External Firewire/Wiebertech question

[Dave Mac]

A lot of people do not like to use tools like DiskWarrior or TechTool Pro for drive maintenance and optimization, but rather prefer to reinitialize their drives on a regular basis. A regular basis could be weekly, monthly, quarterly, or after a particular project has been completed. Reinitialization simply wipes the drive clean and creates a new directory structure for the drive/partition. Either maintenance, using the above tools, or reinitialization, or a combination of the the two helps keep a drive/partition in good working order.

[Walter Biscardi]

[BW] “Can someone elaborate a bit on the re-intialize drive maintanence. How often do you recommend this ? How does this fit in to your workflow ? thank you. BW”

I erase my drives using Apple’s Disc Utility as often as possible, but generally never more than every three months. I try to do this after every project.

This is the best way to keep your drives maintained and running smoothly.

Walter Biscardi, Jr.
https://www.biscardicreative.com

Director, “The Rough Cut”
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[David Roth weiss]

Mike,

I sincerely feel that your continued arguments here in support of LaCie are actually perpetuating a problem. Its a bit like sending many thousands of unarmoured Humvees into a war zone and arguing that they are inherently safe simply because a large percentage of them are not blown up.

While I will acknowledge that there are users on the Cow at all skill levels from amatuer to professional, that doesn’t change the fact the demands of intensive video editing on hard drive subsystems are very high at all levels. I think its fair to say that LaCie’s products are mass produced and mass marketed for the general consumer/pro-sumor market, and I also think its fair to say that in many cases they are simply not up to the day to day rigors of intensive video editing. Nonetheless, they continue to be pushed to the often naive and unsuspecting users at all levels who comprise a large percentage of the population in the world of “democratized” video.

DRW

[Mike Mihalik]

An interesting response, and perhaps valid for some.

On the other hand the drives are valuable tools to those who have determined their capabilities and limitations.

Some of the same users you refer to may have the same difficulties with more expensive and less forgiving systems.

For example, price does not always determine quality or capability. Price does however provide margin for resellers who are able to provide pre-sales and after sales service and support.

There are many LaCie resellers; some sell strictly on price, while the more successful ones provide the sales and support that actually helps the customer. The resellers will provide their customers with products they are able to stand behind.

I encourage the readers here to go beyond the reports here, and to pick and choose their resellers based on their successes. Some users are better off seeking those resellers.

Mike

Mike

[David Roth weiss]

Mike,

I appreciate your measured response. These discussions needn’t become the major confligrations that often erupt over these emotional hardware issues.

I roll my own, with “enterprise-level” hard drives throughout, which are now available quite inexpensively, and often for either a small premium over consumer-level drives or in some cases even at lower cost. At the volumes at which your company purchases its hard drives, surely LaCie could afford to populate every one of its hard drive enclosures with enterprise-level drives with a five year warranties, yet LaCie chooses to use consumer drives with a one year warranty. Could you address that issue?

DRW

[Mike Mihalik]

David,

Actually, the drives we use in our products are considered OEM drives, and are provided to us with one year warranties in North America.

The 5 year warranties are offered by drive manufacturers for Enterprise level drives and for consumer drives sold into the retail channel. This is for the bare drive only, and does not cover the equipment they are installed, nor for external drive products.

You pose a valid question. In past years companies, including LaCie, did provide 5 year or multi-year warranties on products. Over time, the industry moved to 1 year warranties due to the issues identified in my previous email – it was not cost effective to maintain drive and replaceable parts inventories.

If 5 year warranties are important to end-users, they will have to go the route you have identified – building your own drives,and dealing directly with the drive manufacturer in years 2-5 of the drive warranty.

Mike

[David Roth weiss]

Mike,

A very honest and forthright apparaisal. I think these issues are often misunderstood and not discussed nearly enough, and so the tools that many buy for the job often do not meet their expectations. I can see this as a problem for both consumers and manufacturers alike.

All the best,
DRW