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R.I.P. Floppy Disks (1981-2011)
To all of you lawyers still using the computer you bought at the "Grand Y2K Sale," I have sad news: the floppy disk era has been declared dead by Sony Corp. Born in 1981, the floppy disk was just 30 years old.
Via this post on the FutureLawyer blog I learned that Sony -- which "boasts a 70 percent share of the domestic floppy-disc market" -- announced late last month that it will completely withdraw from that market at the end of March 2011. Other domestic manufacturers have already pulled out of the market now that large-capacity storage devices such as USB flash drives are cheaply and readily available.
So what can you do with all of your old floppy disks (a.k.a. "stiffies" in South Africa) once you convert your data to some more modern format? The BBC has 40 suggestions from its readers, including beer mats in pubs; tiles for the roof of your shed; substitute clays for skeet shooting ("Pull!"); arbitrage purposes at computer recycling centers that will pay you more than the disks cost to purchase new; spatulas (after you add a handle); adjustments for uneven bookshelves and table legs; and ice scrapers for your car.
I'm going to add "building blocks for 3-year-olds" to the list. What else can we use them for?
Posted by Bruce Carton on May 5, 2010 at 11:53 AM | Permalink
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