# 3.5 Floppy Drives Is There Any Point To Them Anymore? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 16, 2002, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313 "2002-06-16T04:45:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2002, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/21 "2002-06-16T18:49:08Z")
I went without a floppy drive for a year or so, until I dug an replacement unti out of a scrap computer. Aside from rare special reboots involving repairing or ghosting a hard drive, the only time I ever use the drive is to transfer small files between computers, and even that’s not often. As a result, I haven’t bought new floppy disks in years and my existing supply is slowly deteriorating. Except for the rare driver floppy disk that comes with new hardware, the newest disk I have is at least 5 years old. I occasionally go through them, looking for old files and games. I still have a copy of Civilization One somewhere. I just hope it’s still readable, if I ever feel in a retro mood. ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2002, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/22 "2002-06-16T21:14:10Z")
My floppy drive has also been broken for a while now. It might have broken 6 months ago, when I noticed it, or maybe longer, since I don’t think I’ve used the floppy drive in a year and a half. I’ve also put together a computer and formatted the HD, and installed Win2K all without a floppy drive. As far as transferring files goes, I just FTP it to my web server and download it when I need to. A heck of a lot less of a chance of corruption, strangely enough. ---
**Author:** ![CaptMurdock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/captmurdock/32/11736_2.png) [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/23 "2002-06-17T05:14:10Z")
Personally, I find floppies an easy way to transfer files between my Windoze machine at work and my Mac at home. When my friends and I trade files, we just use Zips. They “caught on” with my CLAN, all right. ---
**Author:** ![DougC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@DougC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DougC)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/24 "2002-06-17T09:42:10Z")
- - - Another vote for shuttling files between shcool and home. ~ The only read/write media drive common to all the computers on campus is the floppy drive, and asignments and projects are sized accordingly. - DougC ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/25 "2002-06-17T10:01:06Z")
> [@](#): > > Nah, there’s no point to floppies. As for the emergency boot function, just use a bootable CD. In which case you’re left with a more awkward, slower, and more hassling solution. Who wants to open up Nero every time you want to make a \>1 megabyte file on a 700 megabyte CD? ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/26 "2002-06-17T13:54:07Z")
I could not be floppy-less for long. Lots of text documents, requiring frequent updates, that have to be openable, modifiable and saveable in _whatever_ system is available when I get to where I need to do the work: some systems with no (or the wrong size) ZIP; some with no CD-RW burner or the wrong software; some not on the network at all, never mind capable of sharing. As I am not likely to create anything that will not fit on a 1.44M disk (or heck, that would not fit on a 720K disk!), the little fellers serve me well. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/27 "2002-06-17T18:45:28Z")
When I get a HD I use a floppy that came with the HD to install it… ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/28 "2002-06-17T20:51:24Z")
> [@](#): > > Nah, there’s no point to floppies. As for the emergency boot function, just use a bootable CD. > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SPOOFE \* > \*\* > In which case you’re left with a more awkward, slower, and more hassling solution. Who wants to open up Nero every time you want to make a \>1 megabyte file on a 700 megabyte CD? \*\* Doesn’t seem like a hassle to me. I mean, really, how often do you make boot disks? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2002, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/29 "2002-06-17T22:53:41Z")
My new notebook doesn’t have a floppy; not even an external one - it’s not even an option. ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2002, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/30 "2002-06-18T19:37:29Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by KKBattousai_ > > I mean, really, how often do you make boot disks? In my job (tech support)? All the time. I’ve made bootable CDs but have never run across a BIOS flash update “makedisk” program that says “Please insert one formatted CD-R and press Enter”. And most HD diagnostic progs come on floppies as well (although I suppose you could make a bootable CD from the floppy but that seems like such a waste of space). I’ll admit for the average non-tech geek there isn’t much use for them anymore, but this still isn’t a CD only world yet, as some of the previous posts had indicated. Technically speaking, the OP title asks if there is still a point to 3.5 _drives_, not just floppies, and I would keep one installed (or at least stashed in a drawer somewhere) on my PC on the off chance that someone gives me a doc to view/edit/print on floppy. ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2002, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/31 "2002-06-18T23:07:35Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Horseflesh \* > \*\* > In my job (tech support)? All the time. \*\* Hey, that’s cheating! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Seraphim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Seraphim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seraphim)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2002, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313/32 "2002-06-19T03:54:17Z")
Don’t chuck out those disks [just yet.](http://www.idg.net/ec?go=1&content_source_id=13&link_id=412750) With the right drive you can fit 32MB on those suckers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/3-5-floppy-drives-is-there-any-point-to-them-anymore/114313.md?page=1)