When did you last use a floppy disk?
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FridgeMagnet
Administrator
Christ, over a decade I think.
mitochondria
full-on emptiness
last time I used the floppy was to run hdd regenerator around 2 years ago. had to scavenge for a floppy drive because my comp has not had one from its first start 6 years ago. then my friend gave me some boot cds and hdd reg cd version was there.
so I dumped the drive, crashed the disk onto the floor, took out the floppy and hung it over the door. christian cross style like.
hate them with a passion since amiga.
so I dumped the drive, crashed the disk onto the floor, took out the floppy and hung it over the door. christian cross style like.
hate them with a passion since amiga.
rioted
redundant
AFAIK the space shuttle still uses them.
About 6 months back. It was one of about about a hundred I've still got with old software and games on, which I keep meaning to go through to see if there's anything useful or fun on there before I bin them. But can never find the time - ie, be arsed.
Current PC has one and I'd be reluctant to buy one without because, the moment you do, you just know you're going to need one (I expect there are USB versions available though..).
Current PC has one and I'd be reluctant to buy one without because, the moment you do, you just know you're going to need one (I expect there are USB versions available though..).
just flashed the BIOS on my new computer - the only way I could do it was digging out a battered old floppy drive and hooking it up. First time I'v used on since the last time I had to do it. What was great was the drive still worked - the discs might corrupt if they got so much as sneezed on but the drives themselves are indestructible.
Sunray
Its sunny somewhere.
I've been forced into using them on and off due to non-standard disk controllers, Vista is the 1st Microsoft OS that can use flash disk. Before that it only had a floppy driver to load them. That was at least 4 years ago tho.
In 1998 I blew my floppy disk plugging it in when the machine was on, pushed the connector over the wrong pins, very loud bang and a blue flash. Never replaced it and managed to get away with that even back then.
In 1998 I blew my floppy disk plugging it in when the machine was on, pushed the connector over the wrong pins, very loud bang and a blue flash. Never replaced it and managed to get away with that even back then.
Dead Cat Bounce
A member of the Waffle elite.
A couple of weeks back when some idiot at work somehow managed to change the admin password on his XP desktop and forgot what it was.
Plugged in USB floppy drive, booted with a Linux bootdisk and reset the password.
Plugged in USB floppy drive, booted with a Linux bootdisk and reset the password.
kyser_soze
Hawking's Angry Eyebrow
1.4mb being silly? How about the MASSIVE 512K memory expansion card that was 15x7x1 that used to slot into the Amiga500? And now you can get 512x that amount on something the size of my little fingernail!
I have a floppy drive installed on every PC and I have external too. I have uncountable floppy disks containing so many things I wrote or need or possibly will need in the future, that going through all of that to get it stored on an other carrier isn't possible.
Yes, it's "old fashion" etc.. etc... but I can't be bothered with the smiles and comments
salaam.
Get a USB stick and dump them all on it in one afternoon!
AFAIK the space shuttle still uses them.
This is why NASA sources parts for the shuttle from eBay.
UnderOpenSky
baseline neural therapy
The 512 was the ram upgrade, you could get a 20meg hard disk. I always wanted one, but couldn't afford it, like microdrives on the spectrum.
kyser_soze
Hawking's Angry Eyebrow
One of my mates had a speccy microdrive and eenny weent thermal printer.
They were both shite. Quicker than the C-64s 5 1/4" disc drive tho...
They were both shite. Quicker than the C-64s 5 1/4" disc drive tho...
Shippou-Sensei
4:1:2.5
serious use 3-5 years passed
however i had a nightmare recently with a guy who had a fucking aincent laptop that needed drivers for a usb drive (he was using win 98) so i had to download the drivers put the onto a usb key to take them to the linux server which has a floppy to copy the over to his laptop witch also had a floppy drive.... fucking piece of shit laptop didn't even have an ethernet port
however i had a nightmare recently with a guy who had a fucking aincent laptop that needed drivers for a usb drive (he was using win 98) so i had to download the drivers put the onto a usb key to take them to the linux server which has a floppy to copy the over to his laptop witch also had a floppy drive.... fucking piece of shit laptop didn't even have an ethernet port
bmd
Island in the stream.
So how do people get round the bit on an XP/2000 install where it says something like "if you want to install extra drivers press f6" and then asks you to insert disk into A drive? I've always used a floppy for this as XP doesn't natively support SATA drives.
*waits for patently obvious workaround*
*waits for patently obvious workaround*
Paul Russell
Psychogeographer
Erm, every day I'm working on a computer.
If I've been working on a Word document for a couple of hours, I back it up to a floppy, just in case my hard drive goes splat. Doesn't seem worth plugging in an external hard drive for that.
Am I a weirdo?
If I've been working on a Word document for a couple of hours, I back it up to a floppy, just in case my hard drive goes splat. Doesn't seem worth plugging in an external hard drive for that.
Am I a weirdo?
longdog
What is it you can't face?
You flash bastard.
TWO floppy drives?
Were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth too?
Structaural
in Chatsubo
About 2 years ago - to install mouse drivers on my then PC. There was always a satisfying clunk with a 3.5".
WWWeed
Bandwidth Bandit
They dont! thats why you can still buy usb floppy drives!
kyser_soze
Hawking's Angry Eyebrow
You flash bastard.
TWO floppy drives?
Were you born with a silver spoon in your mouth too?
5 1/4 and 3.5, one each in the top slots.
Legacy preparation innit?
I have uncountable floppy disks. It would take months to go trough all of them.
I developed an almost innate-like skill to find among them what I need in no time (they are more or less catalogued). Disrupting that system would disrupt my brain and that is already severely disrupted "as is".
No, I cherish my floppies. Makes me a dinousaur and I love the Jesus Horses.
salaam.
bmd
Island in the stream.
I'm kind of relieved that there wasn't an obvious workaround and a bit disappointed that I'm still gonna have to do it.
UnderOpenSky
baseline neural therapy
There is, my mate helped me when I put my new computer together. You need to make a special xp disc, of which the name escapes me and do it with that.
Edit: Its called a Slipstream install.
Edit: Its called a Slipstream install.
Online backup or USB key is your friend. Both infinantly more reliable then a floppy.
I've not used one for years personally, although one of our suppliers gives us their data in some weird self-extracting file which only extracts to floppy which my colleague has to deal with with an external floppy drive.
bmd
Island in the stream.
Ooh ta!
gentlegreen
I hummus, therefore I am ...
Funnily enough I currently have need of a Windows98 boot disc to fix a virus on a laptop and I couldn't find a PC with a drive to make one on.
I suppose I may still be able to burn one on the laptop - I think the virus has left that accessible ...
I suppose I may still be able to burn one on the laptop - I think the virus has left that accessible ...
19sixtysix
Bring me sunshine
My archive of some floppies I had on CD failed recently. The CD had gone bad, a sort of rusty colour. I had to borrow a USB floppy and read the floppies again. The floppies are lasting better than the cdrs.
Anyone still using 5 or 8 inch floppies?
Anyone still using 5 or 8 inch floppies?
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