THE PROBLEM WITH FLOPPIES

More and more people who use floppy disks to move documents, images, projects, music and other files have experienced the frustration of losing their work.

This problem will get worse if you continue to use floppy disks.

WHY IS THIS A PROBLEM?
Like the cassette tape and the video tape, floppy disks are quickly becoming obsolete. If you buy a new computer today, the floppy disk drive is an option, not a standard. The floppy disk you are using today was probably manufactured 10 years ago. It stores information on a magnetic surface which breaks down over time. When it breaks down... you lose your files. We have also noticed a variation between floppy drives in different brand computers and in older versus newer computers.

WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?
If you insist on using floppy disks, at the very least you should back up your work on your hard drive at home or school. That way, if your floppy fails, you can at least retrieve your work later. Of course that may not help you if your work is due today.

WHAT ARE OTHER OPTIONS TO FLOPPIES?

E-Mail - If you don't want to buy anything... this is a good option for you.

You can e-mail your work as an attachment to an e-mail to yourself. That way if your floppy fails, you can retrieve your e-mail at school or at home. Of course, you must make sure that your e-mail can be retrieved from school and you'll have to test this to see if you can. You also have to make sure that the e-mail you use allows you to attach large files if you are going to send PowerPoint files or music or other memory-eating files. With permission from your teacher, students could email an attachment to their teacher.

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CD Disks - If you have a read/write CD drive at home... this is a good option for you.


If you burn your work to a CD, you can access your work from any computer with a CD drive.

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USB Mini-Drives - If you can afford to spend from $20 - $60, this is the BEST option.

All computers now come with USB Ports. These slots allow you to plug in devices like printers, scanners, cameras and hard drives. Small drives that plug into the USB port of your computer allow you to save files without using floppy or CD disks. They have no moving parts and are much safer to use than other storage devices. They are called: MiniDrives, FlashDrives, JumpDrives, PenDrives and who knows what else. They are currently the best option you have for storing and moving files.

There are some things you should know before you go out and buy one...
Make sure your computer has USB ports. Also... take note of the area around the port and make sure that the USB Drive you purchase can fit in the port. If it doesn't, you will need to purchase a USB cable extender which may cost as much as $15.

Make sure your computer's operating system supports USB ports...
WINDOWS 2000 and WINDOWS XP should work fine.
WINDOWS 95 and WINDOWS NT do not support USB drives
WINDOWS 98 supports USB ports, but only if it is Windows 98 version 2 and you will be required to put communication software on your computer that allows your USB drive to be recognized. The software can be found at the website of the company that makes the USB device you have.
Macintosh probably supports your USB device, but you should make sure before you buy it by checking the company's website or asking the salesperson.

What size capacity do you need?
You can buy USB Flash Drives in a variety of storage sizes. This chart will give you an idea of how much storage space you need and how much you can expect to spend...

How do they work?
This is the easy part. You plug them into a USB port on your computer. In a few seconds, your computer will recognize that there is a removable drive on your computer. You can now save, retrieve or drag files. If you look in MY COMPUTER on your desktop, you should see the removable drive and the files on it.

Sometimes the USB Port is in the back of your computer and it may be a huge hassle to get to. You can get a USB Cable extender that will make it easier to plug your USB Drive into the USB Port.

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