IronWing

No Lifer
Jul 20, 2001
68,855
26,650
136
I tend to stick with what works until the ports disappear but I was thinking that maybe thumb drives have run their course and that other forms of file sharing have displaced them. What sayeth the bleeding edge of technology?

<== still carries a USB to serial port dongle.
 

MrSquished

Lifer
Jan 14, 2013
21,004
19,446
136
i just have one and the only thing it's used for is to update the bios on my mobo
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
57,364
7,516
126
I don't use them much anymore, unless you count my phone as a thumb drive(I do), but I keep a disassembled(for small size) drive in my wallet with Lubuntu, and some Windows utilities. I don't use it much, but it's nice to have bootable media if it's needed.
 

Ken g6

Programming Moderator, Elite Member
Moderator
Dec 11, 1999
16,220
3,802
75
I carry one with encrypted backups on my keychain.
 

ImpulsE69

Lifer
Jan 8, 2010
14,946
1,077
126
I still use them regularly to transfer data between systems that cannot be on the network.
 

Thebobo

Lifer
Jun 19, 2006
18,592
7,673
136
They come bare like that you can use some larger diameter shrink tubing for "outside" use.
 

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
126
I carry around a couple of the tiny connector-sized ones as off-site backup in case my apartment building burns down.

I used normal-sized ones at least once or twice a week for file copies and (less often) installing OSs.
 
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bfun_x1

Senior member
May 29, 2015
475
155
116
I carry one with encrypted backups on my keychain.

I keep one on my key chain too. I was thinking about putting a bootable antivirus on there for when friends and family asks me to look at their PCs.
 

Ken g6

Programming Moderator, Elite Member
Moderator
Dec 11, 1999
16,220
3,802
75
I used normal-sized ones at least once or twice a week for file copies and (less often) installing OSs.
Oh, yeah, I forgot, I use a 4GB drive to watch stuff I record on my computer on my TV. I tried streaming, but the stupid streaming device I use drops the connection if there's even a slight WiFi glitch.
 

Carson Dyle

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2012
8,174
524
126
I carry one on my keychain with all of my passwords in plaintext, plus all of my best porn that I wouldn't want to be without in a pinch. Like if I'm out one night and I meet a nice lady and we go back to her place, maybe she wants to watch a bukkake video with 60 guys and one girl.

Actually, I keep a handful of smaller ones for OS installs. They're like $4 a piece now. And every once once in a blue moon I'll need to sneakernet some files between computers.
 

Crono

Lifer
Aug 8, 2001
23,720
1,501
136
Thread reminds me I need to buy flash drives in bulk. I lose and give away more than a few over time. Usually I have one for a bunch of portable apps (mostly from PortableApps), one for live linux/install, a Windows 10 install, a few with encrypted cold storage wallets, one for document/file backup, and a few for transferring files.

I've never taken to using a flash drive on a keychain, but if anyone knows of a really nice USB 3.0/3.1 one that's nigh indestructible (the metal encased ones are decent otherwise) with 64GB+ let me know.
 

snoopy7548

Diamond Member
Jan 1, 2005
8,048
5,043
146
Hell yeah flash drives are still a thing! I have one on my keychain with my Keepass key file, and I use them all the time at work for transferring screen captures from scopes to my laptop. One of my older co-workers has a whole collection of the same exact drive for reasons I don't know; you can ask for a drive, he reaches in his pocket, and pulls out like four of them.

Crono, check out the Kingston DataTraveler. I think I bought the 8 or 16GB version SE9, but it looks like they have new SE9 G2 64GB and 128GB versions too (I think the original SE9 looks better). I've been using it for nearly a year without any problems.

https://www.amazon.com/Kingston-Dig...=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=kingston+datatraveler+se8
 
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pete6032

Diamond Member
Dec 3, 2010
7,443
3,004
136
Flash drives for daily use have been replaced by Google drive for me. If I'm giving a presentation at a conference or to a client I will put it on a flash drive. I also use flash drives for some personal files such as resume or job search files. I generally have time drive automatically sync to my pc when I plug it in.
 

OutHouse

Lifer
Jun 5, 2000
36,413
616
126
I use them to install laptop images. USB sticks will be around for a long time.
 

crashtech

Lifer
Jan 4, 2013
10,521
2,111
146
Wait, so, what to use as an initial boot device, if not a USB stick? I gave up on CDs several years ago for this purpose, is there something else now?
 

Crono

Lifer
Aug 8, 2001
23,720
1,501
136
Wait, so, what to use as an initial boot device, if not a USB stick? I gave up on CDs several years ago for this purpose, is there something else now?

Well, boot over network (PXE) I guess, which I've never tried myself. But yeah, bootable USB is the defacto now for installation media.
 

TheVrolok

Lifer
Dec 11, 2000
24,254
4,076
136
Still use them regularly. One for documents, a few for repair utilities, a bootable Linux, a windows 10 installation, etc.
 

whm1974

Diamond Member
Jul 24, 2016
9,460
1,570
96
Why wouldn't thumb drive still be a thing? After all you'll need something to install OSes. for troubleshooting, and for transferring large amounts data/files around.
 

SamQuint

Golden Member
Dec 6, 2010
1,155
45
91
My Mazda CX-5 has a USB port connected to the entertainment/Nav system. I have a 128 GB drive in there full of my music. But I also use them to transfer files all the time. I also like to print pictures at Costco. Fill up a thumb drive and take it to one of their photo kiosks. I use them at work quite a bit. Our company blocks all cloud storage sites for security. (thumb drives have to be encrypted here as well)
 
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