Sue a flash drive is a nice little item to have around. They can be used to take photos or other data when visiting frinds or family. They can be used to transfer data. I keep one with all updated anti virus, spyware and firewalls on in case friends call in distress and I need to visit.

You might find the $8 a useful investment or a total waste but as it is not high finance I would recommend you buy one.

yes I have that very one, I got one from Big lots and I have ordered various kingston flash drives, they are a good product.
The one Gig is a nice size to use to back up files or move files. It should work just fine for you, once you have one you will want more. With all the portable applications available for them now you can pretty much carry your entire desktop and browser with you, just stick it in any pc and there you are, your firefox browser set up with all your preferences and stuff. In fact there are even versions of linux small enough to carry on a 1 gig flash drive. I have a website up right now that I am looking at to do exactly that. You can google "portable apps" and find some good ones.

Here is a link that might be useful: puppy linux on a flash drive

I use them all the time. I back up my data at work and bring it home, zap it on my home desktop and work at home. I carry pictures back and forth. Type docs and carry those.

They are the most useful tools and so quick and easy. As raven said, once you start using them, you'll wonder how you lived without them. Great price, I'd buy a bunch.

Jane

Kingston is my preferred brand.
I have a Kingston DataTraveler 1GB among many other assorted brands and sizes. I just can't pass up a good sale.
And like ravencajun & owbist, keep one loaded with firefox portable with all my bookmarks and all the latest virus and spyware tools, ready to help out a friend in need.

Sounds great!

Maybe I should get a couple while the price is right.

I'll probably have to come back for help to learn how to use them.

I'll check out those links tomorrow. Too sleepy right now.

Thanks.

Sue

Bummer!

"Sold out" at Big Lots.

I know they don't always have what they advertise, but I thought I might get lucky.

I'll keep checking around. I haven't even looked anywhere for them. The BL ad just caught my eye.

Sue

I use PNY Attache flashes and have a bunch of them. I've used them for years and keep them on my key ring. They get dropped, banged around, stepped on and have never failed me. I bought them at Staples on sale. They are 1G, small and cheap.

Jane

is there more than one Big Lots near you? check others if so. The Big Lots near me has had the kingston 1gig flash drive and the SD memory card for that price for a few months now and they keep getting more in so check back often. I know this one by me had some because I was just there and they had plenty of them in the display case, they do keep all of those under lock and key though.

I'm planning on getting a kingston traveler 2Gb at Walmart only $12.00 anytime...I have one question like the SD cards can they be formated and used over and over? of course 2GB will hold a lot of photo's...

yes the SD cards can be used over and over again basically just like the flash drives.

If using SD cards for a camera if you buy high speed versions your camera will be much quicker at taking pictures.

I just got a Kingston 4 gig flash drive at buy.com for $17.05 and free shipping. buy.com has very good prices on flash drives and I have very good luck with the company. Plus they always have a coupon offer for new customers, if you google search for "buy.com coupons" or "buy.com codes" you will probably find a few around.

They can be formated or files deleted and reused repeatedly.

I have some (much smaller) that are more than 5 years old that still work fine. The only time I had a problem with one was when I tipped my laptop on its side to look at a tag on the bottom while the thumb drive was plugged in. It still worked for about a year after that, but eventually the connections broke.

RC, the next BL is about 15 miles away; 30 miles round trip. Hardly worthwhile at $3.88 a gallon! Lol

I saw them online for $8, free shipping. Now since reading Susieq07's post re WM, 2 GB for $12, and RC's best.com deal, I will just pick one up at WM. I'm there quite often.

Thanks for all the info.

Sue

One more question, important to me...planning on a new TV 52" LCD only one we looked at has an SD card slot, but if it has a USB port, can I put my USB flash drive in TV's USB port to view photo's on big screen?? as we are very interested in doing this, viewing photo's or slideshows on the big screen TV..wondering if we can do this using remote provided by dish network or if we can or must use remote that comes with new TV? anyone know?

for instances where you have no SD or memory card slots but do have USB ports you can get a usb card reader/writer, they are pretty cheap too, and most read many card types but do make sure your type is read before buying one. You just plug the usb plug from the card reader into your usb port and then you insert the memory card into the proper slot and it will then make your card accessible to read or write.
In fact I got my usb card reader free after rebate from buy.com with no shipping. Just check around they are really inexpensive. Just make sure you get USB 2.0 not USB 1. One is much slower than 2, USB2 is backward compatible with anything USB 1.
this is a link to a very informative article about the various card types and readers. I have the Travel Flash USB 2.0 reader.
PQI Travel Flash USB 2.0 and DataFab ImageMaster High-Speed Card ...

I know all that, but I want to read/view my photo's on my new LCD TV.. without using a PC, they have one TV that actually has an SD slot,and show photo slides, but I'm wondering if a flash drive would work if TV has a USB port which many now do, however our TV is on satelite and runs through a DVR also???

Here is a great deal on a 1Gig Kingston Flash drive, it is $6.95 with FREE shipping from buy.com.
1gig kingston
If you use Google check out you get $10 off your first purchase which would make this cost zero.
Plus buy.com has coupons for first time buyers.

BUT even better than that is this, a 2gig Kingston flash drive for $11.76 with FREE shipping!
2gig kingston

And here is the link to a 5%off coupon for any purchase, just click on that and it will add it to your shopping cart.
5% off coupon

Sue, I'm not sure if this answers your question but we can view photos on our TV. It has a card reader slot. It doesn't work as easily as on the computer. But honestly we never really spent time learning how to do it. If I stick the card in it begins a slide show. I don't know how to stop it or pause it. There must be a way, I just prefer to view on the computer screen.

I would think any TV with a card or USB slot will work. You obviously would need to read the instructions (which we didn't and can't find them). A flash drive works the same whether its a card or a thumb type drive.

Jane

I ordered my flash drive online at Walmart.com on Sunday it will arrive at my home Fri. this week it's the Kingston Data Traveler 2G it was $12 something and was only 97 cents shipping so a total of $13.48, hubby went to our Walmart SS and they wanted $20.00 for a 1G, what's up with that?? and it was Kingston, so be careful our new Walmart is higher then others on everything almost? Course I do most of my shopping online...LOL

Okay got my Kingston flash drive, now have a few questions for anyone with experience with one of these, after much wasted time on my part and much patience, I put lot's of photo's in order of events or preference, in a folder, sent folder to flash drive after checking to be sure they were in order, only when I viewed them did I see that A. They are small on my 20.1" monitor and B. they are completely out of order, also and this really bugs me, I found out how to Format, but that erases everything, is there no way to only remove exactly the folder you put in? as I put several in...and can not figure out how after searching everything in my PC on this? also if I put my pics. in WMP I can view full screen, but the flash drive will not accept from my WMP, and I'm wondering if when we get the new big screen TV later this week, will they also view so small??

you should be able to right click on the folder itself and select delete, you should be able to drag and drop items to and from the flash drive.
The most important thing is to always remember never ever remove anything like a flash drive until you have clicked the remove safely icon down in your systray and select which item you want to disconnect from your pc and wait till it says it is safe to remove. Not doing that can really mess stuff up.

I have no idea why it would change the order unless did it perhaps put them in alphabetical order?

if you right click start then explore and open your explorer tree find the drive letter assigned to the flash drive then from the right pane you should be able to drag and drop anything into that drive and in the same manner remove stuff from that drive. Or go to my computer find that drive select it and view what is on it and manipulate the data.

When you select a picture on the flash drive and right click on it do you not have options listed there as to how you want it to open?

Flash Drive Tutorial
How to Use a USB Flash Drive

for some great free apps that you can install on your flash drive and have available to you anywhere check out this list
USB Flash drives links

Nothing above was of any help to me...I do not want to delete my folders, I know how to do that, and when I insert my flash drive I get no menu,no folders listed etc. I only get options of copy pictures to my computer, don't want to do that or view slideshow... I want to format only some of the flash drive, but get NO option how, only know where to find Quick format, which erases everything? and I never use that icon on systray, never had a problem with anything, that way.. No infact one slideshow seems to be from end to beginning of the way I listed them which was numbered....so now what? and Start, explore, tree?? got nothing like that on my PC

all I can tell you is that every thing every where will tell you with very stern warnings to NEVER remove anything from your usb ports until you have used the safely remove icon, you are really playing with fire if you do not follow those warnings, from microsoft, and all usb product manufacturers.

I know of no way to partly format anything.

this is the direct quote from your post above
"is there no way to only remove exactly the folder you put in"
which is why instructions were given on HOW to remove a folder.

and one of the things that is known to happen when the remove safely icon is not used is that the data is scrambled and re-arranged.

Sorry I could not be of further assistance.

Problem solved, I downloaded from Microsoft USB flash drive manager, and now I get the option to view/ delete folders etc.

Well, I still haven't gotten to WalMart, or even ordered a flash drive online yet.

But I'm glad to see all the above info, which I will definitely save and use when I do get around to getting the FD.

Sue

Sue, I ordered mine from Walmart.com 97cents shipping had it in a few days in my mailbox 2G, $13.00 with shipping....