TS 4828

TS 4828 is a terminology standard for data processing that brings together terms and definitions for data media, storage, and related equipment. The shared focus of the title and scope is the naming of magnetic and non-magnetic data media together with the storage equipment associated with them. Standards of this kind do not prescribe how a device is built; they organise the technical vocabulary used to describe related concepts consistently.

Distinguishing media from storage equipment

In general technical usage, data media are the physical carriers that hold information, while storage equipment refers to the devices that read, write, manage, or otherwise use those carriers. Magnetic tapes, disks and similar media belong to the first category; drives, printers and other related hardware belong to the second. Keeping that distinction clear matters in engineering, cataloguing, and documentation because the properties of the medium are not the same as the functions of the equipment.

The scope indicates that the standard covers both magnetic and non-magnetic media as well as related hardware. It also states that selected English and French terms with definitions are provided, which makes the document useful as a controlled vocabulary for international technical communication, translation, and harmonisation of terminology across information-processing contexts. The “Section 12” designation shows that it forms part of a broader data processing vocabulary series.

This TS 4828 edition has been withdrawn, but the conceptual structure remains relevant for understanding storage technologies and their terminology. The distinction between medium, storage device, and associated equipment is especially useful when comparing legacy systems with later data storage solutions.