Zip drive... USB or internal IDE??

[Gomer]

I am going to get one soon. I am wondering which is easier to set up/work with. Right now my system has a 10 gig HD on the PM channel, 2x2 Acer burner on the PS channel, and a 16x Pioneer DVD on the SM channel. I am leaning towards USB at the moment. No real reason why other then the fact I can share data via ZIP with computers lacking a ZIP drive. But if one was more of a pain in the backside then the other, I would go with that one. I don't plan on a real heavy use of this drive. The main reason I am getting it is to transfer large files from computers on campus (some have zip, some do not) to my computer off campus. Things download so very much faster there then at home =) What do you think? What kind of experience do you have with ZIP drives in general?

[OuTpaTienT]

I have an internal ZIP and really like it. I really don't use it all that much. And the 100mb disk size quickly is becoming too small. If you get one, definitely go for the 250mb version.

I don't know how fast the USB ZiP is, but the internal FLIES!!! Not all that much slower than my HDs. Definitely faster than my CDRom drive.

Disk are expensive! So if you plan on using it for mass storage it's a bad choice. But it is a good choice for the task of transfering large files.

[Gomer]

I was actually looking at the 100 meg ZIP. It will primarily be used for large file transfers. Well not really large, but quantities of files larger then will fit on a floppy. I use my trusty 2x2x Acer burner for storage. Say I wanted to transfer a file larger then 100 meg. Is it possible to hack it into 100 meg chunks for transfer and reassemble them after transfer? I haven't even priced 250 meg zips. Right now I can pick up a 100 meg USB zip for about $100.

[OuTpaTienT]

My internal was $99, but that was well over a year ago.

You can always just use WinRAR to break up files. It'll compress files (like pkzip/Winzip) but it'll also break the file in chunks of whatever size you want.

[jpeppers]

I say go with the 250MB USB version. It rocks ! It is also pretty swift in my opinion.

[NDC]

If you aren't going to have to carry the drive around, I would suggest getting a SCSI Zip 250 drive. The bad part is that you will also need to buy a SCSI card with the Zip Drive, but will be well worth the money. SCSI Zip is very fast compared to the IDE or USB interface Zip Drives. But if you are going to have to carry the drive around like some people I know because the the place that you are moving the data from doesn't have a Zip Drive, get a USB interface. It will make life easier, because all you will have to do is plug and play, and the drive wil be detected with no problems.

The BEST thing to do would be to spend just a little more and get a CDRW and use Adaptec Direct CD or Packet Writer. You can copy and remove files in your windows explorer from your CDRW the same way as you would with a hard drive and you will be able to hold about 540MB of data on the single CDRW. The reason it won't be 650MB on the CDRW is because Direct CD will make its own system files when you format the CDR or CDRW for Direct CD access.

[This message has been edited by NDC (edited 08-23-2000).]

[Joel Kleppinger]

I've used every kind of Zip drive out on the market: USB, parallel, SCSI external, and IDE internal. Now that USB is out, don't even think about a parallel port drive... that was DOG slow. The IDE, USB, SCSI drives were all pretty much equal in terms of appreciable performance (back before I was benchmarking). The IDE drive was annoying and would consistently have problems ejecting the media... it was very annoying to have to keep a paperclip nearby just to eject (only tested Windows NT).

My dad still owns a SCSI external, and I own a USB external. Personally, I heavily prefer my USB drive to his SCSI since it's usable on a vast majority of computers on the market and just plain looks cooler. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/wink.gif I have a SCSI card in my machine so it's not like my buying a card would make a difference in my decision.

Go USB... in a year, you'll be thanking me. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[OuTpaTienT]

USB is probably the best way to go.

But I'd just like to add that my internal IDE has never given me any trouble of any type. I think it's possible you just had a lemon Joel.

[mudoggy]

I must agree with the assessment of not bothering with a ZIP drive and just buying a good CD RW drive. Unless portability is an issue. You can get good fast cd burners for a little more money over the cost over a ZIP drive with a disk or two. Those disks are indeed expensive, and the size is limited.

But to each their own.. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

[KAknight]

I was asking myself the same question not too long ago. The nice thing about a USB drive is that If you want to give your friend a few MP3s or something like that, you can take the drive with you to his computer. It is alos nice to have to supplement a cd burner.

[NDC]

Yeah, the USB Zip does look hella sleek, I wonder why they didn't make the SCSI interface like that???? http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/frown.gif

[Gomer]

As I mentioned twice above, I have a burner. My trusty 2x2x Acer. Money is kind of an issue here so SCSI is out of the question. Speed is not a great factor but I am definitely staying away from parallel port. Those things are dog slow.

[Joel Kleppinger]

Well, I suppose I should've prefaced what I said with this: I think Zip drives are probably past their usefulness and CD burners are the way to go for most situations.

However, the USB Zip drive is extremely versatile (supported natively by Win98/ME/2k) in nearly all situations. If you need to drag the drive/disk around, there's nothing better/cheaper than a USB zip drive.

BTW, Outpatient, I think there was something more to it because it happened on all 15 of the IDE Zip-enabled computers we had in the lab. It could just have been a limitation of Windows NT 4, but either way, it was a dog to work with.

[howste]

I currently have internal IDE, external SCSI, and USB. I would have to agree that the USB is the way to go, mainly for portability. One thing to keep in mind is that unless you are planning to use 250MB disks, get the 100MB drive. 250MB drives are faster with 250MB disks, but slower using 100MB disks. Not only will it will be faster, but the drive is cheaper.

Steve

BTW, look for a new sleeker design USB 100 drive in October or November.

[Gomer]

I would love it if MSU had a burners installed in some of the labs, but to the best of my knowledge they do not. The plant and soil science lab I was working in was considering buying a burner when I left for summer break but I do not know if they did.

I just purchased the 100 meg USB zip with 6 disks for $130. I will have it up and running for sure within the next couple weeks. I will post back and let you know how it is working for me.

The reason I went with the 100 meg is all of the drives on campus are 100 meg. Sure the capacity of the 250 meg is nice, but I would have to buy two different types of disks. And they are indeed expensive. The 6 disks that came with it should be more then enough for me. Thanks for all the suggestions.

[ArcAngel]

In my opinion, you should go for a USB LS-120 drive(USB), It holds 120 megs of data on a ls-120 floppy disk, same exact size as the 3.5 inch disks, Also backwards compatible with standard 3.5 inch 1.44 meg disks...
I don't know much about the speed comparisons, because I have never used a Zip drive, so I may be wrong in sayin this is better.
Ls-120 media goes for about 7-8 per disk
Drive varies 100-150

[howste]

I'm prejudiced of course (yes, I work at Iomega), but the only good thing I've heard about LS-120 is the fact that it can also read floppy disks. But, to get some unbiased opinions, here's a thread from hardware central where both sides have supporters: http://discussions.hardwarecentral.com/Forum5/HTML/002503.html

Steve

BTW, my dad bought an LS-120 for his floppyless IMac...

[Dave_H]

Steve,
I'm just curious, but how come they don't make an internal SCSI Zip?
Dave

[howste]

Iomega used to make a SCSI internal drive. I asked around and found out that there wasn't enough demand to keep producing it. The only OEM who ever bought it was Apple.

Steve

[Dave_H]

Thanks Steve,
I guess I missed out. I thought it would be a good idea for people to free up an IDE.
Keep up the good work. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif
I have always been extremely happy with my Jazz and Zips.
Dave

[Axel]

Forget about the ZIP drive - too many driver conflicts - disks are too expensive and are still magnetic media - and it's only up to 250MB of space.... don't waste your money.

Buy a SCSI adapter - replace the ACER burner with an HP SCSI CD burner - and buy a stack OF CD-R disks.....

In 50 packs, CD-R disks can be had for about $0.80 each - 640 MB space - can't be erased by a refrigerator magnet unless you destroy the surface with a sharp corner - you can use it for music as well - Everyone has a CD - less than 1% have a ZIP -

That's my opinion -

[Gomer]

Sometimes I wonder if anyone reads the posts in the thread, or just the topic hehe. I have a burner.... I want zip because the computers on campus have zip. I want to DL large files and take them home with me. I would like a new burner but right now my 2x2x Acer burner is great. At this very moment, I am running winamp, aol, napster, AIM, explorer, and copying a cd. Hell I could open Word if I wanted too. All at once, no problems whatsoever. I love it even though it takes half an hour.

The USB 100 meg ZIP I set up installed with few problems. It works great for what I intend on using it for. Thank you everybody for all of your ideas.

[ArcAngel]

One more thing, If all the machines on campus have an internet connection, just get one of those free internet hard drives, alot of them are free
Just Upload files to the Virtual HD then Download them to your machine when you get home....But That's just another thought....

[Gomer]

Ya lost me on that one man. The computers at school have an extremely fast connection. I am struggling along on 56k with 5 KB/s DL's. What is the point of putting them on a virtual hard drive when I could just download them from home in the first place? Also, the school gives us like 2 gig of hard drive space on the network. I just needed a way to get files home from school.

[agello]

i bought a zip 100 usb with 6 diskettes for $129. I can take it to anyone house. take and give files. it's easier than a burner and faster than a burner.

[NDC]

This reply isn't for you Gomer, I know you already have both now.

But can't hold as much as a burner on a single media, nor does it cost as less as a CDR or CDRW media. I have a SCSI Zip250 right now and love it, but the media prices need to drop big time. It's so **** pricey for those things. I have also had a Zip 100 Parallel Port interface and was definetly a DOG! NEVER BUY ONE OF THOSE! If you don't have the money to buy both and want to buy something that you could use for various purposes, I think a CDRW would be a wiser choice in my opinion. The Media is cheap and you can back up programs, games, music, and make photo CD's, there are a few things you can do with a CDRW drive that you couldn't do with a Zip Drive. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif



[This message has been edited by NDC (edited 08-27-2000).]