Dead Jumpdrive No Longer Jumps
I'm not sure what happened. Or how. Or where. But, for some reason or another, my jumpdrive died yesterday and I haven't been able to wake it up. A jump drive, if you don't know, is a handy little item that seems to be replacing the majority of 3.25 inch floppy drives. Part of the confusion that surrounds these things is that they have about eighty names. Depending on the manufacturer or the person using it, *it is a keychain drive, a flashdrive, a jumpdrive, a memory stick, or a USB drive. If you buy one at your local store, you'll find that they come in about three sizes with corresponding price increases: 64k, 128k, or 256k. I'm pretty sure I have seen a couple that are much bigger. Anyway, whatever it is called, think of it just like the harddrive on your computer, but smaller. After plugging it in your USB port, it will allow you to save your various files just like a floppy disk, with the added benefit of being able to contain more information than a 3.25 inch floppy. And the thing is small, so it is portable.
But, of course, last night I ran into my first problem. Mine doesn't work anymore, and I don't know why. I logged on the 24 hour online support chat for it and spoke with a guy named Varnoon. Although I'm not 100% certain, based on the various political discussions about job outsourcing that have been prevalent in the media recently, I suspect Varnoon was working from India. That is, of course, assuming he was a real person, and not say. . .a chat robot programmed to respond based on my answers. (I'm thinking Indian is the more solid bet.) Once Varnoon determined that I wasn't a complete idiot who didn't know how to use the device, he said that he would send me a form through the snail mail to fill out and return to the company, with the dead drive, where they'd either replace it or repair it. All I can say is: What a hassle! I'm sure I don't have many readers, but if I have any, I'm wondering if anyone else has had trouble with their *flashdrives. Do you know the normal lifespan of these things? I'd welcome any comments people may have about this, so if you feel daring, leave a message. Thanks.
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UPDATE: Here it is March 22nd, and it has been more than a couple of days with no letter from Varnoon yet. I am beginning to think that I should try contacting him on online support chat again. I'll give him just a couple of more days. Even though technology has speeded the world up tremendously, he's in India, which is, last I checked, still about a half a world away.
But, of course, last night I ran into my first problem. Mine doesn't work anymore, and I don't know why. I logged on the 24 hour online support chat for it and spoke with a guy named Varnoon. Although I'm not 100% certain, based on the various political discussions about job outsourcing that have been prevalent in the media recently, I suspect Varnoon was working from India. That is, of course, assuming he was a real person, and not say. . .a chat robot programmed to respond based on my answers. (I'm thinking Indian is the more solid bet.) Once Varnoon determined that I wasn't a complete idiot who didn't know how to use the device, he said that he would send me a form through the snail mail to fill out and return to the company, with the dead drive, where they'd either replace it or repair it. All I can say is: What a hassle! I'm sure I don't have many readers, but if I have any, I'm wondering if anyone else has had trouble with their *flashdrives. Do you know the normal lifespan of these things? I'd welcome any comments people may have about this, so if you feel daring, leave a message. Thanks.
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UPDATE: Here it is March 22nd, and it has been more than a couple of days with no letter from Varnoon yet. I am beginning to think that I should try contacting him on online support chat again. I'll give him just a couple of more days. Even though technology has speeded the world up tremendously, he's in India, which is, last I checked, still about a half a world away.
14 March 2004
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