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Make Way for Serial ATA In the early days of computing, it was the emergence of the hard drive that enabled computer users to end their total dependence upon slow and unreliable cassette tape or floppy drive storage systems. With the introduction of the IBM PC/XT in 1983, hard disk drives became a standard component of most personal computers. The Advanced Technology Attachment (ATA) interface, a connection point that allows for data transfer between the hard drive and computer, evolved from the Advanced Technology (AT) interface developed originally for the IBM PC/AT computer in the mid-1980’s.3 Steady innovation over the years has stretched the interface’s initial transfer rate of 3 megabytes per second (MB/sec), to its current maximum of 133MB/sec. With a possible increase to 150MB/sec in the future, the technology will be extended about as far as it can be taken. So what will be the next technology to surpass the reigning king-of-the-hill? The future is Serial ATA. This is a new ATA drive interface specification from a design consortium known as the Serial ATA Working Group. The group comprises more than 70 hard drive, chipset, and PC manufacturers in the industry such as Intel, Dell, IBM, Maxtor, Seagate, Philips,