Once known as simple little gizmos that were basically just modern replacements for floppy disks, USB flash drives have suddenly grown up. You can now replicate your desktop environment, encrypt files on the fly, and even rescue your PC with one of these formerly modest devices. Here are some of the coolest things you can do today with the innocuous-looking thumb drive on your desk, as well as details about some particularly useful new drives.
Can't install Firefox at work? Do you pine for your programs, set up your own way, at an Internet caf
Software gurus have reworked versions of assorted applications so that they run directly off your thumb drive. Our three favorites--John Haller's portable editions of the Firefox browser, Thunderbird e-mail program, and OpenOffice suite--are available here.
Migo software synchronizes files, Outlook data, Internet Explorer favorites, and other desktop elements between different PCs. You can install it on any thumb drive ($30 for the personal version, $50 for the professional edition), or buy a preloaded Migo-branded drive ($100 for 1GB).
If you don't mind buying new hardware, U3-ready drives let you run specially written applications straight from the drive. Preferences, data files, and the like all stay on the portable device, so you don't leave any traces on the computer.
Most U3 units come preloaded with various applications. You can run them or download new ones (which can cost up to $45 each) from the U3 Launchpad, which resembles Windows' Start menu and appears in the system tray when you connect the device (click on the thumbnail image above).
We tested several U3 thumb drives and found them very capable--and similar. The SanDisk U3 Cruzer Micro 1GB ($100) and the Memorex U3 Smart Mini TravelDrive 1GB ($90; memorex.com) came out ahead, mostly for their software. The TravelDrive includes Thunderbird, McAfee AntiVirus, and Migo. The Cruzer Micro has good free and trial apps. For more about U3 click here.
Safe From Prying Eyes
The encryption and biometric safeguards on these security-first drives offer some peace of mind when you need to carry sensitive data on an easy-to-misplace thumb drive.
Built-in tools on drives like the Lexar JumpDrive Secure II 1GB ($100) and the Kingston DataTraveler Elite 1GB ($100) let you defend individual files with 256-bit AES encryption. You can also create a partition on the drive that encrypts any file dropped into it and that appears on screen under a different drive letter. And you can password-protect any U3 drive to achieve a base level of protection.
When security really matters, check out a thumb drive with a built-in fingerprint scanner. It works much like any biometric device, locking out access until you swipe the appropriate digit against it.
We looked at two models, the SanDisk Cruzer Profile 256MB (click on thumbnail image above; $100) and the Sony MicroVault with Fingerprint Access 256MB ($90). We slightly preferred the SanDisk because the Sony requires an extra cable and software installation.
Create a Cleaning Kit for Spyware-Infected PCsOne of the handiest uses for a thumb drive is as an emergency security kit with applications for reviving compromised computers. This is especially important if you have to disconnect the machine from the Internet and can't download the required software, or if you need to pay a house call to a beleaguered friend with a virus-laden PC.
To make a good Windows security kit, pack a drive with a range of applications from the following essential categories.
Whether you run security apps from a thumb drive or from a PC, the same caveat applies: They're not much good if you don't keep them current. Run your antivirus program's update function from a clean PC just before using your kit, and download updated antispyware installer files once a month or so.
When Speed Is King, Flash Flies
A number of thumb drives claim nothing more than raw speed, a trick they achieve with newer flash memory and special circuitry.
We put three high-speed models to the test to see how well they stack up to their claims: the polished Lexar JumpDrive Lightning 1GB ($130), the rubberized Corsair Flash Voyager 1GB ($70), and the flip-top Memina Rocket 1GB ($85). (Click on the thumbnail image at left.)
Sure enough, all three drives had considerably better throughput than any plain thumb drive. At about 9.5MB per second on reads and 5.5 MBps on writes, these high-performance units had two to three times the speed of a current standard drive and they blazed past older hardware. However, like most USB 2.0 products, none sustained anything approaching the theoretical maximum throughput of up to 30 MBps on reads.
Although the makers claim various theoretical maximum transfer speeds, the three drives performed nearly identically in our tests, which used a variety of small files. So shop around for the best price and a design that works for you.
Revive Your Crashed PCIf the unthinkable happens and your PC goes south, your modest little thumb drive can come to the rescue--if you've spent some time customizing it as a recovery drive.
Recovery thumb drives are most useful if you make them bootable so that they can help if your system won't start. The task isn't quite as simple as formatting a floppy disk in Windows, but enterprising users should have little trouble.
You need two things: a utility that can create a master boot record (MBR), and a floppy or CD that is already bootable. Both are readily available online, including downloadable MBR creators (try MKBT) and bootable drive images (take your pick at bootdisk.com). As well, you need to set your PC's BIOS to boot from a USB drive before other drives, something that older systems in particular might not support. Click here for extensive step-by-step instructions on creating a bootable thumb drive.
Once your drive is bootable, load it with applications that repair common system errors and pin down elusive hardware problems. Free or shareware programs are more likely to run straight from the drive. Essential tools include disk- and RAM-testing apps such as Memtest86, Registry tune-up tools like Registry Mechanic, and backup and recovery programs such as DriveImage XML. Partition management tools like Disk Director and file undelete tools such as Undelete can also turn around a potentially very bad day. You can find plenty more at The 46 Best-ever Freeware Utilities page and at Ultimate Boot CD.
Christopher Null
