Note: the Microdrive is now available in a 4GB version.

Being in CF2 format, it will fit in most modern digital cameras and MP3 players - Fuji, at least, is shipping it. But do the math - 108 top-quality digital pictures fit on a 64MB flash card - that's 1,728 pictures on a 1GB Microdrive. How can such a resource be managed on a 1 1/2" by 2" screen that 4 AA cells can only power for eight minutes? IBM's PCMCIA adapter is one way - the camera thoughtfully generates an HTML file with thumbnails. But at 1,728 images I'm about two orders of magnitude past the point where I need subdirectories - and most cameras don't support them.

For MP3 similar arguments hold sway. True - you could carry every extant version of Wagner's Ring in a pocket and compare them at your leisure - but those who do such things don't use MP3 players. Building a personal music archive - you could record an entire CD collection on one - is a geeky thing, and such markets are limited in size despite the recent explosion in file exchange hosts.

The key to its usefulness is the PCMCIA adapter - here for the first time is a removeable hard drive that is hardware-compatible with every laptop and most desktop PCs on the planet. For PCs without PCMCIA slots, you can also buy adapters that plug into USB ports.

• The usual business stuff - accounts, invoices, letters, email.
• The last ten years' IBM product announcements relevant to my interest. 3,200 announcement letters making up 121MB of data.
• The last five years of PRNEWSWIRE and relevant stories from the San Jose Mercury and other papers - 29,000 text items, most around three pages - a total of around 330MB.
• Installable images of critical software - Terrapin FTP, dtSearch, WAPtor, PalmPilot Desktop and the Nokia Communicator suite so I can sit down at any PC and install what I need to work. De-installing it afterwards, of course.

 The advantages for the road warrior are huge:

• The laptop (naturally properly insured) can go in the aircraft's hold. No more booting up for the security guys, and no more looking like every run-of-the-mill harrassed business traveller with a carry-on suit bag and a huge laptop case. Stick the lot in the hold and go on board with the newspaper of your choice and your data in your wallet. It's hard to conceal the fact that you're carrying a laptop in the street - muggings are common.
• Twin-disk backup for the laptop user. Our PCs are backed up regularly - every night to a dedicated hard drive in another system, and less frequently offsite in case of disaster. Now I can do this on my laptop by just clicking on the Microdrive icon. By the time it's done I'm shaved and ready to go down to the restaurant.
• Really useful data interchange with clients. Gone are the days when you could take a report on a stiffie, and ZIP drives are far from universal. Everyone can read a PCMCIA disk, though - it's the first truly interchangeable hard drive. Stick it in the client's system and drag'n'drop the files needed.
• You don't even need a laptop any more. Less to lug, no power and modem cords to worry about, etc. Just call ahead to the hotel's business centre and rent one with the right software suites.