Removable storage?

[FrayDenZ]

I just got in to overclocking not so long ago. Things are good so far, but just in case, I think I better get something bigger than my 1.44 meg disk drive. Like maybe a couple hundred megs or so. Probably 500 or less would work.
Any suggestions? I have no knowledge of removalble drives at all.
Thanks

[Roy]

If your purpose is backup, a second HDD can be a viable option.

[800XL]

I'd say you have two choices. First off, there is the ZIP drive. The latest ZIP drive will fit 250MB on one disk, while still being compatible with the older 100MB ZIPdisk media. The second option is a CDROM burner or combo CDR/CDRW drive. This lets you burn your data permanently to a CDR, or rewritably to a CDRW disc. The ZIP drive is easy to use, just like a floppy or hard disk really, and the CD writer takes a little more work to setup and use. However, you can bet on being able to take your CDs to just about any PC and get your data off of them. Not everyone has a ZIP drive.

Personally, I'd go for a CDRW drive. Blank CDs are around $1 a piece if you get 50 or so, where zipdisks are still around $5 for a 100MB disk. For that $1 you get 650MB of storage. If you need to update the data on the disk, just reburn it on a new CD and eat the dollar. Its still cheaper in the long run.

[FrayDenZ]

Thanks! This is a tough one. I think I need more info. I really like idea of burning my own cd's, but then again, having another hard drive sounds like it would be really nice, too. I can only afford about $200, so I can get one or the other...where can I get more info on having (installing, running) 2 hd's - if anyone happens to know? I want it mostly cause I'm afraid I might fry mine by overclocking my cpu, in case that matters...

[Roy]

That matters a lot.

For much less than $200 you can get a rather large HDD. I have two Western Digitals on the ribbon cable connected to IDE-1. They are jumpered and recognized as Master and Slave. When I want to protect the slave from possible corruption, I disconnect it, and move the jumper on the master to the "neutral" position (or just remove it an set it aside). Then when I boot, I go to setup and let the BIOS recognize the one drive. From there, everything is normal and the slave is protected. If I suspect the master's been corrupted, I let the slave become the master.

It might be a good idea to have installed the operating system (W9x?) on the slave separately, just to get started. Others can give you tips about software for cloning the things you want to protect. (Drive Copy, Drive Image, Ghost, etc.)

This might be easier than using a HDD drawer since the case is likely to be open anyway and the purpose is not to transport data.

I hope this helps you decide. Of course, a CD burner adds the fun of making music CDs with your own favorites for the car, etc.