Vitreous Read-Only Memory
The particularly Cobalt Protectorate obsession with redundancy and preserving things for as long as humanly possible extends to their digital storage media. Designed by Protectorate scientists with an eye towards stability, vitreous read-only memory (VROM) is a form of solid-state memory that, once written, will remain readable for hundreds of years barring its physical destruction.
A unit of VROM storage media is a slab of an ultra-durable, glassy, transparent matrix material known as noble glass which may be bluish, opalescent, or colorless depending on intended purpose and manufacturer. Data is written to VROM by focussing intersecting laser beams onto points within the matrix, nucleating tiny bubbles therein. These bubbles, their interiors rendered translucent by vapor-frosting, form a pattern which may be interpreted as binary data or take the form of images and writing for ease of identification. Multiple layers of bubbles can be written into a single chunk of VROM. VROM data cannot be erased, only overwritten, so it is important not to make mistakes when writing; however, a VROM unit can be written over the course of multiple sessions, making it valuable for record-keeping purposes. Once written, a VROM can then be read by probing the interior with intersecting laser beams and observing whether or not the light passes through at a given point.
Utility
Units of VROM are useful for durable record-keeping of all sorts. Auto-fabricator blueprints and important device firmware are often stored on VROM so that, in the event of an accident, hacking, or theft, these systems can be safely restored to function with less fear of backups being compromised. Historical data is often stored in VROM archives in deep underground bunkers located in geologically stable regions of Evermorn. Contracts, treaties, and important documents like the Ancestral Codex and Code of Evermorn are frequently replicated in VROM format. Human-Like Artificial Intelligence (HLAI) 'seed' data - the blueprint and record of initial state from which a new HLAI is to be constructed - is also often stored on VROM.
Aside from its usefulness as a data storage media, some VROM units are also works of art. As long a VROM's shape will not distort the laser beams used to read it, it can take a wide variety of proportions; a cube around six inches on a side is a popular form factor, as is a flat card designed to be paired with a card computer. Because it is written in layers, the data within a VROM can be arranged such that, when viewed from without, a three-dimensional object is depicted. Coatings transparent to the laser light frequencies used to read and write VROM can be almost any other color, obscuring the nature of the unit from casual onlookers and providing yet another canvas for creative expression. VROM can even be incorporated into a diverse assortment of transparent containers or structural elements, such as windows, chemical vessels, museum cases, and cryostasis chamber lids.
Social Impact
VROM is often integrated into important monuments and structures related to recordkeeping, such as the Hall of Vitreous Vitae and Walls of Account. Indeed, vitreous vitae are VROM media, with each of a citizen's successive meritorious achievements inscribed therein for future referrence. The 'monument stones' deployed by exploration vessels, as well as the Apocalypse Class, are also comprised of VROM, though they may also feature special coatings or enclosures to protect against particularly aggressive environmental conditions.
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