flashing usb sticks?

[bad sector]

around 50gb with bright flashing led when active?

[VanguardLH]

bad sector wrote:

> around 50gb with bright flashing led when active?

My USB HDDs have LEDs, because that indicates when the drive is
accessed. For internal HDDs, the LED is in the system case. For
external HDDs, the LED is in the external case. Could be whatever USB
flash drive you have also has an LED for the same purpose: show activity
on the drive.

https://www.premiumusb.com/blog/blinking-led-flash-drive-what-it-means

If you truly want help, name the brand and model of the USB drive(s)
*you* have. The maker's web site might even have an online manual that
describes just what is the function of the LED on your USB flash drive.

[Paul]

On 3/15/2022 10:28 PM, bad sector wrote:
>
> around 50gb with bright flashing led when active?
>

There hasn't been a decent design in a long time.

The 8GB OCZ RALLY2, now that had a nice LED. The LED only
flashed when the device was active. It behaved like you
expect an activity LED to behave.

Some of the premium flash drives now, they're fast... but
have no LED. The same company also makes ones with LEDs, but
the LED has a "breathing pattern", which serves no purpose.
Then the user has to distinguish between "flashing and breathing"
versus "breathing alone".

SanDisk Extreme Go USB 3.1 Flash Drive 64GB

SDCZ800-064G Read 200MB/sec Write 100MB/sec Transparent slider (for LED)

https://www.amazon.ca/Sandisk-Extreme-Type-Flash-Drive/dp/B01NARBPI7

Ones that come with the opaque slider, Sandisk Extreme USB (word Go is missing,
those don't have a LED.

This makes the selection process pretty finicky. If I was
buying, I would use my "usual algorithm", car drive to computer store,
get clerk to show me two or more models, examine the slider
and so on.

The packaging will not indicate whether a LED is present,
whether it has the annoying "breathing" light pattern or not,
so you cannot rely on the packaging for such details.

These are pigs that are mostly made of lipstick. Unfortunately.
Nobody knows how to design anything.

This one, for example, doesn't have a LED, and the write speed
information is contradictory. Mentions "380" and "150", and to
me, "100" is more believable.

https://www.amazon.ca/SanDisk-SDCZ880-128G-G46-Extreme-128GB-Solid/dp/B01MU8TZRV

And if there is even the remotest chance of it having a *plastic*
connector on it, don't buy it. I had a stick with a plastic barrel,
fail on the first day. The bullshit description does not help me
decide whether it has a proper barrel. You should only buy USB
sticks with the chrome steel standard barrel on the end, as those
are good for the rated 5000 insertion cycles. The barrels on chrome
steel, do not deform on insertion. The attempt to describe a "metallic finish"
is marketing bullshit for "yes sirree bob, I is made of plastic".

https://www.amazon.ca/SanDisk-Extreme-Type-Flash-Drive/dp/B08KSJ144R/

I've even bought a pair of identical USB sticks, and one
had a LED, the second did not. One was made in China, one
in Malaysia or such. Mixed together at the store presumably.

A lotta lipstick, not much pig.

Paul

[bad sector]

On 3/16/22 01:45, Paul wrote:
> On 3/15/2022 10:28 PM, bad sector wrote:
>>
>> around 50gb with bright flashing led when active?
>>
>
> There hasn't been a decent design in a long time.
>
> The 8GB OCZ RALLY2, now that had a nice LED. The LED only flashed
> when the device was active. It behaved like you expect an activity
> LED to behave.

THAT's the way they should all be dammit!

> Some of the premium flash drives now, they're fast... but have no
> LED. The same company also makes ones with LEDs, but the LED has a
> "breathing pattern", which serves no purpose. Then the user has to
> distinguish between "flashing and breathing"
> versus "breathing alone".
>
> SanDisk Extreme Go USB 3.1 Flash Drive 64GB
>
>
> SDCZ800-064G Read 200MB/sec Write 100MB/sec Transparent slider (for
> LED)
>
> https://www.amazon.ca/Sandisk-Extreme-Type-Flash-Drive/dp/B01NARBPI7
>
> Ones that come with the opaque slider, Sandisk Extreme USB (word Go
> is missing, those don't have a LED.
>
> This makes the selection process pretty finicky. If I was buying, I
> would use my "usual algorithm", car drive to computer store, get
> clerk to show me two or more models, examine the slider
> and so on.

Nowadays when I ask a clerk s/he immediately goes blank,
with that "do I look like google?" expression. I live in the boonies
and here the problem is amplified a thousandfold :-(

> The packaging will not indicate whether a LED is present, whether it
> has the annoying "breathing" light pattern or not, so you cannot rely
> on the packaging for such details.
>
> These are pigs that are mostly made of lipstick. Unfortunately.
>
> Nobody knows how to design anything.

HOW TRUE!!! eye-candy, bullshit, scam-on-scam

> This one, for example, doesn't have a LED, and the write speed
> information is contradictory. Mentions "380" and "150", and to me,
> "100" is more believable.
>
> https://www.amazon.ca/SanDisk-SDCZ880-128G-G46-Extreme-128GB-Solid/dp/B01MU8TZRV
>
> And if there is even the remotest chance of it having a *plastic*
> connector on it, don't buy it. I had a stick with a plastic barrel,
> fail on the first day. The bullshit description does not help me
> decide whether it has a proper barrel. You should only buy USB
> sticks with the chrome steel standard barrel on the end, as those are
> good for the rated 5000 insertion cycles. The barrels on chrome
> steel, do not deform on insertion. The attempt to describe a
> "metallic finish" is marketing bullshit for "yes sirree bob, I is
> made of plastic".
>
> https://www.amazon.ca/SanDisk-Extreme-Type-Flash-Drive/dp/B08KSJ144R/

The entire USB interface whorehouse is already nothing but a huge scam. It shudda been put out of its misery years ago

> I've even bought a pair of identical USB sticks, and one had a LED,
> the second did not. One was made in China, one
>
> in Malaysia or such. Mixed together at the store presumably.
>
> A lotta lipstick, not much pig.
>
> Paul

Thanks for the input, always a pleasure reading someone who knows what he's talking about :-)

[VanguardLH]

bad sector wrote:

> The entire USB interface whorehouse is already nothing but a huge scam. It shudda been put out of its misery years ago

What is your proposal for a replacement? What would be your new design?
Of other existing connector types, what do you suggest? Thunderbolt?
Thunderbolt started 11 years ago. USB started 26 years ago.
Thunderbolt required paying a royalty to Intel until recently.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/05/intel-to-make-thunderbolt-3-royalty-free-in-bid-to-spur-adoption/

Did you buy a computer with a Thunderbolt interface? Why not?
Thunderbolt 3 will mutate into the USB 4 form factor.

Why not go back to the 30-year old SCSI fiber interface at 3 times the
bandwidth of Thunderbolt? Cost. How much more are you willing to pay
for a better connector? End users are abusive to connectors.

If you want to discuss crappy connections, why does your computer still
use the non-gold pin plug to connect external audio devices?

[bad sector]

On 2022-03-19 16:07, VanguardLH wrote:
> bad sector wrote:
>
>> The entire USB interface whorehouse is already nothing but a huge scam. It shudda been put out of its misery years ago
>
> What is your proposal for a replacement? What would be your new design?
> Of other existing connector types, what do you suggest?

eSata with extra deep connector socket plus an at least one inch deep
device body socket to grasp the plug end of a external mobile device
designed like myself for a million insertions with little risk of tiring

> Thunderbolt? Thunderbolt started 11 years ago. USB started 26 years
> ago. Thunderbolt required paying a royalty to Intel until recently.>
> https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/05/intel-to-make-thunderbolt-3-royalty-free-in-bid-to-spur-adoption/

another exercise in life-brevity i.e. planned obsolescence

> Did you buy a computer with a Thunderbolt interface? Why not?
> Thunderbolt 3 will mutate into the USB 4 form factor.

couldn't care less

> Why not go back to the 30-year old SCSI fiber interface at 3 times the
> bandwidth of Thunderbolt? Cost. How much more are you willing to pay
> for a better connector?
>
> End users are abusive to connectors.

A+ Sherlock

> If you want to discuss crappy connections, why does your computer still
> use the non-gold pin plug to connect external audio devices?

Because long before the usefulness of gold plating even the 1/8" audio
receptacles are absolute garbage tending to become not only loose
and producing audio scratching and intermittant function but are even
less well soldered to the mobo than ever before.

Now my turn. Why haven't I bought two or three other new laptops
since my Asus G73 and why am I not likely to buy another at all for
some (read a loooooong) time to come?

[VanguardLH]

bad sector wrote:

> VanguardLH wrote:
>
>> bad sector wrote:
>>
>>> The entire USB interface whorehouse is already nothing but a huge
>>> scam. It shudda been put out of its misery years ago
>>
>> What is your proposal for a replacement? What would be your new design?
>> Of other existing connector types, what do you suggest?
>
> eSata with extra deep connector socket plus an at least one inch deep
> device body socket to grasp the plug end of a external mobile device

That would go backward in bandwidth. SATA-3 has 6Gbps max bandwidth
(theoretical, not actual). USB-3.0 goes to 5 Gbps, USB-3.1 goes to
10Gbps and UASP, USB-3.2 to 10-20 Gbps, Thunderbolt to 40 Gbps, and
USB-4 (based on Thunderbolt) is 40 Gbps. Sometimes you find builds that
have internal HDDs with a USB3 port instead of SATA. Users will
dismantle an old build thinking to repurpose the old HDDs in a new
build, but find the HDDs have USB ports. SATA-3 performs still faster
than USB-3.0, but that's because SATA-3 is 6 Gpbs versus USB3.0 at 5
Gbps. But USB is evolving to higher bandwidths, like for USB 4.3 Gen
2x2, than SATA can support.

eSATA connectors supply no power. Your external eSATA device has to get
power from a walwart. For an eSATA device, you have the cable from
computer to eSATA device, and a power adapter to the eSATA device. USB,
firewire, and thunderbolt suppy power. Yeah, a modified eSATA connector
could get designed that includes power lines, like the combo SATA+PWR
connectors used for internal drives, or maybe your desktop PC has an
eSATAp (powered eSATA) port which means your external device needs one,
too, but you're still stuck with the lower bandwidth of eSATA compared
to USB-4 or Thunderbolt. If you have an eSATA connector on the
backpanel of your desktop PC, is it double wide to include the power
connector (looks like the extra wide internal SATA+pwr connector), or
look like an eSATAp port?

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/5R3IpwMl1Ts/maxresdefault.jpg

No idea if eSATAp will take off. I haven't found mobos with them. With
users migrating to SSDs for storage, and getting mobos with m.2 NVMe
slots to use with NVMe SSDs which are using PCI for direct to CPU
transfer, SATA is dying out. NVMe in onboard, so no connecting external
SSD NVMe drives. For external SSDs, or even internal non-NVMe SSDs,
you're stuck with [e]SATA which went stagnant. There is no SATA-4 in
the works. There are no plans to extend SATA bandwidth beyond 6 Gbps.
There is SATA-3.2 Express, but that relies on the PCIe bus for achieving
more than the 6 Gbps transfer speed. SATA-3 Express failed. m.2 and
NVMe (using PCIe) surpassed it.

>> Thunderbolt? Thunderbolt started 11 years ago. USB started 26 years
>> ago. Thunderbolt required paying a royalty to Intel until recently.>
>> https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/05/intel-to-make-thunderbolt-3-royalty-free-in-bid-to-spur-adoption/
>
> another exercise in life-brevity i.e. planned obsolescence

Huh? Removing the royalty means MORE hardware designers will adopt
Thunderbolt whether exhibited as plain Thunderbolt, or implemented in
USB-4.

SATA is stagnant (dead). SATAe failed. Few computers have an eSATAp
port (I haven't found any, but there may be some). NVMe is already
available, but only for internal drives since it involve PCIe.
Thunderbolt (innate, or integrated into USB-4) will kill any eSATA[p] or
SATA interface.

Just what is your design that obviates obsolescence? ALL computer
hardware eventually becomes obsolete. So do the features in smart TVs,
operating systems, and anything connected to computers. Else,
technology would stagnate, and you'd still be using an 5 MB MFM drive
with a specialty controller card.

>> Did you buy a computer with a Thunderbolt interface? Why not?
>> Thunderbolt 3 will mutate into the USB 4 form factor.
>
> couldn't care less

So, you really aren't interest in a better hardware storage interface.
What were you trying to convey by saying "The entire USB interface

whorehouse is already nothing but a huge scam. It shudda been put out of

its misery years ago"? What's the "scam"? What is so miserable about
USB?

> Now my turn. Why haven't I bought two or three other new laptops
> since my Asus G73 and why am I not likely to buy another at all for
> some (read a loooooong) time to come?

Because your current but 12-year old hardware meets your current needs
despite the hardware is obsolescent. That's not an excuse to condemn
newer hardware that exceeds what you have.

I have an equally old Acer laptop that is still usable. Not better, not
faster, nor in any way excels my latest desktop PC build, or even a
younger netbook, but it still works. When my prior desktop build got
zapped by lightning (it bypassed the UPS - high voltage goes where it
wants), I was without a computer. I hooked a monitor, keyboard, and
mouse to the old laptop, and used that while ordering parts and doing
the new build. The experience was frustrating and slow, but it worked.
Its battery was dead, but it worked on A/C power. Would I use it now
that I have a fresh new build? No way! I used it because it was all I
had at the time.

Some consumers buy stuff because it's new or different. Some consumers
research before buying to determine if they're getting bang for the
buck. If your criteria doesn't mandate spending on new hardware, OS,
and apps, or faster, or more storage, or whatever then stick with what
works. My primary car is a 2002. Still works. None of all the
gimmicks in the 2018, but those aren't needed for the basic use of a
car. It rattles, has rust, so-so MPH, no passenger air bag, no head
unit to pair to my smartphone (which is 3 years old, and was introduced
6 years ago, is unsupported so no OS updates), and other features many
consumers think are needed. As a commuter car, it still works. Didn't
stop me from getting a newer car with lots more gimmicks, but I put the
most wear on the old car (which is now a classic being over 20 years
old).

Obviously you're not getting newer storage interfaces on your old
computer, but that doesn't obviate newer and faster is available, is not
yet obsolescent since it is still evolving rather than stagnant, like
SATA, and are [soon] available if you really do want to get away from
the "entire USB interface whorehouse".

> designed like myself for a million insertions with little risk of
> tiring

Can be done. Get the user out the equation, and the abuse disappears.
USB-C is rated for 10,000 insertions. That's a rating based on the
connector format. Some USB-C connectors are rated to 20K insertions, or
more. Depends on how much you're willing to spend on quality. Military
grade USB connectors that are waterproof, have a ratching ring for
secure connects and strain relief, and high insertion count are unlikely
to find their way into the consumer-grade computer parts market where
you buy computer parts, or buy pre-built computers using consumer-grade
parts.

If insertion rating will never be high enough to warrant your
acceptance, get shorty USB cables to leave plugged into your computers.
Wear on the computer's USB ports (the ones hardest to replace) will be
minimalized since only the other end will plug ito the device's USB
cable. The shorty USB cable can be easily replaced after 10 years it
takes to come close to the insertion rating count. Oh, those insertion
ratings are a minimum, so you get at least that many barring user abuse
which is obviously to most likely cause for failure. No matter how
protected or robust a connector, it can be damaged by users.

[bad sector]

I call it a scam because on both my laptop and my desktop of a total of
maybe a dozen usb ports 8 are so loose that they cannot be used. My
concern doesn't deal with transfer rates as such. With respect to those
I learned a long time ago to totally ignore advertised or standards rates.
Anyone who wants to sell usb-x will have to SHOW me the SUSTAINED
MINIMUM rate. Right now on my machines the usb's I have are worth
about 20% of the sata rates, the physical charateristics remaining total
crap.

[VanguardLH]

bad sector wrote:

> I call it a scam because on both my laptop and my desktop of a total of
> maybe a dozen usb ports 8 are so loose that they cannot be used.

How is a hardware spec responsible for user abuse, or poor/low quality
components? Never had a loose USB port on my desktop PCs (many builds),
laptops, netbooks, or smartphones. I've had to replace USB ports for
users that are very rough on their USB ports. You can even damage wall
outlets when plugging in power cords. With USB-C ports, you can insert
them either way, but USB-A ports require a specific orientation. Don't
jam in the cable, but instead insert to see if there is resistance, and
if so then rotate the plug 180 degrees. Pull straight out, not at an
angle. There are military-grade USB port you could use to replace the
consumer-grade, or poor-grade, ones in the laptop, but they cost more.
There are military USB ports that remove the user from doing the
alignment, and instead have a lock-ring to pull down the connector into
the plug to protect the connection from the grunts.

The USB ports in the desktop can be replaced, even those in the case
(top, front, or backpanel), and USB ports in drive bays or back slots
can be easily replaced. USB ports in laptops are harder to replace only
because dismantling a laptop is a more difficult than dismantling a
desktop case. Thereafter be more gentle on your USB insertions, or use
shorty USB extenders where they stay plugged in to minimize wear on the
laptop's USB ports, and the vast majority of the wear is on the other
end of the shorty USB extender (the end that plugs into devices).
Shorty USB cables are cheap, and super easy to replace. USB hubs would
also reduce wear on the USB case ports.

[bad sector]

Somehow you have me confused with someone who replaces usb ports, or is this alt.comp.hardware.technicians?

That said, I have to admit that that the original standard designers cannot be held responsible for what manufacturers will do with them. I'm thinking of 5" usb wifi transceivers that can almost flip a light 'book on its back. You call THAT 'user' abuse?

My position is unchanged, it's gonna be a VERY long time before I throw good money after bad and buy anything with the shitty 1/8" audio or the current usb ports or non-flashing usb-memory unless they are SERIOUSLY redesigned, which to some extent is a manufacturer responsibility as well.

[VanguardLH]

bad sector wrote:

> Somehow you have me confused with someone who replaces usb ports, or
> is this alt.comp.hardware.technicians?

This is a hardware newsgroup, not where you ask about finding computer
shops to do the work.

> That said, I have to admit that that the original standard designers
> cannot be held responsible for what manufacturers will do with them.
> I'm thinking of 5" usb wifi transceivers that can almost flip a light
> 'book on its back. You call THAT 'user' abuse?

Not sure what "flip" means. USB connectors are not designed to take the
strain of lifting anything. Don't put strain on any USB connection.
USB connectors aren't even locked nor have teeth to grab onto something.
They just use friction to hold them together. Most USB connectors have
a metal shroud aroung the PCB inside the shroud that has the foils for
the connections. The PCB is just plastic, and will break if torqued.
Some USB devices don't even have the metal shroud. They're just the PCB
sticking out the end without any protection, or added strain relief from
the absent metal shroud. Yes, any strain on the USB connector other
than straight in when inserting and straight out when extracting is user
abuse.

Of the remaining usable USB ports on your computer, and since 8 have
failed already, you might want to consider using USB hubs. An unpowered
hub can support no more power than is delivered by the USB port. Some
USB devices are low power, but some are high power (e.g., headphones).
A powered USB hub can let you concurrently use more USB devices, but
beware of how much power the walwart supplies to the powered USB hub.
An unpowered hub is just the cable and hub. A powered USB hub is the
cable and hub, but also the A/C adapter.

https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?d=usb+hub
(example only)

Alas, they have no filter to select unpowered vs powered.

I have an unpowered USB hub (no walmart needed nor having to store) in
my laptop's tote bag. That lets me plug in a keyboard, mouse, and more
low-powered USB devices, and more than what the single USB port on the
laptop would allow. At home, I added a powered USB hub when I ran out
of USB port since the addition of the A/C adapter wasn't a problem with
a desktop PC.

[wasbit]

"VanguardLH" <V...@nguard.LH> wrote in message
news:9dml9jwf...@v.nguard.lh...
>
> snip <

>
> I have an unpowered USB hub (no walmart needed nor having to store) in
> my laptop's tote bag. That lets me plug in a keyboard, mouse, and more
> low-powered USB devices, and more than what the single USB port on the
> laptop would allow. At home, I added a powered USB hub when I ran out
> of USB port since the addition of the A/C adapter wasn't a problem with
> a desktop PC.

Of further note is that a USB2 hub can provide enough power to run an
external HDD without the use of a 'Y' lead if it's plugged into a USB3 port.

--
Regards
wasbit

[Paul]

A lack of standards, and the usage of "App Notes" for reference,
makes this topic complicated. For example, I just viewed a so-called
"electrical engineering" thread on a web site, and just above every
answer was wrong.

The best evidence of practices, is to open the equipment and look.
Unfortunately.

There is a difference between desktops and laptops/tablets, because
they represent different thermal environments. Where the current flow
controls are located in a laptop, can have no cooling. And if the
method used was thermal, the results would be "all over the place".
There are methods that are "mostly not thermal", which are used
in laptops or tablets.

Southbridge chips do not measure current. Instead, they have
a logic input #OC that when sent an active-low signal, indicates
that an external device or circuit, has uncovered a problem. This allows
software to put a toast on the screen indicating "USB Overcurrent!".
Even though it was a Polyfuse or some other device, removing 5V
from the rail, that fed the #OC signal. There are a multitude of
#OC signals, so more than one channel can be monitored.

On USB2 ports, one fuse is shared by the two ports in the stack.
This is to reduce component cost. Included in such circuits, is a
100uF electrolytic cap, to prevent voltage sag, when a load is
first plugged in. (This prevents downward-going transients on
the VCC pin on the USB port.)

I have one motherboard here, where a single fuse is shared by
two USB ports, the mouse and keyboard connector, the parallel port
and something else. That's a reason why you have to "open the
equipment and look", to understand why the design seems so flaky.
The rest of my motherboards, seem more consistent.

Paul