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Why Do We Have to Use a Floppy to Flash BIOS?

Posted by Cliff on from the there's-better-removable-media-out-there dept.

Koskun asks: "With all the time and technology that has come and gone with computers why must we still use a floppy disk to flash the BIOS anymore? Yes, some manufacturers are enabling BIOS flash from within Windows, but there are still a lot of motherboards out there that require you to find a floppy to flash the BIOS. It took me two floppy drives and four floppy disks just to find one of each that worked." Are there reasons why BIOS manufacturers haven't moved BIOS flashing to modern media like USB flash drives, or bootable CD-ROMs?

5 of 174 comments (clear)

  1. Re:not all by croddy · · Score: 2, Funny

    i can't imagine anything more hair-raising than modifying the BIOS while windows is running

  2. I can't agree more by nilbog · · Score: 3, Funny
    Seriously ... it's like using a spoon to repair an engine.
    I had to flash my bios and didn't have any floppy disks. So here I am at the store at 2am buying a package of ten floppy disks (of which I will use only 1) for $10 - more expensive then cds I could have burned the image onto.

    Anyway, I got home only to realize the computer didn't even have a floppy drive. Throw me a freakin' bone here.

    --
    or else!
  3. Re:That razor thing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Simple math:

    Windows Default Privileges (letting every virus run as root)
    + Windows Security
    + BIOS Reflashable from within Windows
    = POOF

  4. Re:A floppy is...... by Elwood+P+Dowd · · Score: 2, Funny

    someone trying to save $50 on a floppy drive

    Have they started making floppy drives out of babies?

    --

    There are no trails. There are no trees out here.
  5. Re:A floppy is...... by John_Booty · · Score: 4, Funny

    If you do not live in the city, rural computer solutions are pricey. My local computer shoppe has 1.6 ghz laptops with no wireless selling for 2000 dollars.

    If only there was some sort of digital global computer network with "sites" where you could order a computer (from one of thousands of competing suppliers) and have it mailed to your house.

    --

    OtakuBooty.com: Smart, funny, sexy nerds.