Just wondering if you provide a flash drive/memory stick to a researcher with data on it, do you ask that the stick be returned to you so you can use it again or do you just keep buying more media?
Answer
We keep a couple for researchers to use, but we ask that they return them for re-use. We will also burn data onto DVD/CD for clients, as they are relatively inexpensive (as flash drives are NOT). We encourage our clients to bring their own memory sticks or external drives for large files so we can skip the CD/DVD-creation process.
Alternatively, if bringing a flash drive is not feasible, then: for lower demand files, this is as simple as sending the files including a readme file as email attachments; where files of some value, like ones that other researchers may want to use, or ones that took considerable time to produce, then we put the files on our secure data server as appropriate with distribution via html file links that we insert into an e-mail or via multiple links on class libguide pages.
Because new mobile devices and laptops mostly lack CD / DVD drives, welend flash drives to users through our circ system as we do for other centre materials like maps. These flash drives are on lanyards with barcodes. We can also deposit the file on a secure server, and he can download it with a password (student identifier). Html link to the file is sent by e-mail.
