[SIGCIS-Members] Current use of floppy disks

Fri Nov 5 12:57:48 PDT 2021

Of possible help, this chapter I wrote on floppy disks for the Routledge
Companion to Obsolescent Media. Available here:

https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:27175/

Opens with the much circulated bit of lore about Minuteman missile crews
still relying on them for launch codes.

On Fri, Nov 5, 2021 at 3:54 PM Marc Weber <marc at webhistory.org> wrote:

> Not quite current but close – two years ago the U.S. Navy finally phased
> them out on nuclear submarines:
> https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/24/us/nuclear-weapons-floppy-disks.html
> Best, Marc
>
> *Marc Weber* <https://computerhistory.org/profile/marc-weber/>
> *Curatorial Director, Internet History Program*
> Computer History Museum, 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043
> marc at webhistory.org  |  +1 415 282 6868
> computerhistory.org/nethistory  |  Co-founder, Web History Center and
> Project
>
> On Nov 5, 2021, at 08:08, James A Hodges <james.hodges at rutgers.edu> wrote:
>
> Perhaps also not what the journalist is looking to hear, but there are
> still some vintage music production tools (ie samplers and synthesizers)
> that use floppy disk storage. The Yamaha DX7 II FD synth and Akai s950
> sampler are classic machines that still get used in studios today, and the
> Roland SP-808 sampler even uses ancient 100mb Zip Disks for storage!
> However, many of these machines, if they're still in use, have been updated
> to use new forms of storage or data transfer in place of the old floppy
> drives. This means that there is an interesting little cottage industry of
> people working to enable such conversions via new software and hardware.
>
> On Fri, Nov 5, 2021 at 6:28 AM McMillan, William W <
> william.mcmillan at cuaa.edu> wrote:
>
>> Interesting question, Martin!
>>
>> There are plenty of us who have old files on floppy disks. I have a
>> USB-connected floppy drive handy to read these if and when I want to.
>>
>> Some old Boeing 747s still use floppies:
>>
>> https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a33612762/boeing-747-floppy-disk-updates/
>>
>> There are probably other dedicated real-time security and control systems
>> in low-tech settings that still use floppies.
>>
>> Hobbyists and old-gear aficionados, including nostalgic gamers, still use
>> them. (I have an old Windows 7 computer, with floppy drive, disconnected
>> from the Internet, which I use just for computer programming.)
>>
>> Bill
>>
>>
>> <https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a33612762/boeing-747-floppy-disk-updates/>
>> Floppy Disks: Do They Still Work? | 747s Still Use Floppy Disks - Popular
>> Mechanics
>> <https://www.popularmechanics.com/science/a33612762/boeing-747-floppy-disk-updates/>
>> Some Boeing 747s still use 3.5-inch floppy disks to load updated
>> navigational databases. That sounds crazy, but it isn't.
>> www.popularmechanics.com
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> *From:* Members <members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org> on behalf of Schmitt,
>> Martin <martin.schmitt at tu-darmstadt.de>
>> *Sent:* Friday, November 5, 2021 6:57 AM
>> *To:* Sigcis <members at sigcis.org>
>> *Subject:* [SIGCIS-Members] Current use of floppy disks
>>
>> Dear SIGCIS,
>>
>> today, I got a request by a German journalist asking about current uses
>> of floppy disks. Are they still is use somewhere? Are there still users,
>> for example power plants, airlines, banks or so who are using floppy disks?
>> If so, why do they do that? I am sure that you can address this question,
>> that was forwarded to me by Daniela Zetti, way better than I could. My
>> first thought were computer hobbyists who are working with old computers
>> and presenting them at Vintage Computing Festivals – cool stuff, but I do
>> not think that is what the journalist wants to hear.
>>
>> Best
>> Martin
>>
>> Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter | Post-Doc | digital enthusiast
>>
>> Technische Universität Darmstadt
>> Institut für Geschichte
>> Fachgebiet Technikgeschichte
>>
>> Mail: martin.schmitt at tu-darmstadt.de
>> Tel: +49  6151-16-57327
>> http://www.computerisierung.com
>>
>> &
>>
>> Assoziierter Wissenschaftler
>> LEIBNIZ-ZENTRUM FÜR ZEITHISTORISCHE FORSCHUNG | POTSDAM
>>
>> Vice Chair IFIP WG 9.7 „History of computing"
>>
>> Zuletzt erschienen: Leslie, Christopher und
>> Martin Schmitt (eds.): Histories of Computing in Eastern Europe, Cham:
>> Springer International Publishing 2019 (IFIP Advances in Information
>> and Communication Technology 549),
>> https://www.springer.com/978-3-030-29159-4
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
>
> --
> *JAMES A. HODGES, PH.D.*
> Bullard Postdoctoral Research Fellow
> The University of Texas at Austin
> School of Information
> http://www.jameshodges.net
>
> Senior Book Reviews Editor
> Information & Culture <https://infoculturejournal.org/>
> Member, Committee on Publication Ethics <https://publicationethics.org/>
>  (COPE)
>
> Junior Fellow, Rare Book School
> Mellon Society of Fellows in Critical Bibliography
> <https://rarebookschool.org/admissions-awards/fellowships/sofcb/>
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>
> _______________________________________________
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-- 
Matthew Kirschenbaum
Professor of English and Digital Studies
Director, Graduate Certificate in Digital Studies
Printer's Devil, BookLab
University of Maryland
mgk at umd.edu
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