It sounds like modern CD-Rs are more reliable than the one I've got. Maybe I'll ditch it and get a new one. It is possible that mine is troublesome because of all the other hardware I've got hanging off my computer including a home made extender board so I could add three external ISA boards, and maybe the fact that I modified the external CD-R to be internal! The point about magnets and zip disks is valid. My zip disks rarely travel more than a few inches betwen the computer and the shelf beside the computer so they should be fairly safe. Maybe I'd be telling a different story if I took them on the tube (subway).