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|recommendations | making a CD | backing up disks | zip disks | click of death|> Nestore| {{Nestore should now link with Nestore.html, which I will supply as my update of CIFS.html}}
A fair number of students have had trouble with 3.5" floppy disks and zip disks in the labs. This page contains information that will help you prevent disk errors and will provide information about what to do when errors do occur.
Disk Protection Recommendations
  • Backup ALL disks. Always keep more than one copy of any files you intend to keep.
  • Make sure that you have completely exited all programs and that the disk light is off BEFORE you remove your disk.
  • NEVER swap disks from within an application. Windows 2000 saves all information from removable media in the cache, allowing the application to write to cached memory rather than the disk. This saves time while the application is running but means that Windows 2000 will have to write the cached image back to the disk when the user tries to exit the application. If you swap disks while using an application, the cached image from one disk may erroneously be written onto the other, damaging the fat table on one or both disks. Sometimes the data can be recovered when using a 3.5" floppy disk and a DOS or Windows 95 computer??. Data on a zip disk may be recoverable with a program call Spin Rite.
  • If the metal sleeve on your disk begins to get loose or bent, immediately make a copy of the disk and throw the old one away.
  • <If a zip disk begins to make clicking sounds or a 3.5" floppy begins making lots of noise on reads and writes, immediately make a copy of the disk and throw the old one away.
  • Keep all disks in a case so that they do not get damaged.
  • Do not leave disks in the sun or in places where they will be subjected to extremes of hot and cold.
  • Keep disks away from magnets.
  • If you have a disk that can not be read from the lab computers, bring it to the TSC in Jones Room 7. They may be able to recover some or all of your data.
Making a Data CD
With Easy CD Creator, you can make a data CD to store computer data such as the files and folders on your hard disk. This is especially useful for archiving your important files or sharing them with your colleagues.
To make a data CD:
1. Start a new data CD project. From the File menu, point to New CD Project, then select Data CD.
2. Insert a blank CD into your CD-Recorder (the destination drive).
3. In the Select Source Files drop-down list box, select the folder where your files are located; a list of all files in the folder appears in the Sourcewindow.
4. Select the folder or individual files to store (hold down the Ctrl or Shift key to select multiple files) in the Source window, and then click Add . The folder or files are added to the dataCD project. Note: Up to 650 MB (74-minute CD) or 700 MB (80-minute CD) of files and folders can be added to a data CD project.
5. Click Record . The Record CD Setup dialog box appears. 6. Click Start Recording
{{CD Copier not available in the labs; below the Copier discussion which is deleted here, I tell how to do it via TMP on the “C:” drive}}
Using CD Copier
To copy a CD use the Roxio Easy CD Creator CD Copier:
1. Insert the source CD from which you want to make copies into your CD drive.
2. The CD-RW drive should automatically be listed in on the Source and Destination tab, both locations. If not select the drive containing the source CD in the Copy from drop-down list box .
3. Since Your Dell computer will most likely have only 1 CD drive the destination drive will be the same as the source drive.
4. Click Copy to begin recording a copy of your CD. CD Copier begins copying the files and folders listed on your source CD to memory. TheCD tray will open and you will be prompted to insert a blank CD when the program has finished reading the source disk. When the CD is finished, a final message box appears notifying you that the copying is complete .
Copying a CD to a CD
To copy a CD to a CD, copy the source CD to “C:\TMP”; then using Easy CD Creator (see [Making a CD] above ), copy the contents of “C:\TMP” to the destination CD (should be a CD-ReWritable). The steps for doing this follow:
  1. Insert the source CD from which you want to make a copy into your CD (“D:”) drive.
  2. Open Microsoft Windows Explorer, click on the pull down at the top and select the “C:” drive.
  3. In the right sub windows beneath, click the “TMP” folder and when the contents of “C:” lists in this sub window., press Ctrl-A together; this should select “TMP”s contents; now hit Delete to clean out “TMP”.
  4. On the left sub window click the “D:” drive which should contain your source CD; the contents of your CD should now display in the right sub window; press Ctrl-A together again; this should select the contents of your CD.
  5. Click anywhere in the highlighted selected area and drag the mouse pointer over to the left sub window where the “TMP” folder of “C:” should list; now move pointer over “TMP” and it should highlight; release the right mouse button and the contents of your source CD should copy to “C:\TMP”.
  6. Now go to [[Making a CD]] above and follow the steps for writing to a CD, where here the folder to select and add to your CD project is of course “C:\TMP” ; and the blank CD that you insert into the CD drive is your destination CD on which you wish make a copy of your source CD.
When to Use CD-RW Discs
CD-RW discs can only be used in CD-ReWritable drives and MultiRead CD-ROM drives. You cannot play a music CD made on a CD-RW disc in most home or car stereo CD players. Here are some ideas for using CD-RW discs:
1. Use when you need to write, erase, rewrite, and update all your large folders/files on CD.
2. Use when you want to make a practice CD or test the contents of a CD before making a permanent one
Backing Up Diskettes in the Labsfrom floppy to floppy | from floppy to Nestore | from floppy to USB Memory Key
From a 3.5" floppy to a 3.5" floppy or from a zip disk to a zip disk
  1. Put the floppy you wish to backup into the “A:” drive.
  2. Click Start, Programs, and then Windows Explorer.
  3. In the left sub window click My Computer and in the right sub window right click the “A:” drive, and then click Copy Disk ..
  4. In the Copy Disk Window, click Start; and if the source floppy is in the “A:” drive, click OK; else insert the source floppy nto the “A:” drive and then click OK; your source floppy is now read to a temp location.
  5. When prompted to “Insert the disk you want to copy to”, insert the destination floppy into the “A:” drive and click OK.
  6. Your floppy is backed up when you get the message “Copy Completed Successfully” in the Copy Disk Window.
From a 3.5" floppy to a zip disk or from a zip disk to a 3.5" floppy
  1. Put your disks into the appropriate drives.
  2. Double click on My Computer.
  3. Double click on A:\ for the 3.5" floppy
  4. Double click on My Computer again and from My Computer double click on E:\ for the zip disk. You should now have 2 separate windows, A:\ and E:\
  5. Select the window for your source drive (the drive that contains the files you wish to backup).
  6. Click once on the file you wish to backup or type ctrl+a to select the entire disk.
  7. To select multiple files but not the entire disk, hold down the ctrl key as you single click the files you wish to select.
  8. Click Edit then Copy to copy the file(s) into memory.
  9. Select the window for your destination drive (the drive will contains your backup copy of the selected file or files).
  10. Click on Edit and Paste to paste the file(s) onto the destination drive.
  11. You should now have 2 copies of your files one on the original disk and one on the destination disk
From a 3.5" floppy to Netstore
  1. Put the floppy you wish to backup into the “A:” drive.
  2. Click Start, Programs, and then Windows Explorer .
  3. In the left sub window click My Computer and in the right sub window, click the “A:” drive.
  4. Click EDIT, then Select All (or just press Ctrl-A together) to select (shade) all names of the folders/files listed for the “A:” drive in the right sub window
  5. Click anywhere in the highlighted selected area and while holding down the left mouse button, drag the mouse pointer over to the left sub window and pass it across the “H:” Nestore drive until it highlights (selects).
  6. Release the mouse button and your floppy should copy to the root of the “H:” Netstore drive.
  7. To copy to a folder on “H:” instead of its root, before doing “5.” above, display the destination folder in the left window; then in “5.” drag the mouse pointer to the folder until it highlights (selects) and release the mouse button; floppy should then copy to the select “H:” Netstore drive folder.
From a 3.5" floppy to USB Key Memory
From 3.5” floppy to Key Memory it’s the same as backing up the floppy on the [[“H:” Nestore drive]] above] except that you copy to the “D:” drive instead of the “H:” drive..
< {{delete all from here on }}
The Zip Disk: Your Life Saver in the Computer LabBy Bob Dawson, Computing Support
(A letter sent to the Flat Hat Opinions Section, with permission from the Flat Hat to show here)
Ever tried to write on your diskette in the labs and couldn't? What do you do?....Super Zip Disk to the rescue! Able to hold 69 diskettes at a time, able to save in a blink of an eye, able to tenaciously retain information (except when exposed to magnets or kryptonite)-- Look at that PC in the labs. What is that strange dark blue drive? Is it a floppy drive? No. Is it a diskette drive? No. It's a Super Zip Disk drive!
Just insert your handy Zip Disk in the Zip drive and save your document, spreadsheet, whatever; there's no hassle; it very rarely fails. There now, you've circumvented your problem with the "A:" drive. If you haven't a Zip drive on your own PC, just shift to a lab PC with a good "A:" drive and copy from Zip to diskette (enter Window's NT Explorer, click the "E:" Zip drive, and drag and drop the Zip file to the "A: drive, holding down the Ctrl key to copy rather than move).
Costing $11.99 dollars in the Bookstore, the Zip is more than worth it; you can have backup copies of all your diskettes and not worry if you lose or trash one. The Zip's size and solidness make it less easy to damage or lose than a diskette. Its 100 MB capacity allows it to hold up to 69 diskettes. Its I/O is much faster than a diskette's; you don't have to sit there holding your breath as when saving on a diskette, listening to the "A:" drive grind away until at last the file is saved.
For those of you who don't have a PC, the Zip Disk is a must; it's your portable 100 MG hard drive. I know; I have a Zip but no PC. I use only the lab computers and I love my Zip!
"Click of Death"
The "Click of Death" is a hardware failure in either a zip drive or a zip disk that causes a disk to become unreadable. If you hear more than one or two clicks when you are using a zip disk you should immediately 1) backup the information from the disk if possible (when available, use cifs for this purpose), 2) remove the disk from the drive, 3) report the incident, and 4) stop using both the disk and the drive until they can be checked for "Click of Death". Sometimes it is just the disk or just the drive that has CoD but an offending drive can cause the error on other disks. Report problems with zip drives as soon as possible and bring zip disks that show CoD symptoms to the TSC in Jones room 7.
From the Unofficial Click of Death Home Page: What is the "Click of Death" problem?
Also known as "Click Death" and "Whacked Drive", the "Click of Death" has been suspected to affect Iomega Zip drives and disks which are compatible with such drives. Some users of the IomegaJazz drive have also reported having similar problems, although not as commonly.
The problem has been notoriously called Click of Death because Iomega Zip drives first start making clicking sounds persistently. This clicking sounds occur as the Zip drive repeatedly tries to read the disk unsuccessfully. It is also feared that a Zip drive with Click of Death may spread its problem to other Zip drives when an affected disk is shared with others. The signs of Click of Death may include a combination of the following symptoms:
  • Repetitive clicking noises occur when reading disks
  • Affected Zip compatible disk become write-protected (cannot save or delete files) or simple cannot be accessed
  • Information of directories or files become corrupted
  • At this moment there seems to be NO definite solution or fix to the Click of Death.