rxt@lanl-a.UUCP (06/15/84)
<> I am in the process of getting a DEC Rainbow 100+ computer. (I will not go into the trouble I am having!) Anyway, now I need some floppy disks. I was told by a friend of mine that single density disks are different, but all double density disk are the same. Thus, I do not need to buy quad density (which is what the Rainbow supposedly needs), but I can use double density. I bought a box of single-sided double-density disks when I was using a Rainbow before, and they all worked fine. Also, the company I was with issued double density disks, not quad density. Now I am thinging of using double sided disks, and modifying the disks so I can insert them backwards. I believe that I was told that single- sided disks are in fact double sided, and that they will work. Does anybody know the facts? Also, what brands are recommended and not recommended? Thanks in advance for any help that you can give. Richard Thomsen
punia@uvm-gen.UUCP (David Punia) (06/21/84)
One thing to keep in mind regarding your Rainbow is that many SSDD diskettes may work (indeed, I have even had success with SSSD disks), but the diskette manufacturers certify their diskettes to certain performance levels. They all come from the same bin. Those that can't hack the required performance of a denser media are certified as SD. I wouldn't suggest punching extra holes in the diskette to use the second side for reasons cited in another reply (emjhm@uokvax). If you choose to use diskettes that the manufacturer will back up, you want SSDD and 96 TPI. Certain manufacturers claim to certify the entire surface of their media, in which case the 96 TPI clause could be ignored. Other SSDD media will only be certified for 40 or 48 TPI operation, so you take your chances. There may be bad areas between tracks that your rainbow will attempt to use. I have heard that there is public domain software that will check a diskette for bad sectors and set up a list for the operating system so as to avoid using these areas, but I have no detailed info on that. Hope you enjoy your Rainbow. Good Luck!
simon@dice.UUCP (Simon Kenyon) (07/13/84)
Not wishing to be rude in the least (there is far
too much rudeness on the network already), I was
very curious to know why you posted your request
to 16k. It does not seem the most appropriate
group that you could have chosen!
Wishing you luck in your quest for information.
--
Simon Kenyon.
{ ...!decvax!mcvax or ...!vax135!ukc!edcaad } !dice!simon
lat 55 51 49 long 3 31 46