Q: Why do zip disks fly out at warp speed?

[mgordon99]

I have a external Zip drive, which I like very much. I just don't understand the force that is used when they are ejected. I swear it would fly 10 feet accross the room if I didn't catch it.

Does anyone else notice this with their zip drives?

[Warthog]

I used a floppy drive one time that shot out real fast. Also, I used to own a faucet on a kitchen sink that must've been jet powered cause it would literally lift the faucet a half an inch upwards when it was on full power - but that's besides the point. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

You should try for a distance record sometime http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/wink.gif.

Warthog

[Nixona]

you tink zip disks are bad...I had to fix a vcr that spit tapes out. You havent lived until you've ducked a VHS tape flying warp speed at your head.

[Inferior]

I used to have a tape deck like that in the car, man did that thing cause pain..... http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif hehehe

[hhh8785]

I have one exactly like that. An external parallel Zip drive. My gosh, the first time i hooked it up, and then i ejected a disk i thought my zip drive had falled off the top of my desk because it made such a racket. My best guess is that since Zip disks are heavier than other disks, they thought it would need a greater force to get it out. And since it has that spring action, like how it takes a push to get it in, not just sliding in with ease, that factor added with the extra push for the heavier disk makes it shoot out so hard. I guess Iomega figured it would be better to have it shoot out easily than take a chance getting stuck inside for some reason. It is just a guess though.

P.S. have your disks ever actually shot all the way out?

[wtp]

haha, i know. When i first got my computer, i was wondering why it was kind of hard to push the floppy button, so i look at it real close, and pressed it... well, OUCH...

wtp

[tepo]

Hey wtp, learning can be a painfull story sometimes... LOL http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

Tepo

[deep_sky]

my external USB zip drive does the same thing. i tell you, if i let the disk fly out, it would probably be embedded in the wall it comes out so fast. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[jman01pa]

I have an old HP cd burner that does not spin down the disk and when you open it, the cd flys across the room.

The first time it happened I was copying a game and the original cracked when it hit the wall. That cost me 24 bucks. Ouch!


J http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[dexmax]

WHy???? does your zip drive work out????

i have an external zip 100 drive, and it spits out fine. the disk go out just enough. i don't have to catch it or run after the flying disk.

have kids? this time you can ask your drive to play baseball w/ them. just kidding.

[dexmax]

wait... i had an experience, i remember now. have you saw flying cds. good thing is i wasn't hit, but the one sitting at center back seat of my car was.

A audio CD flew out from my single CD player on my car. it kindda like from the "wild wild west". but that was only one time...

[BBA]

See..it's really trying to keep you in tune for Quake gaming...get the reactions in check and all.

[nuclear]

THIS HAS GOT TO BE THE FUNNIEST POST I HAVE EVER READ HERE AT SYSOPT!!!!

ive got a zip drive and mine *ocasionally* shoots them across the room. my cd burner also turns my cds into ufo's but they have only fell right into the floor. never have they flown across my room in circles and ended up back in my hand!

[bdunn]

The first external zip drive I had did the same thing. It was replaced by Iomega after clicking itself to death, See link below
http://grc.com/codfaq1.htm

The replacement had a calmer eject mechanism.

[howste]

Sorry for reviving an old thread, but I stumbled across this today, and thought it was pretty funny! http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif does your zip drive work out????

[Szech]

I remember when I first bought my Zip drive, it did that too. I would hit the eject button, then get my hand out of the way. But two years later, it spits it out like a regular disk.

[daverme]

Well, all I can add is that, yes, mine to shoots the disk out hard enough for it to fall on the floor. Scared the **** outta me the first time it happened !!!

[MiKe85]

Good thing i go through floppy drives so quickly (Don't ask me why..)

I have gotten several of them that when you tried to take a disk out, it was almost like dodging bullets http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

Mike

[NDC]

Yeah, I use parallel port interface Zip100 external, SCSI interface Zip250 external, and Castlewood ORB 2.2GB.

Let me tell you, Zip drives are nothing compared to the way ORB drives eject the disk. The disk ejects from an ORB drive so hard that it looks and sounds as if the mechanisms from the drive itself is going to spit out with the disk!

[Variable]

I had (I still have it) a floppy drive once that did that. Annoyed the heck out of me.
So I just went ahead and opened the little sucker: I found the spring that ejects the disks and bend it a little so it didn't have that much force. After that my floppies would eject normally.

I also have a CD-ROM that does that. It doesn't spin down and when you heat eject those disks come flying out.
This is even more bothersome since they get scrached -you wouldn't believe how much.
I porbably lost about 5-10 CD-Rs that way and scratched a few normal CDs pretty hard too. But luckily those normal Cds aren't that "picky" with scratches, the CD-Rs were gone!

Is there a way to make the CD-ROM spin down before efecting the tray with the the CD?

[ArnoldLLerch]

Do the external Zip drives (SCSI) need a special SCSI card or will any SCSI adaptor card do the trick?
And, if they do, where do I get one?

ARNi LEE
Waiting for FMD

[NDC]

You can use it on any SCSI card. It comes with a 25-pin SCSI cable for Macs, but I just bought a 50-pin SCSI cable to use it with my Adaptec 29160N card.

[This message has been edited by NDC (edited 03-17-2001).]

[Loveless]

my fly out at warp 9

[voogru]

I think they want the disks to FLY out of the drive just in case you dont catch it, it will break and you will have too buy ANOTHER zip disk from them! http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

its a simple way to make money http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

-voogru

[jagman]

My FDD spits out new floppies .

[King_Kooba_Fantastique]

Luckily i havent had any ufo's come flying out of my comp or one of its components yet http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

KKF.

[FrozenLiquidity]

Well, I know why Iomega zip disks fly out so fast, and I'll let you guys in on the secret.

Iomega has been fiddiling with new drive technology, they claim that normal floppy drives take too long to eject disks, and that it is slowing everyone down when they want to copy files, and they need a faster drive so that more people can get to work on time. Iomega has been experimenting with a zip disk that can break the sound barrier when ejecting from a drive. This will enable people to get to work, or whereever they need to go, approximately 0.35 seconds faster than if they were using a normal floppy drive. Iomega claims that their new cutting edge technology will save people so much time that no one should be without a Zip drive.

I'm not an expert on these things, but I think that Iomega is heading in the wrong direction, I believe that more people would buy their products if the data transfer speed were faster, and not the velocity of the disk as it leaves the drive. But what do I know? I'm just a geek, just a geek...

FrozenLiquidity

BTW, if you didn't already know, this is a joke http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[araaraara]

Maybe they WANT the disks to fly out. I think that they are supposed to shoot across the office so that you stay seated and working to make your slave driver boss money.

[Warthog]

Oh is THAT it, frozen...hehehe http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

Warthog

[vintron]

http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

I keep my system in a steel reinforced cage. That way, i don't have to worry about the zip disks or flying cd's.

I can always hear the rattling sound of the disks raging against the cage , whenever i eject the cd or the zip drive http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif