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08/08/2004 |
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PicStop Flash Drive Don Bradbury looks at the 64MB Integral U-Storage EZ-Drive USB device.
A Flash drive is solid state memory that appears as an external disk drive under any version of Windows with support for USB, or for which support can be added. These days, all manner of additional features are on offer, but this basic 64MB device from PicStop was one of the cheapest we could find. It provides simple, add-on memory that accepts downloads from your computer for any storage purpose. Possible scenarios include file backup, a graphic image repository, or security and archive copies of important files. Or indeed file transportation between machines, replacing the floppy. With no moving parts, USB Flash drives should offer long life and secure storage.
Partitions Even basic units such as this Integral device can add security features like partitions. This supports resizing and password protection (complete with a ‘hint’ prompt). The software that comes on the CD not only provides a driver for Windows 98/SE (the only supported OS needing the addition of a driver), but the facilities for setting up the partitions and password protection should you require it. If you simply want storage with a unique new drive letter assigned to it, that’s what you get as soon as you plug the drive into a USB port on your PC. It is of course powered entirely via the port and it’s altogether a neat and tidy way to move and work with files that are required to be on more than one PC, say home and office. A UMSD icon is installed in Windows’ notification area of the Taskbar, and this lets you access the partitioning and security features as well as letting you dismount the drive before removal to avoid corrupting the information. Resizing Resizing, you should bear in mind, will destroy all data on the Flash drive; it’s not like Partition Magic working on your hard drive. So don’t resize unless you have the data to hand to recopy to the resized drive. ‘Security Area’ and ‘Public Area’ can be resized by simply dragging a scroll bar in the middle of the window.
Also featured is a ‘Recover Disk’ facility by means of which a corrupted (“damaged”) device can be recovered for use again. Windows’ ScanDisk can then be used to check the integrity of the partitions, and in general you can simply treat the Flash device like any other disk drive. A write protect switch on the side of the device works like it does on a floppy disk. It can be applied if you think others might try to write to your Flash drive. There’s a steady Power and flashing Access LED that shows when data is being moved around (i.e. do not remove the USB device), and that’s about all you have to remember. You do not have to dismount the drive under Windows 98SE. However, you remove it while data is being transferred at your own peril. Later versions of Windows provide the extra security of the dismount procedure, but it’s only nominal and the same rule applies.
Native support is offered for Windows ME/2000/XP, MacOS 8.6 and above, and Linux 2.2.7 and above without driver addition, but we found it also worked nicely under 98SE. In conclusion The package comes complete with a lanyard for those who think they might loose the tiny device if carried in the pocket, a CD bearing the manual in Acrobat format and the Windows 98 driver as well as a protective cap for the USB connection. With card capacities up to 1024MB available plus the facility to make the unit bootable - provided your BIOS supports it - this inexpensive device is recommended. It has the basic functions you should need, and all at an excellent price. You might wonder what to call it, being variously described as Integral (on the device itself), EZ-Drive (in Device Manager), and U-Storage (in the manual), but what’s in a name? - as The Bard said. |
