TechWhirl (TECHWR-L) is a resource for technical writing and technical communications professionals of all experience levels and in all industries to share their experiences and acquire information.
For two decades, technical communicators have turned to TechWhirl to ask and answer questions about the always-changing world of technical communications, such as tools, skills, career paths, methodologies, and emerging industries. The TechWhirl Archives and magazine, created for, by and about technical writers, offer a wealth of knowledge to everyone with an interest in any aspect of technical communications.
Subject:Re. Laptops and x-rays From:geoff-h -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA Date:Mon, 15 Apr 1996 08:32:36 -0500
Bill Bledsoe advised us not to take our laptops through the
x-ray machines at airports. Several computer magazines
claim this isn't a problem, but none of these magazines
differentiate between the x-rays and the electromagnetic
fields (EMF) used to generate the x-rays.
Modern (recently updated) equipment won't generate enough
EMF to damage any magnetic storage medium. (The long-term
effect of repeatedly x-raying an advanced microprocessor,
on the other hand, hasn't been tested to my knowledge.) The
magnetic wands used to "frisk" you after you pass through
the metal detector (and perhaps the metal detector itself)
_are_ demonstrably hazardous to magnetic materials... I
have a friend who lost data on a diskette that way, and a
_MacUser_ magazine columnist verified this phenomenon a few
years back. Ask the attendants to inspect your baggage
manually. Why take chances?
--Geoff Hart @8^{)} geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
Disclaimer: Speaking for myself, not FERIC.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Post Message: TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU
Get Commands: LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU with "help" in body.
Unsubscribe: LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU with "signoff TECHWR-L"
Listowner: ejray -at- ionet -dot- net
