I n an era of multimegabyte hard drives , it's hard to imagine that computers once depended on floppy disks for all of their storage needs. But it's a fact, and even though you may rarely use your floppy disk drive today, it's still an integral part of your computer system. Floppy disks are a quick and convenient medium for backing up small data files or transferring information between computers.
Floppies also serve as a way to transport new software.
Most important of all, floppies provide emergency first aid. If your computer's hard drive fails, you can still get the machine up and running by starting it from a floppy disk that contains the operating system software. That's because the disk itself is a thin, round disk of flexible Mylar or other plastic coated with a magnetic medium that stores information as digital ones and zeros. Unlike a hard disk, which has a fixed metal platter, a floppy disk can bend. You can see the disk itself if you carefully slide back the metal shield on the business end of the plastic casing.