I'll join the list against JAZ drives - we've used them on and off (more
off recently!) since they came out. We have only used the 1GB version
and only on a MAC platform (we couldn't get them to work at all on a Win
3.1 PC). The main problems we have had include:
        - becoming unreadable (the driver asks you to reforamt the disk - there
is no other option)
        - becoming mechanically challenged (the sliding metal strip that
exposes the disks to the reading head becomes jammed)
        - files copied to the disk cannot be read or lose data or otherwise
become corrupted

None of these problems could be fixed, and 100s of MB of data is a lot
to lose - we have switched back to ZIPs and CDs - simple reliable
technology, and  if one dies or gets lost or damaged, it is not the end
of the world - I'm not really sure that it is all that wise to be
carrying around GBs worth of data in your pocket!!


If people are interested, I could post a bit about our MO jukebox server
we have been running for about a year now - it hold about 240 GB and
runs under Novell 4.11 - overall it is really great!

HOpe that helps,

IAN


Mario wrote:
>
> Folks,
>
> I have had a Jaz Drive on my PowerPC for a couple of years and never
> once used it. Every lab that I have dealings with on the Berkeley
> Campus has had many disk and/or drive failures. I do use ZIP drives
> frequently. However, in the last two years out of 6 drives, two have
> died yielding the now famous "click of death." Both drives were
> internal.
>
> I direct your attention to the following:
>
> http://www.texasatty.com/iomgcod.html
>
> This page will link you to a copy of the class action suit filed
> against Iomega for the poor quality of their Zip drives. I don't
> think these people are imagining things. As for my Jaz Drive, I have
> never had any trouble with it. Of course, I have never used it either.
>
> >I second Jeff Reece's comments regarding the instability of JAZ drives and
> >their disks.  We used our 3 drives on 3 separate platforms (Windows
> >95, SGI and
> >Mac OS 8.0) and after about 9 months, the problems started
> >happening.  Once the
> >large 2GB disks begin to fill up, the directories seem to have problems
> >handling all the files and subdirectories.  We've had one drive replaced by
> >Iomega, but have since corrupted another disk.  CD-RW are definitely more
> >stable. I'm curious if anyone else has had similar problems with the JAZ.
> >Conversely, our ZIPs seem to be chugging along just fine.
> >
> >
> >Linda Mayernik, M.S.
> >Confocal Imaging Core Facility
> >Wayne State University School of Medicine
> >Detroit, MI
>
> Mario M. Moronne, Ph.D.
> Material and Life Science Divisions M/S 6-2100
> Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
> 1 Cyclotron Rd.
> Berkeley, CA.
> 94720
>
> ph 510-486-4236
> FAX 510-528-8076
>
> [log in to unmask]
> [log in to unmask]

--
Professor Ian Gibbins
Anatomy & Histology
Flinders University of South Australia
GPO Box 2100, Adelaide, SA 5001
Australia

Phone:  +61-8-8204 5271
FAX:    +61-8-8277 0085
Email:  [log in to unmask]