If computer users want to view movies on a DVD drive, they will need to add MPEG-2 decoding to their system via an expansion card. With the hardware issues falling into place, the biggest problem with DVD and DVD-ROM will be finding disks to use. But this situation should be easier to resolve than it has been for some earlier technologies. Digitized photo collections and large reference databases would also be ideal. Encyclopedias would be a good choice, as would an atlas containing every street and address in the United States, which needs up to nine CD-ROM disks.
Software expands to fill the space available.
By now, most of us have learned to avoid superlatives when discussing the capacities of computer components. The great sea of storage capacity in last year's 1.2GB hard disk has seemingly filled up overnight. But it is safe to say that 4.7GB on one disk will radically alter the types and the scope of applications that can be delivered conveniently and economically. The promise of DVD-RAM is alluring. With DVD's CD compatibility and the fact that it will let entertainment titles cross over from home players, we will be able to use this technology well into the next century.