gsk@khaki (08/24/87)
i have some questions about adding a 3.5" floppy drive to
my AT&T PC6300 (an XT-compatible), running DOS 3.2.
i know how to do it for the 720K case; my questions are about 1.4M drives:
1) do 1.4M drives exist that will run with my existing controller?
2) if not, can anyone recommend a controller that will
run in my 6300 and control a 1.4M drive?
3) will the 1.4M drive be able to format and write 720K disks?
i will need to be able to do this reliably, on a regular basis.
please also send recommendations for reliable, inexpensive sources
for these drives and/or controllers. thanks.
George S. Kong, Silicon Graphics, Inc., (415)962-3281
gsk@sgi.com
...{decwrl,allegra,sun,adobe,ucbvax,pyramid,ames}!sgi!gskgpw@ihdev.ATT.COM (G. P. Wilkin) (08/25/87)
First a few basics: 1.44 and 1.2 meg drives are very close brothers of different sizes. They require the same signals and control leads. The 6300 does not directly support this drive type The 6300 Plus will You must have MS-DOS3.2 (AT&T version) or a driver to let the drive work. Now the details: Western Digital does have an 8 bit controller for up to (4) 360k drive or (2) 1.2/1.44m drives. It may provide full support for you. There was a company that provided 5.25" drives with an adapter for 1.2 built into it. Weltec was the name, ask them for a 3.5" version. 1.44 drives write 720K just like 1.2m drives do 360K, use the same warnings and provisions. It is possible though. I have installed (2) 720K format drives and prefer the TOSHIBA drive The second a TEAC, was a pain to install. Hope this helps gpw -- George Wilkin AT&T Network Systems, Naperville, IL !ihnp4!ihdev!gpw IH 4A-157 work 312-979-4317