Re: speaking of USB formatting.

On Thu 04 Jun 2026 at 14:46:12 (-0000), CGS wrote:
> On 2026-06-04, Bob McGowan <[email protected]> wrote:
> > On 6/3/26 06:22 PM, Karen Lewellen wrote:
> >> A slight dance step to the left question from the previous thread.
> >> ...makes humble confession.
> >> I have never needed to buy a USB stick before.  External USB drive, 
> >> yes. stick no.
> >> However, after a challenging install of rockbox to my IPod classic, 
> >> all of its contents now exist in a zip archive.
> >> I want to safely move this zip file onto something else, with the goal 
> >> of having the USB stick easily seen, think files directory, if that 
> >> makes sense.
> >> So, is it best to live the stick unformated?
> >> Seemed the prior thread had a member meeting with challenges by 
> >> formatting in advance.
> >> For greatest flexibility in a Linux, or Unix environment?
> >
> > The USB stick will probably come preformatted, based on the experience 
> > I've had.  Usually some MS format, such as NTFS or FAT32.
> >
> > This lets it be a "generic" format that can be read by Windows, Mac OS 
> > or Linux systems.
> >
> > You can, of course, reformat and rebuild the file system to meet any 
> > specific needs you may have, but generally leaving the stick as is 
> > should work.
> 
> Is there an appreciable difference between an external USB drive and a
> thumb drive?

You might notice the difference if you mislay the cable (or, when
appropriate, have no access to a power outlet).

Cheers,
David.