www.ehow.com/about_5152489_history-usb-flash-drives.html visited on April 1, 2010.

• Koon, J. (2005). The USB Revolution,  Tech Idea International. March 25th, 2005.

• Mackrill, D., & Taylor, S. (2008). FlashPort - The Next Generation In E-Portfolios? The Use of Portable Applications as e-Portfolio Tools in Teacher Education. Journal of Systemics, Cybernetics & Informatics, 6(6), 80-85. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

• Rogers, E. M. (2003). Diffusion of innovations (5th ed.). New York: Free Press.