lane@dalcs.UUCP (03/09/87)
Hi.
I've just fired up my new AT clone and installed MSDOS 3.2 from
Microsoft and I'm having a few problems I feel compelled to share
with you all in hopes that someone will have some answers that will
save me calling Bellevue.
1. The FORMAT command will not format HD (1.2 Meg) disks and does
not seem to follow the documentation. Like so:
C> format a:
Head 0 Track 0 (which is overwritten by)
Head 1 Track 1 (which is overwritten by)
Parameters not compatible
Head 0 Track 0 (which is overwritten by)
Invalid media or Track 0 bad - disk unusable
Format failure
Format another(y/n)? no thanks
C>
It doesn't seem to make any difference what kind of actual diskette is
in the drive, not that I could imagine that it would know the difference.
The IBM Advanced Diagnostics ver 1.00 and the SETUP utility both say that
Drive A: is in fact a high density drive. Also, other operating systems
including Compaq 3.2 have no problem with it. Oddly enough, if format a:
is repeated, the first 3 lines of the error (down to params not compatible)
do not re-appear unless the system is re-booted.
It gets worse:
C> format a:/1
Parameters not compatible
Format failure
C> format a:/n<anything or nothing>
Invalid parameter
C> format a:/t<anything or nothing>
Invalid parameter
Now, /4, /8, and /b work just fine and make 360 and 320K disks no problem.
Vot gives?
2. When I have a serial printer as in:
C> mode com1:1200,8,n,1,p
C> mode lpt1:=com1:
everything works except CRTL-PRTSC, which starts giving me
Write fault error writing to PRN
Abort, Retry, Ignore
unitl I CTRL-PRTSC again. SHIFT-PRTSC and > LPT1 work just fine. I've had
this happen on other machines and versions of MSDOS.
3. I have 1 Meg of RAM but of course I can only use 640K directly. I under-
stand why but how can I use the 384K "Extended" Memory. Can it be used with
RAMDRIVE? Can I use it with Lotus or Symphony?
4. If nothing else, would I be wasting my time and $$$ to ask Microsoft
about all this, especially since I have a locally built AT clone?
BTW, my machine is an "AT-Turbo 286 with the CPU at 10MHz (is *that* the
problem?!). It says "ZEHNTEL ICT" on the mother board. Phoenix Bios
ver 3.01. Western Digital controller WD1003-WA2 and a Panasonic JU-475-2
AGC floppy disk drive (not sure if some of those part numbers are actually
model no.s). As I mentioned, the DOS is coming directly from Microsoft.
A thousand thanks for any help.
--
John Wright ////////////////// Phone: 902-424-3805 or 902-424-6527
Post: c/o Dr Pat Lane, Biology Dept, Dalhousie U, Halifax N.S., CANADA B3H-4H8
Ean/Bitnet: lane@cs.dal.cdn Arpa: lane%cs.dal.cdb%ubc.csnet@csnet-relay.arpa
Uucp:{seismo,watmath,utai,garfield}!dalcs!lane Csnet:lane%cs.dal.cdn@ubc.csnetleonard@percival.UUCP (03/12/87)
{what's a line-eater mommy?}
I've had similar problems with FORMAT on an AT clone. On my machine I couldn't
format normal (360k) floppies. By accident I discovered the following:
1. *All* formats could be done from a BASIC shell (SHELL "format a:")
2. reducing the number of buffers in config.sys from 40 to 37 re-
enabled 360k formats from DOS. At 20 buffers I *still* can't
format a 1.2 meg disk.
There may be some unknown factor at work as for the first month or so I *could*
format both 360k & 1.2 meg disks. But removing various programs has not helped.
Another machine at work recently started reporting 'track 0 bad or unusable'
after formatting disks. But on it, the disks were usable. On my unit the error
appears at the *start* of formatting.
I'm using a Kammerman Labs TCS-7000 (re-labeled Tatung). The other machine is a
Packard Bell AT. I'm running MS-DOS 3.1. He is running PC-DOS 3.1.
Leonard Erickson
...tektronix!reed!percival!leonard