🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <374DB455.3467BA04@sympatico.ca>, "Jacques E. Bouchard"
<jebouchard@sympatico.ca> wrote:

> Michael Thibault wrote:
> 
> > Backups are a very good thing - can't argue with that, nor repeat it often
> > enough. The problems with diskettes: they are slow; they are much less
> > reliable, as media goes, than almost anything else; they are much more
> > open to their environment; the drives that read them and write them are
> > subject to wandering out of calibration, such that diskettes can be
> > formatted, read, and written to in one drive - but not in another of the
> > same type.
> >
> > Far better would be to duplicate a file on the drive on which it was
> > created (since media doesn't go bad in its entirety) or, better, to back
> > it up on a second hard drive.
> 
>     Entire hard drives can be ruined, as the Chernobyl virus has demonstrated.
> Computers can be stolen or be destroyed in a fire.
> 
>     Backed up data should definitely NOT be stored on the same computer as the
> original data.
> 
> > The continued use of floppy disks simply
> > perpetuates the use of floppies; if you use them, you need the drive, and
> > having the drive, you use floppies, etc.... Weening people off of that
> > particular medium is not going to happen as long as computers continue to
> > come with them 'just in case'... It's a strange little cycle.
> 
>     Come on, let's keep things in perspective, they're just floppies.
They're not a
> bad habit or a vice or a crime wave. Technology does not stand still
simply because
> people still use floppies. And they still remain the cheapest and
fastest way to
> store and retrieve small data. The industry does not impose them on
people, there is
> still a demand for them.
> 
> > But the time
> > is well nigh for floppy drives to disappear entirely. I mean, I *could*
> > have a 5.25" drive hooked up to one of my Macs, and I *could* add one to
> > my friend's PC, but why???
> 
>     Because 3.5 drives and diskettes store more and are more compact.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> jaybee

As a person who uses pretty much all the common media out there (ZIPs, JAZ
disks, floppies, CDRs, and SyQuests), there is still a need for floppy
disks.  Yes, there are slow and unreliable for storage.  But they are
CHEAP, plentiful and can be used with any computer MAC or PC without
having to hook up another external unit.  As a designer, I have lost
hundred of dollars sending ZIP media to service bureaus and print shops
who end up lossing the ZIP disks because their idiots.  If I lose a floppy
disk, oh well who cares, but those damn ZIP disks add up.  It was a BAD
idea not to include the floppy on the new macs.  Yes, I can't fit a
magazine spread on floppy, but I can't fit them on a ZIP disk either.  I
still get lots of things on floppies like stories in Word, Logos from
Illustrator, stats from excel and you don't need to WASTE a ZIP disk on
those thing which would never, very rarely, fill up a ZIP disk on their
own. 

As for back-up purposes, no media is 100%, all can and will fail-ZIP, CD,
floppy, SyQuest, tape, Jaz, hard drives etc--They have ALL crapped out on
me at one time or another.

Anyways, back to the poster's previous points, yes, the person is ASKING
too much for the 7500. I've seen the used mac places sell it for less.
Furthermore these prices will continue to drop like a rock.  

As an option an upgrading to a G3. WHY?!!!  The new G3 are coming out
cheaper and cheaper.  The older mac (non-G3) were always over-priced.
OKAY, the guy who used the i-mac for $1850 (cdn) was not a good example
but original G3 233-DT used will sell for that price or maybe even less. 
New Blue G3 300-MT sell for $2100 (cdn) (YES, YES no floppy drive--don't
go there), even original G3-233 MT used should sell for less than $2000
(cdn).  

Anyways, my point being is that trying to sell a non G3-machine as an
alternative to buying a G3 directly is praying on people who don't know
better.  The only reason why  you would go that route is that you have
ALEADY own (invested in) that machine then it's only another $600-$800
more--You shouldn't be buying it to upgrade it [7500 ($1000) and G3 card
($600-$800) = $1600-$1800].  The argument that someone may not have all
the money to do it all at once is weak.  They should either wait a bit
longer and save up the extra money or wait a bit longer and have prices
drop--Either way, I think buy the G3 (original/blue) directly.

My penny and a half