Relocating

[Comartemis]

In a few days I'm leaving the Windy City and heading out to Arizona for the next two years, where I'll be finishing college at the University of Advancing Technology in Tempe. Before I can do that however, I've got stuff to pack.

I'll be taking a plane out of either O'Hare or Midway airport and I've got a lot of delicate electronics that need to be packed. The big problem is that I've heard horror stories from people about airport security measures wiping electronic media, and I've got no less than five hard disc drives this could happen to (three external hard drives, my laptop, and my PS3). Does anyone know of a way to harden my stuff against whatever it is Homeland Security is using? Anyone got tips for a big move in general? Anyone living near Tempe, for that matter?

[Spokavriel]

I've never seen it happen but if you make backups of everything to Data DVD it couldn't hurt. It helps to have backups anyway.

As far as where you are going remember Water is such a good friend try to never go without it on hand. Dust in the system is actually a bigger issue than fears of magnetic resonance scanning of luggage. And it would be best if you could have your electronics in their own travel case seperate from your other luggage. Some times the wiring configuration can make people running the scanners apprehensive especially if the device has a plastic casing that wouldn't show up as well and make it look like an improvised device. But those scanners are mostly used on carry on luggage with different measures taken on checked baggage should they find reason for suspicions.

Did you make sure your drives were "Parked" after their last use? That is a state where the drive head is semi secured and won't be released until next power on. Most drives do it automatically in proper shutdown of a system but not all externals are configured to do that.

I remember there use to be software to check that or even order all the disks into that state if needed but I can't remember the name. A read head that isn't parked is the #1 cause of damage to drives in transit.

[Ellen Kuhfeld]

I depend on my computer. I'd never let the baggage handlers at it! I say take the HDs and computer as carry-on luggage. Use some underwear and sox to pad them. Include medications (if needed) and small valuables. The power supplies, cables, and controllers can go in checked luggage with the rest of your stuff.

New cables, clothes and toothbrushes are available almost anywhere. Old data is not.

[Sky]

I've actually flown with magnetic media and a full desktop computer. I take several flights a year with a laptop and supporting devices, and I've done a big move like this by plane. Disclaimer: I'm not American, but I'm at school in a US university.

Comartemis: You can ship magnetic media via FedEx - that is an option if you pack the HDDs properly. If it works for NewEgg...

I recommend anti-static bags, if possible, and especially if you disassemble the external drives.

Your laptop and PS3 will be fine, especially if you carry them. Just tell the screener that the laptop and PS3 are coming through. If they're apprehensive or you're paranoid, they may ask for a demonstration that it works by actually turning it on and alternate screening options may be possible. I just went through Terminal 7 at LAX today and Homeland Security had a sign that said to take out game consoles and laptops, and to separate them from other devices. Be patient and courteous with DHS, and ask questions of the DHS people before entering the line to get screened.

Better yet - call the airline and DHS. They can't possibly be worse than CATSA was after DHS pulled a fast one on the Canadian authorities last Christmas and I had to fly.

Having said that, offsite backups are your best friend. Mozy, Dropbox, et al are probably worth it for a month or two to move large quantities of data if it's irreplaceable or very troublesome to replace.

In the future, if you're going to be flying with data - consider SSDs or optical media.

What you don't want to do: make it look like you're trying to evade DHS. They really don't take kindly to that stuff.

Did you make sure your drives were "Parked" after their last use? That is a state where the drive head is semi secured and won't be released until next power on. Most drives do it automatically in proper shutdown of a system but not all externals are configured to do that.

I haven't heard of a hard drive manufactured since 1989 that hasn't parked automatically. Do they still make non-automatically parking hard drives? I need names of manufacturers so I know what not to buy.

I remember there use to be software to check that or even order all the disks into that state if needed but I can't remember the name. A read head that isn't parked is the #1 cause of damage to drives in transit.

I hate to do this, but I'm going to have to call "citation needed". I haven't used parking software since '93 on MS-DOS 4.01, and even then you can't just park a read head and cut the computer's power on a modern OS since the OS has to flush write-back caches.

[Undeen]

While I can't say much about plane travel, I can give some tips about Tempe. Make sure you either have a water filter, or a supply of bottled water. The city water here is disgusting, and you'll need the water. For the most part winter isn't so bad, but if you can when summer comes around, get out. Dearly wish I could.

As for transportation, it depends on where in Tempe you live, and how much you need to do beyond grocery and school essentials. There's a light rail system going through Tempe these days and I haven't heard anything bad about it, but I don't recommend the bus system. While not really Bad... I've heard it's not terribly reliable, and I know the few times I've used it I found it to be really annoying to figure out. If you can, stick to bicycle, car and light rail. And if you need to use a cab, in my experience Discount Cab offers one of the better prices and in general much cleaner, higher quality ride. Then again, I worked for them for a short time. Maybe I'm bias.

Can't think of anything else really important off hand, but if you have specific questions from a local, let me know. Lived in Tempe for 5 years, though I've been in Mesa the last 3. Hope some of this helps.

[Spokavriel]

If you go with a bike get puncture proof tires or at least thicker than average tubes with some sealant added. The standard tires really don't last long against goat heads (Seeds that look like they have horns)