The latest trend in technology is also a booming fashion craze.

"It makes me look cool," said history teacher Jason Dzik, sporting one around his neck.

What is it? No bigger than your finger, yet powerful enough to store hundreds of files, flash drives are quickly becoming commonplace at college campuses, businesses and Hoban.

Flash drives, alias jump drives or stick drives, are mass storage devices. A memory chip with between one megabyte and two gigabytes is encased in a plastic or metal cover, typically attached to a key ring or lanyard. Flash drives connect to computers through a USB (Universal Serial Bus) port, now standard on most computers. In fact, flash drives are so popular many computer manufacturers have phased out floppy drives. Only one computer lab (235) at Hoban still has them.

Mike Williams, who teaches graphic design at Ohio University, explained the transition.

"As files got bigger, technology had to find ways to store them. Flash drives are here to stay, because they can increase the capacity without changing the design."

Williams said college students find them useful for taking work from classrooms to dorms.

Robert Davis, a salesperson at Best Buy in Cuyahoga Falls, said flash drives are a popular item.

"About 30 people a day ask about them," he said. "They're in high demand."

He attributed the demand to their durability compared to floppy disks or CDs.

"I haven't seen any returns yet," Davis said. "People love them."

Many teachers at Hoban use flash drives. Dzik has a 256-megabyte drive, which he uses to carry PowerPoints and notes.

"I teach in four classrooms," he said. "It's the easiest way to transfer files from place to place."

Economics teacher Sue Cox has had her 256-megabyte flash drive for about a year and a half.

"I also have a gig one," she said, "but it's too wide. I can't fit two next to each other at the same time."

Like Dzik, she uses hers to transfer files from her classroom to her office. Both teachers said students shouldn't be required to have the devices, but they would encourage it.

"It's an intelligent choice to get one, because your only other option at this point is e-mail," Dzik said.

Cox agreed, saying they shouldn't consider the requirement until all Hoban computers are flash-drive compatible.

Many students, however, are already catching on to the trend. The yearbook staff uses flash drives to transfer photos and layouts between computers, and some staffers are already wearing the fashionable technology.

"They're easy to use," senior Maddie Shultz said. "I love my flash drive."