johnl@ima.UUCP (04/24/85)
Well, our nine PC ATs are sicker than ever. One has developed an
unpleasant discophagic tendency, in that any hard disk drive you
put in it soon looks pretty bad.
I have a new theory -- it's the temperature. The regional service manager
from our computer store (Businessland) came by and reported that their
customers in Florida have been banging on their ATs like crazy and have no
trouble. So it occurs to me, CMI makes their disks in Chatsworth CA, where
it's pretty warm, or in Singapore, where it's warmer. Then they ship them
to Boca Raton, where it's equally temperate, they work fine there, and then
ship 'em out. We open them up in Boston, where the weather is not in the
least temperate, and they fail. If this theory is true, we should have better
luck this summer than we did during the winter. I sure hope so.
In the meantime, I'd appreciate short notes from AT users reporting on how
your disks are and how the weather's been.
John Levine, Javelin Software, Cambridge MA 617-494-1400
{ decvax!cca | think | ihnp4 | cbosgd }!ima!johnl, Levine@YALE.ARPAjamesa@dadla.UUCP (James Akiyama) (04/30/85)
> > Well, our nine PC ATs are sicker than ever. One has developed an > unpleasant discophagic tendency, in that any hard disk drive you > put in it soon looks pretty bad. > > I have a new theory -- it's the temperature. The regional service manager > from our computer store (Businessland) came by and reported that their > customers in Florida have been banging on their ATs like crazy and have no > trouble. So it occurs to me, CMI makes their disks in Chatsworth CA, where > it's pretty warm, or in Singapore, where it's warmer. Then they ship them > to Boca Raton, where it's equally temperate, they work fine there, and then > ship 'em out. We open them up in Boston, where the weather is not in the > least temperate, and they fail. If this theory is true, we should have better > luck this summer than we did during the winter. I sure hope so. > > In the meantime, I'd appreciate short notes from AT users reporting on how > your disks are and how the weather's been. > > John Levine, Javelin Software, Cambridge MA 617-494-1400 > { decvax!cca | think | ihnp4 | cbosgd }!ima!johnl, Levine@YALE.ARPA Several months ago I also suspected that the AT disk problems may be temperature related. I suspected that the problem may be related to different temperature expansion coefficients between the fixed disk head structure and the media. So I started digging around for a temperature specification from IBM. In IBM's Hardware Announcements for the IBM AT (publication HA-36, August 1984) the following Technical Data for the system unit is listed: Air Temperature: -System on 60 to 90 degrees F (15.6-32.2 degrees C) -System off 50 to 110 degrees F (10-43 degrees C) Although I find these numbers rather hard to believe, IBM has so far not denied them (at least as far as I know). Could it be that AT's were designed to sit in air conditioned offices?
scott@opus.UUCP (Scott Wiesner) (05/03/85)
> Could it be that AT's were designed > to sit in air conditioned offices? Probably not DESIGNED to live in air conditioned offices, but possibly never tested for extended periods of time outside the offices. When I worked at Boca, our AT's (summer of 83, long before announce) were all in labs that required badge access. I can never remember a case where our lab was too warm, and it was often cold to the point of being uncomfortable. Scott Wiesner {allegra, ucbvax, hao}!nbires!scott
topher@cyb-eng.UUCP (Topher Eliot) (05/04/85)
> I started digging around for a temperature specification from IBM. In IBM's > Hardware Announcements for the IBM AT (publication HA-36, August 1984) the > following Technical Data for the system unit is listed: > > Air Temperature: > -System on 60 to 90 degrees F (15.6-32.2 degrees C) > -System off 50 to 110 degrees F (10-43 degrees C) > > Although I find these numbers rather hard to believe, IBM has so far not > denied them (at least as far as I know). Could it be that AT's were designed > to sit in air conditioned offices? After one is done being surprised at the first set of numbers, consider the second set. If you really obey them, you can't ship your AT during the winter, or even during the spring and fall in the north (trucks get cold at night). And you can't ship your AT during the summer, or even during the spring and fall in the south (trucks get hot in the sun). And you can never ship your AT by air (airplanes holds get cold). Conclusion: are these guys serious? Cheers, Topher Eliot Cyb Systems, Austin, TX {gatech,ihnp4,nbires,seismo,ucb-vax}!ut-sally!cyb-eng!topher