Floppy disks are availabe at Staples, Office Max, Office Depot, and usually a friend has squirreled away some and no longer uses them. You can rewrite them hundreds of time, so 1 or 2 could suffice, but I would go with 6 or more to be on the safe side. I help my friend 2 or 3 times a week to use her machine (she isn't real comfortable with it yet) and I can load designs and be ME'ing in minutes. No longer than my usb stick, and money counts! Better quality machine for less money or cheaper model for same money?? I would not pass it up, you can always sell it or trade to upgrade later. It does almost everythng my Diamond does for lots less $$.