Posted by Richard Crowley on 05/22/07 16:21

"Roberto Divia" wrote ...
> If instead we speak of asynchronous data transfers (e.g. from a HDD-based
> video camera), things are totally different...

Indeed. But note that if we are transferring data from a source
which uses a random-access media (like a HD or mini-DVD)
going back and asking for "sector 48723" over again is no big
deal. It happens all the time with "conventional" data transfer.
But it would be unreasonable to expect a tape-based source
to be able to go back and repeat a chunk.

Remember also that Firewire is full duplex while USB is half-
duplex. i.e. it can flow in only one direction at a time. This is
why you can "daisy chain" Firewire devices together like an
external drive and a camcorder and transfer video from the
camcorder into the external drive (under the control of the
computer).

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