May 1, 2008

Flash drives are very convenient for data storage and their small size makes them ideal for transporting from one location to another.  These drives come in many various sizes and are a quick alternative to using re-writable DVD's for data.

Re-writable CD's and DVD's have been a handy medium for backing up data and transferring data from one computer to another.  The problem with them is they tend to be rather flaky and both computers using the disks need to use the same software programs for maximum compatibility.  Reading them isn't usually the problem, but the writing to them is another story.  There can also be compatibility problems between different manufacturer's disks and certain drives.  These disks are also very slow writing data, so if you use them for backups, and you are backing up a lot of files, it can be a slow process.

Well, now along come the flash drives.  They are very small and also very fast writing data.  You can put them in your pocket and if you keep you data backups in a safe deposit box, it doesn't take up any room.  The capacities exceed those of DVD disks, so they are a viable alternative to use for backup purposes.  They are also great to use for transferring files between computers.

There has been some discussion as to how many times you can write data to flash memory.  This memory retains data written to it after power is removed.  At this time, I believe the data is 10,000 to 100,000 times.  This is 10 times the numbers for re-writable disks.  Hardly worth worrying about, and as always, you need the data in two places, just in case.  As with any computer equipment, I advise to handle the flash drives carefully and don't abuse them.

As with everything else computer related, as time goes on, things improve and new developments continue to inundate the market.  I feel the flash drives are one of the better developments.