View Full Version : USB Memory stick / Drive
wisewood
18-01-07, 03:40 PM
I'm after a USB drive, preferably 1gb, preferably not an ugly thing.
Under ?15, under a tenner if possible. Anyone got any ideas where i can start shopping?
Can't believe the prices of these things, several years ago i bought one when they were first launched, 32mb ... cost me over ?50 lol
Matt2107
18-01-07, 03:43 PM
Pc world... I got my dad a 1g one for ?14.99 i think.
One tip... don't leave them in your trouser pocket and then put them through the wash... my dad did 2 weeks after I gave it him. :D
i got a 512mb one for free :D
wisewood
18-01-07, 03:50 PM
Problem with ebay is not knowing what you're getting... the memory inside could be crap quality that will only retain data for 5 minutes.
I've been taking work home lately, and will have to do so more and more over the next 12 months due to increased workload with someone going on maternity leave in a couple of weeks - and email is getting a bit of a bind now - emailing massive backups home and then emailing back to work is just stupid... especially when i could get a usb drive for a few quid - but i'd rather pay ?10-?15 and get something nice rather than a lump of plastic lol
I got one from http://www.bigpockets.co.uk/ You can pick up a 1gb USB drive for under a tenner.
I would go for ebuyer (http://www.ebuyer.com). I've used them for years for parts in my own machines and custom builds for mates. Cheap and reliable.
wisewood
18-01-07, 04:01 PM
ooooooooh... BigPockets have one for ?10.14 including vat & delivery. Almost under 10 quid, but not quite lol
can get 1 from my school fer ?15 if u want
can get 1 from my school fer ?15 if u want
you thieving git lol
wisewood
18-01-07, 04:04 PM
ebuyer do the same one as BigPockets for ?0.70 more lol
I see, I'll have to check if BigPockets do some of the other stuff I have to get every now and then.
Personally, i'd buy a medium sized laptop hdd and a 2.5" external case - you'll be spending about 30-40quid, but its 20x (or more depending on the hdd size) the storage..
Matt2107
18-01-07, 04:42 PM
^^^ Good point.
For ?70 my brother got a 20gig external hdd that actually looks really stylish.
He stores music on it and plugs it in his 360 to keep the hdd on that clear.
wisewood
18-01-07, 04:46 PM
how is that possibly even relevant to what i want ?
I am aware of what is out there that i dont need, i need something with capacity no bigger than 1gb ... files i move around are unlikely to exceed 512mb but could do at some stage... but its highly unlikely they'd ever exceed 1gb.
Why would i therefor want a 20gb drive, that is about 10x the physical size of the stick i'm after? lol
But yeah, thanks for telling us what you would buy lol
For ?70 my brother got a 20gig external hdd that actually looks really stylish.
but for under ?15 i can get ... and this is the important bit ... something portable. Why carry a hard drive when you can carry a flash memory stick? If it were for use at home or at work, and not both, i'd just get a NAS solution.
Matt2107
18-01-07, 04:52 PM
I have big pockets! :D
wisewood
18-01-07, 04:56 PM
no point me wearing a nice suit only to have the shape ruining by an external hard drive lol
you wouldnt need the hdd at court
http://image.ebuyer.com/UK/P0116100_C0000036_P0000000.jpg (http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/116100/rb/24557532489)
?7.63 + postage.
I have some of these. They have survived in my wallet for ages. So no problems with breakage. I can fully recommend these.
http://image.ebuyer.com/UK/P0119075_C0000036_P0000000.jpg (http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/119075)
?13.49 + postage
I also have one of these. Quite useful.
http://image.ebuyer.com/UK/P0119084_C0000036_P0000000.jpg (http://www.ebuyer.com/UK/product/119084)
1GB = ?16.42 + postage
I used Amazon for mine, you know its going to arrive very quickly and well packaged! I bought a Sandisk 1gb http://www.amazon.co.uk/SanDisk-Cruzer-Micro-Smart-Flash/dp/B000F31TRU/sr=1-2/qid=1169140441/ref=sr_1_2/026-0291293-6826812?ie=UTF8&s=electronics It takes abuse in my uni bag with all the text books on it and it was even stamped on by a 6 year old pupil of mine! It all still works though.
play, scan.co.uk are good for this shizzle....
Play also have free delivery ;)
Bargain - twin pack, 1Gb + 64Mb (http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/-/719/927/-/3297341/Maxell_USB_Twin_Pack_1GB_64MB_Flash_Drive/Product.html?searchtype=genre) for ?9.99 delivered. Do I win a prize for finding you one under ?10? :D
One tip... don't leave them in your trouser pocket and then put them through the wash... my dad did 2 weeks after I gave it him.
Mine's an "outdoors" one, so far its survived the washing machine about 20 times, I never bother taking it out my pockets lol
Welsh Dan
18-01-07, 06:26 PM
I'll find out how much i can get you one for from work mate.
wisewood
19-01-07, 08:25 AM
I looked at Scan Stu, they shaft you on the postage fees. Same with Aria (would have been ok if mum still worked for them).
That one on Amazon isn't too bad, especially as it's a U3 one, which means you can install applications onto it and have them run from within the usb drive and leave no evidence on the PC... email & a browser (mozilla) on there and you have ultra covert browsing for at work :D
Quite like the look of that ?9.99 deal for two though. Jack, i think you might have won lol You win the right to tell everyone you found me not one, but TWO usb memory "dongles" for under a tenner.
wisewood
19-01-07, 08:35 AM
Actually i've just started wondering whether it'd be possible to install and run an Apache server with PHP & MySQL from one of these things ... if so, i would be able to transfer the entire company Intranet to the flash drive and take it home too - then have a script in place to synchronise it when it comes back. Hmmmm...
Wisewood, it would depend on LAMPP or WAMPP setup.
LAMPP is certainly more than possible with Puppy Linux and the Apache Friends distro. As for syncing (sp), allways sinc provides an easy solution.
wisewood
19-01-07, 09:18 AM
I wouldn't want to use sync software, i'd want to write a script to intelligently switch relevent information back and forth from the company database to the flash drive database, and vice versa. You'd have to see the intranet system i created to fully understand why.
I've already got a webserver setup on my own desktop at work to test the principles of offline working incase the server ever goes down, with a script there to check the various tables on the server for updates compared to the tables on my machine, and sync the data where required ... it does this every hour for any computer that has someone logged onto the intranet.
If the apache server will run from the flash drive, it should be pretty straight forward to make that script run on there too... but on demand, instead of automatically.
It shouldn't be too tricky to implement a run on demand script for that job. Without more info I can't be much more use than that though.
wisewood
19-01-07, 09:48 AM
The script isnt the issue. I just need to remove the timer from it and put an onClick in there instead. The question is would apache run happily from a normal usb drive.
I've had it running form a CD-RW before with no issues. Should be fine from a USB.
wisewood
19-01-07, 01:51 PM
I've bid on one on ebay ... very cheap, 1gb, not repulsive to look at. If its crap i'll buy a better one lol
Matt2107
19-01-07, 02:00 PM
if it's **** just sell it on here lol..
wisewood
19-01-07, 02:04 PM
good plan. ssshhhhhhh!!
your admin - just delete his post so no-one can read it lol
Matt2107
19-01-07, 02:14 PM
i sold my xbox that was in misc for ?60
wisewood
19-01-07, 02:18 PM
your admin - just delete his post so no-one can read it lol
admin... moi ... I'm the self appointed king.
wisewood
19-01-07, 03:12 PM
I got shafted by a late bidder on the 1gb one.
Managed to bag a 512mb one in the dying seconds though, only about ?5 including postage - so cheap enough not to matter that its only 512mb, and big enough to fulfill my data storage needs for the short term. Long term i'll likely need a bigger one, but for now, this will do.
Excellent!
http://totaldiscountstores.com/memorycards/dane-elec-zMate-Pen-512mb.jpg
Matt2107
19-01-07, 03:17 PM
good stuff
wisewood
19-01-07, 03:39 PM
Yupp. I am pleased with it ... for now lol
Could have had a 4gb version of the same thing for ?44 lol the hard drive option looks more appealing then. Although, so does an iPod lol
Matt2107
19-01-07, 04:13 PM
If you squint.. it kinda looks like a motorola peble.
wisewood
19-01-07, 04:21 PM
only thing bothering me is i dont know the dimensions of it... but doesnt look too big.
wisewood
19-01-07, 04:44 PM
Width 0.9 in. Depth 0.4 in. Height 2.3 in.
Acceptable.
wisewood
20-01-07, 10:38 AM
It arrived this morning... pretty good turn around time considering what time i bought it yesterday afternoon.
It's awesome. Much smaller than it seemed like it would be, and it's matt-black :wisewood:
I've spent the morning fiddling about with my wireless print server too that i was bought for my birthday, but it was a few days late arriving. Thats now working properly after a couple of hours wondering why it wouldnt connect to the router ... 'doh... MAC filtering (meaning only MY laptop can connect to the router wirelessly, so obviously it shuns the print server)
Need to find something to print now lol
Matt2107
22-01-07, 11:17 AM
Print me print me
wisewood
22-01-07, 01:47 PM
lol The wife has some work to do at home tonight so i'll let her do the first proper printing via the wireless connection. I've done a test print wired & wireless but not printed anything else yet.
As for the USB drive, loads of fun. Currently commenting via Firefox Portable running off the usb drive, meaning no records on IE at work of what i'm looking at lol and my webserver is running off there with no problems, although there is a glitch with it starting mySQL that i need to fix. Its fine at home, as it always runs as drive F: there, but here its drive E: and that mucks up one of the paths... need to fix it.
porn at work now then lol
porn at work now then lol
Nah, they'll still be able to log what sites you visit as it'll all go through their web server/s. Need an anonymous proxy, or remote shell to your home PC :D
Used to use RealVNC on mine a couple years back til they blocked the ports I used :( Think its been compromised now though, my mate tried using it the other day at home and said his firewall lit up like a christmas tree with all the random outside connections VNC was accepting lol
wisewood
22-01-07, 02:14 PM
Well... actually, the router we have here is the same model i have at home, it doesnt log sites visited and there are no restricted sites (i have the password for it) so nothing gets recorded in the log re viewing banned sites. There is nothing on the server that records any of that business either... they often ask me to have a look and fix stuff if it seems simple to save the expense of the IT bloke coming in... thusly i have had a damn good look at it all etc to make sure I know the score.
We've got VNC running on all the PC's so we can be monitored to see what we're up to - but i always end the process as soon as i log on lol
Matt2107
22-01-07, 02:34 PM
On a tangent.... I've won a bluetooth dongle :D
Also stumbled across a set of instructions to adapt the bluetooth dongle to use the spare sky dish on the wall outside to boost the signal and increase the range to 1000m :D
post the guide, i could abuse people miles away lol
Matt2107
22-01-07, 02:40 PM
Dingle dangle dongle here's the link
http://www.pentest.co.uk/documents/bt_dongle_mod/bt_dongle_mod.html
that is 1000 metres by the way not miles. lol
wisewood
22-01-07, 02:42 PM
Also stumbled across a set of instructions to adapt the bluetooth dongle to use the spare sky dish on the wall outside to boost the signal and increase the range to 1000m :D
Sounds like kevs old fun & games with the empty pringles tubes ... strap one to the side of the laptop wifi card and one to the antenna on the router and get a directional antenna for the cost of some pringles lol He had pics of it somewhere... him sat in the field a few hundred metres from his bedroom window lol
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