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I know this isn’t exactly a technical question, but I have never understood what is meant by the database symbol as a stack of nickles. I have a feeling this same question is going to be asked by future generations about the symbol for save being a floppy disk.
It’s an ancient storage mechanism called a disk, or more specifically a disk pack. The nickels are the various platters. Or it might be an even more ancient one, called a drum.
One of the nastiest sounds I’ve ever heard was when a computer operator (remember them, anyone?) put the protective cover on a DEC-10 removable disk pack before it had stopped rotating. But the best bit of operations centre madness I’ve seen was when my then boss walked into the computer room smoking a pipe. The fire system immediately went off – sirens and annunciators going “Danger, danger – Halon release in 30 seconds”, “Danger, danger – halon release in 20 seconds” and so on. Someone had thoughtfully positioned a new cabinet in front of the halon abort button, so we had a few stressful moments there. Nothing to do with the question, I suppose, but it brought these memories flooding back….