From TNPC issue #4.03...

Battling the Click of Death Syndrome

by Lee Hudspeth
February 8, 2001

If you've got an Iomega Zip or Jaz disk drive you've probably heard about the "Click of Death" (COD) syndrome. The COD syndrome has been widely reported on, but nowhere so precisely, clinically, and objectively as at Steve Gibson's site:
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/403/tr.cgi?grc1

When the syndrome strikes, it does so without warning. The affected drive emits a series of clicking sounds. The sounds can occur either when you first insert the cartridge or when reading/writing data on a cartridge that has already been inserted. Some random time after those first dreaded clicks are heard, the drive and one or more cartridges fail completely and catastrophically. Oddly, Iomega has taken an "if we don't acknowledge the problem it will go away" approach that has led to the filing of class action suits.

Can you prevent COD? Steve says no, that the nature of the problem is a hardware failure that software cannot correct. However, his advice is two-fold. First, run his free "Trouble in Paradise" tool that diagnoses all Iomega Zip and Jaz drives and cartridges. As with all of Steve's marvelous tools, this one is small (52K), fast, and comes with extensive documentation and instructions.
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/403/tr.cgi?grc2

Note: I initially had trouble getting Trouble in Paradise to finish analyzing my Zip drive. I wrote Steve's technical support staff and they suggested I disable Norton Anti-Virus. When I did that the utility ran to completion.

Second, treat your Jaz or Zip drive, and cartridges, gingerly.

To read the fascinating history of this syndrome, and Iomega's stance (or better, lack thereof), check out the variety of COD articles and FAQs on Steve's site.

You can reach Lee Hudspeth at:
mailto:leehudspeth@TheNakedPC.com

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