2. Subscribe to online storage services. Online backup is a good place to start. I like iForem's store-it-forever capability, great for tax filings, contracts, and the like.
3. Subscribe to software online. As a serial organizer, I love project management/to do list packages available on the Web. If enough buyers like me follow suit, companies offering these products will need to buy more storage. At the very least, they'll require scalable archiving, right? (Think Permabit or Copan for starters.) Of course, by the time everyone gets their checks, buys a 1-TB drive, and signs up for online services or software, we will be well into 3Q. Luckily, most online backup services aimed at consumers are inexpensive, so even if your contribution doesn't jump-start the storage economy, you will probably have some money left over -- maybe to pay off some credit cards or go further into debt buy that new flat-screen TV...
George Crump is founder of Storage Switzerland, an analyst firm focused on the virtualization and storage marketplaces. It provides strategic consulting and analysis to storage users, suppliers, and integrators. An industry veteran of more than 25 years, Crump has held engineering and sales positions at various IT industry manufacturers and integrators. Prior to Storage Switzerland, he was CTO at one of the nation's largest integrators.