Storage:

U.S. Design Corportation Certifies ASACA's TeraCart

ASACA Corporation and U.S. Design Corporation, a global provider of storage management software, announced that Universal SuperSTOR Version 2.0 (USS v.2.0) has been certified to manage ASACA's award-winning AM 250, 750, and 1450 line of scaleable TeraCart (Digital Virtual Libraries (DVLs). Paired with ASACA's modular system capable of housing up to 11,600 double-sided 9.4GB rewritable and/or write-once DVD discs, the JAVA-based software provides TeraCart users with improved caching and scheduling algorithms or techniques for enhanced data transaction performance.

Platform independent, USS v.2.0 writes information in industry standard Universal Disk Format (UDF), a format enabling complete data exchange and eliminating proprietary data limitations. Incorporating UDF prevents the limiting, proprietary nature of many data storage management software applications for consistent device management across platforms. USS v.2.0 uses JAVA, HTML and the RPC Protocol for broad range use on any JAVA VM (Virtual Machine) supportive system. A browser based interface provides easy, real-time access to data management functions, providing authorized corporate users complete online access and browsing capability whether inside or outside the enterprise.

"Universal SuperSTOR provides transparent access to data in multi-platform environments where that feature might not otherwise be possible," said Chuck Larabie, ASACA's director of sales and marketing. "Imbedded in our TeraCart libraries, USS provides enterprises with Web-based access to library management functions and enhanced data performance capabilities. Our combined technologies will expand the way organizations process and manage their data."

Recognized as the world's highest-density, flexible, random-access storage solutions, the TeraCart is capable of acting as four separate libraries, optimizing an organization's unique storage requirements by allowing users to combine DVD-RAM, DVD-ROM, CD-ROM, CD-R, and CD-RW within a single cabinet. A completely modular system, the TeraCart easily adapts to any budget or storage need, enabling organizations to start with a single cabinet and expand to as many as eight libraries. Connected using pass-through and infrared communications the TeraCart can provide capacities well into the petabyte (PB) range.

"ASACA has proven to be one of the true leaders in the high capacity DVD library market," said Harry Garonzik, president and CEO of U.S. Design. "During the integration process of our Universal SuperSTOR software with the ASACA products, the hardware has shown an exceptional level of flexibility and robustness, which U.S.Design is proud to be associated with."

USS v.2.0's robust, modular architecture ensures that TeraCart users will continue to experience fast data search and retrieval times even as near-line data sets grow. To reduce operator intervention, USS v.2.0 can transparently control, monitor, schedule and move media throughout the TeraCart library.

Price/Availability

Flexible enough to support a broad range of storage technologies including MO, WORM, CD-R, CD-ROM, DVD-R, DVD-RAM, DVD-R/W, DVD+RW and DVD-ROM, USS v.2.0 is supported on Windows NT/2000, Tru 64 UNIX, Red Hat Linux, Sun Solaris and Open VMS systems. USS is also certified with all major optical hardware vendors. Products and services are sold through a worldwide network of authorized resellers, capable of providing appropriate local training, support and related services.

ASACA's TeraCart DVL systems are available for immediate delivery. Individual libraries can be configured with 1 to 24 DVD-RAM, DVD-R, or a combination of the two drives for online capacities ranging from 2.3TB to nearly 14TB. Expansion cabinets are available for up to 109TB of DVD storage. The TeraCart AM250 starts at $30,000 and the AM1450, with 24 drives, is approximately $200,000, depending upon the options selected. Fibre Channel SAN-ready models include a built-in server and are available with an ATX or Sparc, NT or UNIX operating system.

About U.S. Design Corporation

U.S. Design Corporation, founded in 1978, is a highly specialized company offering industry-leading optical storage device management software. U.S. Design was acquired from Maxtor in January of 1992 by a venture capital group based in Maryland and is now a privately owned company. U.S. Design offers Universal SuperSTOR (USS), a JAVA-based, platform independent software that manages optical storage subsystems. U.S. Design holds patents and copyrights on proprietary "cache" and "binding" software that have unique applications to the optical market.

About ASACA

Founded in 1971, the ASACA/SHIBASOKU Corporation has its US headquarters in Golden, Colo. A leading developer of high-capacity, high-performance data storage solutions, the company is focused on serving broadcast and data storage markets worldwide. For complete information on the TeraCart DVL systems, visit the ASACA Website at www.asaca.com.

Contact Chuck Larabie, 303-278-1111 x226, chuckl@asaca.com.