Q1 : Can I use MICRO-FLASH in the keyboard USB port of my Mac computer?
A1 : MICRO-FLASH needs to be plugged into a USB hub or port directly. If you plug the MICRO-FLASH into the keyboard USB port, you may receive an error message stating enough power is not available.

Q2 : Which operating system can MICRO-FLASH operate on?
A2 : The MICRO-FLASH can be operated on any of the following OS: Windows 98, Windows 98 SE, Windows ME, Windows XP, Windows 2000, Mac 9.x or above and Linux 2.4.0 or above.

Q3 : What kind of data can be stored on MICRO-FLASH?
A3 : You can save any type of files on MICRO-FLASH, whether they are text, graphic, program, music or multimedia files.

Q4 : Can viruses infect MICRO-FLASH? How can I prevent it?<
A4 : Yes, MICRO-FLASH is just like your hard drive, it can get viruses via any files that you save onto it. Therefore, anti-virus software is recommended.

Q5 : Do I need to turn my computer off when installing MICRO-FLASH?
A5 : No, MICRO-FLASH is a hot plug-and-play device. You can install MICRO-FLASH anytime you want, even when the computer is on.

Q6 : When the light is flashing, what does that mean?
A6 : When the light is flashing, it means that the drive is in use and data transfer is taking place between the drive and host machine.

Q7 : Is it safe to remove MICRO-FLASH while files are being transferred?
A7 : No, when the light is flashing it means data transfer is taking place. Do not remove the drive as it may result in lost of file/data, or even damage the drive.

Q8 : What memory sizes are available for MICRO-FLASH?
A8 : The memory sizes that are available for MICRO-FLASH are 32MB, 64MB, 128MB, 256MB, 512MB, 1GB, 2GB, 4GB AND 8GB.

Q9 : Does MICRO-FLASH have a write protection feature?
A9 : Yes, MICRO-FLASH has a write protection switch on the side. When the switch is closed, the data can only be read and cannot be written.

Q10 : Which personal computer does MICRO-FLASH support?
A10 : MICRO-FLASH supports all PCs that have a USB port connection and run under the operating systems that the MICRO-FLASH supports.

Q11 : Can the data on MICRO-FLASH be shared in a networking environment?
A11 : Yes, the data can be shared in a networking environment as long as the host machine enables the share function for the drive.

Q12 : Can MICRO-FLASH be used as a boot disk?
A12 : Yes. It has a bootable function if the PC's motherboard supports USB boot.

Q13 : Can I format my MICRO-FLASH?
A13 : Yes, MICRO-FLASH can be formatted using the normal formatting function.

Q14 : Can MICRO-FLASH be used under DOS environment?
A14 : No, DOS does not support USB devices.

Q15 : Will the MICRO-FLASH work on Windows NT?
A15 : No. Windows NT does not and will not support USB. See Microsoft's Article ID: Q196661.

Q16 : Will the MICRO-FLASH work on Windows 95 or Windows 3.1?
A16 : Windows 95 and Windows 3.1 are not supported by MICRO-FLASH.

Q17 : What interface does MICRO-FLASH support?
A17 : MICRO-FLASH only supports USB interface.

Q18 : How many times can the MICRO-FLASH be used and how long can the data be stored?
A18 : MICRO-FLASH can write and erase at least 1 million times, while data on the drive can be stored for more than 10 years.

Q19 : How many MICRO-FLASH can I connect to a single computer?
A19 : In theory, USB allows 127 devices to be connected to a single PC. But practically, due to the alphabetical ordering of the disk drive and existing drives under the windows operating system, the maximum number of MICRO-FLASH that can be connected to a single PC is 23 by using USB hubs.

Q20 : What type of memory does the MICRO-FLASH use?
A20 : MICRO-FLASH uses highly reliable and non-volatile flash memory.

Q21 : Can other programs be running at the same time while using MICRO-FLASH?
A21 : Yes, other programs can be running at the same time while using MICRO-FLASH.

Q22 : Can "ScanDisk" be used with the MICRO-FLASH?
A22 : Yes, "ScanDisk" can be used with the MICRO-FLASH.

Q23 : Does MICRO-FLASH resist vibration, magnetic fields and humidity?
A23 : MICRO-FLASH is highly resistant to vibration and can be operated under a wide range of magnetic fields and humidity.

Q24 : What precautions should be taken while using MICRO-FLASH?
A24 : Wait for a few seconds upon inserting and removing of the Pen Drive, giving time for the operating system to recognize the drive. Avoid removing immediately after inserting the drive or performing repetitive insertions / removals.

Q25 : What are the differences between the MICRO-FLASH and flash memory cards?
A25 : The advantage of MICRO-FLASH over all the different memory cards is that it can be connected to the USB port directly and the data can be accessed without an external card reader. Additionally, flash memory storage products and drives are not compatible with each other.

Q26 : What are the differences between the MICRO-FLASH and USB hard disk drive?
A26 : USB hard disk drive is much heavier and more delicate than MICRO-FLASH. It is only a hard disk drive with a USB interface. MICRO-FLASH is much smaller, lighter and rugged. It's more ideal for mobile use.

Q27 : Why does my operating system report a slightly less capacity than the advertised capacity?
A27 : As is common with all data storage media, USB drives have a smaller true capacity versus the advertised capacity due to the historical definitions of GB and MB, as well as Memory Management and Partition Accounting information utilizing some of the true capacity on the USB drive. Memory Management utilizes about 64KB out of every 1MB. The larger the capacity, the larger the amount reserved. The following shows the advertised capacity vs. the average true capacity:

Advertised Capacity / Average True Capacity

64MB / 61.2MB

128MB / 120MB

256MB / 241MB

512MB / 495MB

1GB / 984MB

2GB / 1.91GB

4GB / 3.82GB

Advertised Capacity vs. True Capacity (source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hard_disk)

It is important to note that manufacturers often use metric definition of the prefixes "giga" and "mega." However, nearly all operating system utilities report capacities using binary definitions for the prefixes. This is largely historical, since when storage capacities started to exceed thousands of bytes, there were no standard binary prefixes (the IEC only standardized binary prefixes in 1999), so 2¹⁰ (1024) bytes was called a kilobyte because 1024 is "close enough" to the metric prefix kilo, which is defined as 10³ or 1000. This trend became habit and continued to be applied to the prefixes "mega," "giga," and even "tera." Obviously the discrepancy becomes much more noticeable in reported capacities in the multiple gigabyte range, and users will often notice that the volume capacity reported by their OS is significantly less than that advertised by the manufacturer. For example, a drive advertised as 200 GB can be expected to store close to 200 x 109, or 200 billion, bytes. This uses the proper SI definition of "giga," 10⁹ and cannot be considered as incorrect. Since utilities provided by the operating system probably define a Gigabyte as 2³⁰, or 1073741824, bytes, the reported capacity of the drive will be closer to 186.26 GB (actually, GiB), a difference of well over ten gigabytes. For this very reason, many utilities that report capacity have begun to use the aforementioned IEC standard binary prefixes (e.g. KB, MB, GB) since their definitions are not ambiguous.

Another side point is that many people mistakenly attribute the discrepancy in reported and advertised capacities to reserved space used for file system and partition accounting information. However, for large (several GB) file systems, this data rarely occupies more than several MB, and therefore cannot possibly account for the apparent "loss" of tens of GBs.