Thumb drive assets/pitfalls...

[Don Y]

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations.
I typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or,
onto a TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not
to be issues (drives see very few reads or writes over the course
of a year).

Most recently, I\'ve been using Lexar USB2 drives (again, speed
isn\'t important) tending to favor 16GB devices -- big enough to
carry meaningful content without being *so* big that speed and
reliability *do* become issues!

I\'ve got to purchase a dozen or so to ship files to folks who
don\'t want to deal with multigigabyte downloads. Probably 32GB
or 64GB devices as this is a one-time transaction -- if the
drive goes R/O after I\'ve written everything on it... <shrug>

So far, I\'ve no failures/data loss/problems with the Lexars.
I had one SanDisk go R/O shortly after purchase (replaced under
warranty).

PNY seems to be met with \"meh\" responses from colleagues -- some
citing high controller failure rates (high enough to turn them
off to the brand, but not necessarily statistically significant).

I\'ve also noticed a dramatic cheapening of some models, lately.
E.g., designs where the entire body (INCLUDING THE CONNECTOR SHELL)
is plastic! Gotta wonder what else they\'ve skimped on...

Any brands to avoid? Favor?

 

[server]

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote in news:srlfhm$ils$1@dont-
email.me:

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations.
I typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or,
onto a TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not
to be issues (drives see very few reads or writes over the course
of a year).

Most recently, I\'ve been using Lexar USB2 drives (again, speed
isn\'t important) tending to favor 16GB devices -- big enough to
carry meaningful content without being *so* big that speed and
reliability *do* become issues!

I\'ve got to purchase a dozen or so to ship files to folks who
don\'t want to deal with multigigabyte downloads. Probably 32GB
or 64GB devices as this is a one-time transaction -- if the
drive goes R/O after I\'ve written everything on it... <shrug

So far, I\'ve no failures/data loss/problems with the Lexars.
I had one SanDisk go R/O shortly after purchase (replaced under
warranty).

PNY seems to be met with \"meh\" responses from colleagues -- some
citing high controller failure rates (high enough to turn them
off to the brand, but not necessarily statistically significant).

I\'ve also noticed a dramatic cheapening of some models, lately.
E.g., designs where the entire body (INCLUDING THE CONNECTOR SHELL)
is plastic! Gotta wonder what else they\'ve skimped on...

Any brands to avoid? Favor?

I use Samsung beause they are metal encased and have a keyring loop
(also metal). The only drawback is that the keyring loop makes it
sit on the ring in an odd way. But they are fast and cheap.

For speed, I use micro chips as they have been getting the \"fast
access\" treatment for years becuase of the digital imagery and video
capture realms.

But for USB I no longer use USB2 anything if I can help it. My 3D
printer and my laser uses USB2. But all my sticks are USB3.
I use SanDisk becuase they are cheap, and fast, and reliable.
I have read no research on what is the fastest or best. My RPi uses
a really slow 8GB chip and I see no problems. But the really fast
ones are nice because they are fast and one gets jaded quickly on the
throughput difference. I have had no faiures, though one chip got
cleared when the 3D printer locked up mid print once. Now it
formatted and says is all fine, but I have still been getting
failures on that chip, but only on the 3D printer... weird.

 

[server]

DecadentLinuxUserNumeroUno@decadence.org wrote in
news:srlk90$22f$1@gioia.aioe.org:

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote in
news:srlfhm$ils$1@dont- email.me:

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations.
I typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or,
onto a TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not
to be issues (drives see very few reads or writes over the course
of a year).

Most recently, I\'ve been using Lexar USB2 drives (again, speed
isn\'t important) tending to favor 16GB devices -- big enough to
carry meaningful content without being *so* big that speed and
reliability *do* become issues!

I\'ve got to purchase a dozen or so to ship files to folks who
don\'t want to deal with multigigabyte downloads. Probably 32GB
or 64GB devices as this is a one-time transaction -- if the
drive goes R/O after I\'ve written everything on it... <shrug

So far, I\'ve no failures/data loss/problems with the Lexars.
I had one SanDisk go R/O shortly after purchase (replaced under
warranty).

PNY seems to be met with \"meh\" responses from colleagues -- some
citing high controller failure rates (high enough to turn them
off to the brand, but not necessarily statistically significant).

I\'ve also noticed a dramatic cheapening of some models, lately.
E.g., designs where the entire body (INCLUDING THE CONNECTOR
SHELL) is plastic! Gotta wonder what else they\'ve skimped on...

Any brands to avoid? Favor?


I use Samsung beause they are metal encased and have a keyring
loop
(also metal). The only drawback is that the keyring loop makes it
sit on the ring in an odd way. But they are fast and cheap.

For speed, I use micro chips as they have been getting the \"fast
access\" treatment for years becuase of the digital imagery and
video capture realms.

But for USB I no longer use USB2 anything if I can help it. My
3D
printer and my laser uses USB2. But all my sticks are USB3.
I use SanDisk becuase they are cheap, and fast, and reliable.
I have read no research on what is the fastest or best. My RPi
uses a really slow 8GB chip and I see no problems. But the really
fast ones are nice because they are fast and one gets jaded
quickly on the throughput difference. I have had no faiures,
though one chip got cleared when the 3D printer locked up mid
print once. Now it formatted and says is all fine, but I have
still been getting failures on that chip, but only on the 3D
printer... weird.

<https://www.amazon.com/Samsung-BAR-Plus-128GB-MUF-
128BE3/dp/B07BPK3XWW?th=1>

 

[corvid]

On 1/11/22 18:48, Don Y wrote:

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations. I
typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or, onto a
TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not to be issues
(drives see very few reads or writes over the course of a year).

Most recently, I\'ve been using Lexar USB2 drives (again, speed isn\'t
important) tending to favor 16GB devices -- big enough to carry
meaningful content without being *so* big that speed and reliability
*do* become issues!

I\'ve got to purchase a dozen or so to ship files to folks who don\'t
want to deal with multigigabyte downloads. Probably 32GB or 64GB
devices as this is a one-time transaction -- if the drive goes R/O
after I\'ve written everything on it... <shrug

So far, I\'ve no failures/data loss/problems with the Lexars. I had
one SanDisk go R/O shortly after purchase (replaced under warranty).

PNY seems to be met with \"meh\" responses from colleagues -- some
citing high controller failure rates (high enough to turn them off to
the brand, but not necessarily statistically significant).

I\'ve also noticed a dramatic cheapening of some models, lately. E.g.,
designs where the entire body (INCLUDING THE CONNECTOR SHELL) is
plastic! Gotta wonder what else they\'ve skimped on...

Any brands to avoid? Favor

I have some SanDisk drives with plastic shells. Thin and flexy, they\'re
a very tight fit in my USB dock, and I expect they may crack. OTOH,
those plastic shells are molded as part of the body, so I don\'t think
they\'ll come apart and pull the guts out with them.
They feel cheap, and are pretty ugly, though. Numero Uno\'s Samsungs look
nice.

My one PNY went thru a heavy duty wash cycle. It\'s fine.

I suggest you give each drive a thoughtful volume label. Don\'t let the
recipients see an icon with accompanying text \"No_Name\" on the screen
when they plug them in. Our insurance agent(s) sometimes send me email
attachments, which I need to rename when saving, because the geniuses
_always_ name the attached file \"attachment1.pdf\".

 

[Dan Purgert]

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Hash: SHA512

Don Y wrote:

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations.
I typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or,
onto a TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not
to be issues (drives see very few reads or writes over the course
of a year).

The SanDisk Cruzer Blade is my go-to general purpose stick. They\'re
those \"entirely plastic\" jobs that you were talking about, but they\'re
rock solid (as with everything I\'ve ever owned from SanDisk).

I\'ve had some PNY and Kingston as well (usually picked up because I\'m at
Microcenter and why not), and they also continue to be solid.

Note -- I\'m generally talking about the \"normal sized\" thumbdrives, and
not those micro-sized ones that\'re marketed to be able to keep in a
laptop. I have 2 or 3 of those, but they only live in the TV or on my
tablet\'s dock -- they\'ve been rock solid, but aren\'t really suited for
general sneakernet purposes.

Regardless of what brand you pick, buy them ONLY from your local
brick-and-mortar \"electronics\" store (or well, anywhere with an
\"electronics\" department anyway), OR from a reputable online PC seller
(or, obviously, directly from the manufacturer). Avoid the usual
\"marketplace\" online places -- I\'ve had enough drives that show up with
graphics that my 5YO could\'ve aligned better that I\'m pretty
sure the only thing they\'re stocking in the last 18 months is the
knockoffs.



HTH

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--
|_|O|_| Github: https://github.com/dpurgert
|_|_|O| PGP: DDAB 23FB 19FA 7D85 1CC1 E067 6D65 70E5 4CE7 2860
|O|O|O|

 

[DJ Delorie]

I will add a +1 for Cruzers, but also...

An alternative for a USB stick is an NVME drive inside an
enclosure like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RVC6F9Y/?th=1

Granted it\'s bigger and clumsier than a USB stick, but if you\'re hitting
the limits of the sticks, it\'s an option.

 

[John Walliker]

On Wednesday, 12 January 2022 at 20:00:34 UTC, DJ Delorie wrote:

I will add a +1 for Cruzers, but also...

An alternative for a USB stick is an NVME drive inside an
enclosure like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RVC6F9Y/?th=1

Granted it\'s bigger and clumsier than a USB stick, but if you\'re hitting
the limits of the sticks, it\'s an option.

Another option is to use an SSD with USB3-SATA adapter cable.
The SSD is already nicely packaged. Smaller sizes like 256Gbyte
are available at low prices on eBay as a result of their owners
upgrading to larger capacities. nvme is nice of course, but for
general storage SATA is fine. Samsung PRO drives seem to be
fairly indestructible. None of the used SSD drives I have bought
on eBay have been anywhere close to being worn out and of
course they will have passed the infant mortality stage so they
should continue to be reliable for some time.

John

 

[server]

DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> wrote in
news:xn5yqozpux.fsf@delorie.com:

I will add a +1 for Cruzers, but also...

An alternative for a USB stick is an NVME drive inside an
enclosure like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RVC6F9Y/?th=1

Granted it\'s bigger and clumsier than a USB stick, but if you\'re
hitting the limits of the sticks, it\'s an option.

That is the solution I use for all my Linux distro builds. That way
I can run the machine as built, and when I want or need a Linux core to
be running, I plug the one I want into my laptop and voila!

 

[server]

John Walliker <jrwalliker@gmail.com> wrote in
news:c7247b23-ca42-4f50-baa5-73f33619bbb9n@googlegroups.com:

On Wednesday, 12 January 2022 at 20:00:34 UTC, DJ Delorie wrote:
I will add a +1 for Cruzers, but also...

An alternative for a USB stick is an NVME drive inside an
enclosure like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RVC6F9Y/?th=1

Granted it\'s bigger and clumsier than a USB stick, but if you\'re
hitting the limits of the sticks, it\'s an option.

Another option is to use an SSD with USB3-SATA adapter cable.
The SSD is already nicely packaged. Smaller sizes like 256Gbyte
are available at low prices on eBay as a result of their owners
upgrading to larger capacities. nvme is nice of course, but for
general storage SATA is fine. Samsung PRO drives seem to be
fairly indestructible. None of the used SSD drives I have bought
on eBay have been anywhere close to being worn out and of
course they will have passed the infant mortality stage so they
should continue to be reliable for some time.

John

I used external SATA for a little while but the SSDs that are M2
and others are far faster, so I got those and never looked back.
SATA gave me iffy performance too. M2 screams even on a USB3 link.
I was never able to get the SATA drives to perform to the level they
claimed they would.

 

[Don Y]

On 1/12/2022 1:45 PM, John Walliker wrote:

On Wednesday, 12 January 2022 at 20:00:34 UTC, DJ Delorie wrote:
I will add a +1 for Cruzers, but also...

An alternative for a USB stick is an NVME drive inside an
enclosure like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08RVC6F9Y/?th=1

Granted it\'s bigger and clumsier than a USB stick, but if you\'re hitting
the limits of the sticks, it\'s an option.

Another option is to use an SSD with USB3-SATA adapter cable.
The SSD is already nicely packaged. Smaller sizes like 256Gbyte
are available at low prices on eBay as a result of their owners
upgrading to larger capacities.

I don\'t need anything that big -- 32G to 64G. This is a
one time mechanism to transfer big chunks of data without
having to resort to internet connections. If speed was
important, I wouldn\'t be using the USPS to deliver the data
container! :>

But, this was a good idea -- had I thought of it sooner!
I have a box full of 64GB SATA drives that are the size of
a couple of postage stamps that would have been zero cost,
zero effort (I use them in \"appliances\")

nvme is nice of course, but for
general storage SATA is fine. Samsung PRO drives seem to be
fairly indestructible. None of the used SSD drives I have bought
on eBay have been anywhere close to being worn out and of
course they will have passed the infant mortality stage so they
should continue to be reliable for some time.

I have several 500G Samsung drives on a shelf that I\'ve been too
lazy to install. 500G is a bit too small for my needs -- possibly
OK in a laptop (but I rarely use a laptop). My \"system disks\"
are each 1T and that is barely sufficient (lots of \"overflow\" onto
the additional 4T present in each machine)

My colleagues offered no guidance. And, weren\'t really \"keen\"
on the \"thumb drive\" approach as it would effectively be a
single use device (folks seem to only use thumb drives as
\"shuttles\", like I do; no one *relies* on them), bulky to ship,
etc.

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them in a phone, tablet, etc. once
they\'ve taken the delivered data off. So, they don\'t become
discards like the thumb drives would!

 

[bob prohaska]

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them in a phone, tablet, etc. once
they\'ve taken the delivered data off. So, they don\'t become
discards like the thumb drives would!

Have you come up with a decent way to label them, which doesn\'t
get in the way of actually using them in a reader or other device?

If so please post your method. My best efforts have all failed.

Thanks for reading,

bob prohaska

 

[Don Y]

On 1/12/2022 7:27 PM, bob prohaska wrote:

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them in a phone, tablet, etc. once
they\'ve taken the delivered data off. So, they don\'t become
discards like the thumb drives would!

Have you come up with a decent way to label them, which doesn\'t
get in the way of actually using them in a reader or other device?

I tend to install one in a device (tablet, phone, Nook, etc.) and just
leave it there. Sort of like \"adding memory\" to a computer. If I
ever remove one, it is because I want to increase the capacity. In
which case, the old one sits in a \"tin\" (those ubiquitous breath-mint
tins line VerMints, Myntz, etc.) with any other \"spares\" until a new
need arises.

[I have \"tins\" for SD cards, miniSD, microSD, CF, SmartMedia, MemoryStick,
xD, IDE44 flash drives, SATA flash drives, ...]

> If so please post your method. My best efforts have all failed.

My first guess would likely be a Sharpie? Depending on how much
you want to write on them. I assume you\'ve tried this? Does the
ink not adhere? Or, is *re*labeling them the problem?

 

[whit3rd]

On Wednesday, January 12, 2022 at 6:27:37 PM UTC-8, bob prohaska wrote:

Don Y <blocked...@foo.invalid> wrote:

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them ...

Have you come up with a decent way to label them, which doesn\'t
get in the way of actually using them in a reader or other device?

If so please post your method. My best efforts have all failed.

Compose a \'README.TXT\' file with owner\'s name, address, and provenance
and general life story of the card. Store that file on the top of the
file system...
Before pulling it out, print that file and stuff it into the same coin envelope
(or antistatic bag) as the loose little wafer.

No, I don\'t do that. Don\'t laser-etch serial numbers, either.

Seriously, USB sticks are the same way; they all look alike, and there\'s no
place to label that really works. The best I could do, was to find a vendor
with bright colors, and order six, all different colors (of some unknown quality and
tiny capacity). Those, I can kinda remember which is which. And find on
a desk, eventually.

 

[Don Y]

On 1/12/2022 8:35 PM, whit3rd wrote:

Seriously, USB sticks are the same way; they all look alike, and there\'s no
place to label that really works. The best I could do, was to find a vendor
with bright colors, and order six, all different colors (of some unknown quality and
tiny capacity). Those, I can kinda remember which is which. And find on
a desk, eventually.

For all but the \"teeny-tiny\" USB drives (that only protrude ~1/4 inch and need
to be grasped with finger nails), I use a pTouch labeler to make an adhesive
label. Careful choice of typeface size and orientation of the label lets
you put at least 5 or 6 letters on each drive.

You can slip the label onto the body of drives that have a sliding cover
and let the cover slide over it (so the label is obscured when the cover
is retracted to insert the drive). The drives that have \"hinged/swivel\"
covers can be labeled on the body (which is partially visible when the
drive is inserted but invisible when \"stowed\"). Or, on the hinged cover.

I use the same labeler to identify each of my external disk drives,
\"bare\" disk drives, drives in carriers, wall warts (what device does
this power?), video cables (which monitor input does this end connect to?),
power cords, USB cables (what device is on the other end of this cable?),
network cables, etc.

Each machine has it\'s hostname tagged on the front. And, a brief legend
(keystroke to invoke SETUP, DIAGNOSTICS, etc.). Plus, the root/admin
password; you can\'t read it unless you\'re in the house! And, if you\'re
in the house, you\'d be smarter just to pop the easily removable drives
out of the machine and scram than to try to boot the machine and
rummage around for <something>.

The printers and scanners have labels indicating:
\"Label side up\", \"Feed top edge first\", \"RESET\", etc.

Because they are adhesive, I can peel them off (with the aid of an Xacto
knife) if I want to relabel something. (I\'ve not noticed any problems
with adhesive residue on plastic surfaces)

I would not be exaggerating if I said I use several feet of label tape
every week!

[There are several different models/vendors of labelers. Each has its
own quirks (e.g., centering two lines of text is tedious on all of mine)]

 

[Rick C]

On Wednesday, January 12, 2022 at 11:04:23 PM UTC-5, Don Y wrote:

On 1/12/2022 8:35 PM, whit3rd wrote:
Seriously, USB sticks are the same way; they all look alike, and there\'s no
place to label that really works. The best I could do, was to find a vendor
with bright colors, and order six, all different colors (of some unknown quality and
tiny capacity). Those, I can kinda remember which is which. And find on
a desk, eventually.
For all but the \"teeny-tiny\" USB drives (that only protrude ~1/4 inch and need
to be grasped with finger nails), I use a pTouch labeler to make an adhesive
label. Careful choice of typeface size and orientation of the label lets
you put at least 5 or 6 letters on each drive.

I\'ve never seen a flash drive that didn\'t have a way to attach a cord. No matter how small or unobvious they are, there is a way to attach a cord. I typically use little colored loops intended to be added to gadgets which for me simply makes them much more visible and obvious. I don\'t bother to color code them or even label them.

I have one tied to my cell phone so it is never far away for getting things printed mostly. Others live in my computer bag to hold data backups with a copy in my suitcase.

If you can attach a cord, you can attach a card. Go really retro and use one of those manila cards with the red reinforcing loops on the pointed end for you to write on. LOL

Sometimes they make stuff too damn small. I remember back when I had clearances the security people were very concerned that you could put stuff on an SD card and walk out with it and no one would ever know. Now you could walk out with the entire data record of a bank on a single microSD card tucked in your shoe. And yet they still won\'t give me online access to more than a few months as if it was too much data to keep online! Tossers!

--

Rick C.

- Get 1,000 miles of free Supercharging
- Tesla referral code - https://ts.la/richard11209

 

[Don Y]

On 1/12/2022 9:04 PM, Don Y wrote:

I would not be exaggerating if I said I use several feet of label tape
every week!

[There are several different models/vendors of labelers. Each has its
own quirks (e.g., centering two lines of text is tedious on all of mine)]

<https://mega.nz/file/lqgSkDTS#Qzd3KftWz4IyJw0jORUfb-ar6HH6cP6ZPfl-NmIx9mk>

The large (yellow) labeler also handles printing on heatshrink tubing
(I think up to 1\" dia?). The large grey blob above it is the actual
\"print cartridge\" (it is part of the device... odd shape!).

Bottom right is my go-to labeler. The others I\'ve just accumulated,
over the years (the smallest one is good for \"fine print\" labels).
Surprisingly, they aren\'t too bad on eating batteries. But, I\'ve
AC adapters just-in-case.

[Over time, you learn how to economize on \"tape\"]

Three different style thumb drives at the upper left attempting
to show how the labels are visible/obscured based on whether or
not the drive\'s connector is \"covered\" or not. (each volume
carries a disklabel identical to the printed label on the device)

The \"swivel\" style fit neatly into a VerMints/Mytnz/etc. tin (I think
you can fit 4 or 5) which can then be labeled on its exterior
(SWMBO has lots of instructional videos that she keeps on thumb
drives for portability -- watch on a computer, TV, carry to friend\'s
house, etc. So, being able to organize them like this is a win for
her)

I used to keep music on the tiny ones (teal and lime colored in photo)
so I could have a selection to access while driving (the car\'s internal
disk drive is loaded with SWMBO\'s music). I could fit half a dozen
of them in a little case the size of a \"matchbox\".

But, now, I just carry music on a paired phone and play it through the
car\'s sound system (I don\'t spend enough time in the car to make anything
more elaborate worthwhile!)

 

[Beeper]

On 1/12/22 8:49 PM, Rick C wrote:

On Wednesday, January 12, 2022 at 11:04:23 PM UTC-5, Don Y wrote:
On 1/12/2022 8:35 PM, whit3rd wrote:
Seriously, USB sticks are the same way; they all look alike, and there\'s no
place to label that really works. The best I could do, was to find a vendor
with bright colors, and order six, all different colors (of some unknown quality and
tiny capacity). Those, I can kinda remember which is which. And find on
a desk, eventually.
For all but the \"teeny-tiny\" USB drives (that only protrude ~1/4 inch and need
to be grasped with finger nails), I use a pTouch labeler to make an adhesive
label. Careful choice of typeface size and orientation of the label lets
you put at least 5 or 6 letters on each drive.

I\'ve never seen a flash drive that didn\'t have a way to attach a cord.

ADATA UD310 USB Flash Drive
https://www.adata.com/us/consumer/199

I use them for my laptops.

 

[server]

bob prohaska <bp@www.zefox.net> wrote in news:sro2mh$jcf$1@dont-
email.me:

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them in a phone, tablet, etc. once
they\'ve taken the delivered data off. So, they don\'t become
discards like the thumb drives would!

Have you come up with a decent way to label them, which doesn\'t
get in the way of actually using them in a reader or other device?

If so please post your method. My best efforts have all failed.

Thanks for reading,

bob prohaska

On the metal part, you can laser engrave it by coloring it with a
sharpie. All of one side. Then burn your text and image and \'name\'
on that and remove the magic marker to find that the laser engraved
the info.

Same thing they use at the factory, but theirs is a powerful CO2
laser and most home engravers are diode lasers. Still, I have burned
smooth reflective surfaces using this method as well as using paint.

Glass and Ceramic burns great if pre-coated as the laser has a kind
of explosive event at the ablatement point and that actually allows
it to \'burn\' the ceramic (for instance)as well. Does not burn
without it, in fact.

 

[Martin Brown]

On 12/01/2022 02:48, Don Y wrote:

I\'ve been canvasing colleagues for thumb drive recommendations.
I typically only use them to sneakernet files into my LAN (or,
onto a TV\'s media server) so speed, reliability, etc. tend not
to be issues (drives see very few reads or writes over the course
of a year).

Most recently, I\'ve been using Lexar USB2 drives (again, speed
isn\'t important) tending to favor 16GB devices -- big enough to
carry meaningful content without being *so* big that speed and
reliability *do* become issues!

I quite like Sandisk or Integral for sacrificial code distribution.
Picking whichever is the best buy at any particular time. I have
sometimes used Toshiba too. I\'m about to try no-name Chinese ones.

Sandisk remain my long term favourites although I try to buy them when
the price is £10 of a pack of 3 (or equivalent on the dowdier 5 pack).

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-Cruzer-Blade-Flash-Drive/dp/B07QBNYJ6X/ref=asc_df_B07QBNYJ6X/?th=1

I\'ve got to purchase a dozen or so to ship files to folks who
don\'t want to deal with multigigabyte downloads.  Probably 32GB
or 64GB devices as this is a one-time transaction -- if the
drive goes R/O after I\'ve written everything on it... <shrug

So far, I\'ve no failures/data loss/problems with the Lexars.
I had one SanDisk go R/O shortly after purchase (replaced under
warranty).

The odd failure is inevitable if you use enough of them. Some fails are
likely to be from people unplugging them without demounting. It can do
strange things if an AV is prodding around on the removable volume.

PNY seems to be met with \"meh\" responses from colleagues -- some
citing high controller failure rates (high enough to turn them
off to the brand, but not necessarily statistically significant).

I\'ve also noticed a dramatic cheapening of some models, lately.
E.g., designs where the entire body (INCLUDING THE CONNECTOR SHELL)
is plastic!  Gotta wonder what else they\'ve skimped on...

Any brands to avoid?  Favor?

I am prepared to try some of the cheapest Chinese ones for a non
critical distribution to friends and family (bargain Xmas offer). I
wouldn\'t dream of using them for business. However, despite my
misgivings they seem so far to be OK and relatively well made.

16GB is about the sweet spot for lowest USB2 price here. I suspect with
the cheapest it is literally pot luck with reliability and even claimed
capacity being somewhat questionable. (at least for large capacity ones)

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

 

[bob prohaska]

Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

On 1/12/2022 7:27 PM, bob prohaska wrote:
Don Y <blockedofcourse@foo.invalid> wrote:

I ended up settling on 64G microSD cards. They are physically
tiny and everyone can use them in a phone, tablet, etc. once
they\'ve taken the delivered data off. So, they don\'t become
discards like the thumb drives would!

Have you come up with a decent way to label them, which doesn\'t
get in the way of actually using them in a reader or other device?


If so please post your method. My best efforts have all failed.

My first guess would likely be a Sharpie? Depending on how much
you want to write on them. I assume you\'ve tried this? Does the
ink not adhere? Or, is *re*labeling them the problem?

Speaking only of microSD, my handwriting isn\'t good enough to put
useful amounts of legible text on them and it can\'t be read when
they\'re in use, such as in Raspberry Pi systems that are running.

Thin \"Scotch\" tape tags sort of work, but off the roll they\'re
too wide to fit the socket, tend to come off and frequently have
exposed adhesive when folded onto itself imperfectly. That last
problem leads to cases where labels attach themselves to moving
objects, causing them to diffuse away from where they\'re put down,
leading to vast confusion.

Putting a readme file on the disk certainly identifies it, but
doesn\'t help with the initial \"which one do I want\" problem.

I guess the only answer is greater discipline in handling the cards.....

Thanks for writing,

bob prohaska