Caring properly for floppy disks

It makes sense for you to look after your floppy disks and treat them with care.  They are more fragile than they look, and are easily crushed or bent and damaged by dirt or grit.


NEVER, NEVER work directly from the floppy drive.  Use floppy disks for storage only.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS scan your floppy disks for viruses.  It’s quick and easy to do and can save you losing your work.

NEVER try to remove your floppy disk whilst the drive light is on.  You will lose your work and may damage the drive.

ALWAYS keep your floppy disks in a box and at room temperature.  You can buy disk boxes cheaply from Data Preparation.

NEVER expect disks to last for ever!  They wear out more quickly if you ignore our standard working practice advice.

ALWAYS store your disks well away from magnetic objects like telephones and computer monitors.

NEVER attempt to use low-density disks.  These are quite useless with the machines in public service here in the university.  Use only high-density disks.


Get into the habit of following this simple advice and you will minimise the risk of losing your work.