zemon@felix.UUCP (05/25/84)
This has been discussed at LEAST 8,000,000 times in the last year
on this newsgroup. PLEASE folks, don't start it again!
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To summarize previous discussions on the matter:
There has been much give 'n take on this question and on the more general
one of using the back of single sided disks. The bottom line is no one
*knows* the risk. It depends on a lot of things like the cleanliness of
your environment, the quality of the disks, the amount of usage, etc.
If you clean your disk drive heads regularly then you will reduce the chance
of damage. If your environment is clean then there will be less dirt in the
jacket to cause trouble.
In any case, the danger is not immediate. It is a cumulative danger both to
the drive head and the diskette. You will have to weigh the cost of
diskettes against the number of backups you keep and the value of your data
to decide whether the gamble is worthwhile for you.
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Personally, I use el cheapo diskettes in my Morrow (DSDD). I also keep a
backup of EVERY diskette and I clean the disk drive regularly.
Art Zemon
FileNet Corp.
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