ged@image.waterloo.edu (ged mclean) (01/16/90)
I'm having problems getting my Spectre GCR to read GCR formatted disks.
The system that I am using is as follows;
1040ST (purchased 1986)
2.5 meg memory expansion
SM124 monochrome monitor
20 meg Supra hard drive
THE SYMPTOMS:
(i) Spectre formatted disks work fine.
(ii) Disk speed is correct. (300 rpm)
(iii) If I add some shielding (aluminum foil) around the internal
drive the public domain disk supplied with the Spectre GCR
verifies correctly. ("v" from the "hi dan" menu) However,
if I run 'R' (read all sectors) the read fails on two or three
sectors near the end of the"read" program. I thought "R" and
"v" performed basically the same function. Anyway, I assumed
that I still had a noise problem so tried more shielding
and moved the monitor and hard drive about three feet away from
the internal drive. This had no effect.
(iv) Disks formatted with a real MacIntosh do not verify and do
much worse than the public domain disk when the "read" program
is used.
(v) Disks formatted with the GCR verify and read without problems.
(vi) I thought maybe the problem was disk allignment so swapped
my disk with that of a friends dead ST (dead power supply).
The results were identical. Is it likely that both disks
are out of allignment.
I'm at a total loss as to what to do next. This is the second GCR cartridge
that I have tried. I sent the first one back after having similar problems
with it. I had assumed that it must have been a faulty cartridge -- that now
appears unlikely.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Please send responses to:
gfield@sirius.uvic.ca
NOTE: The email address above does not match the machine this is being posted
from. The machine I'm on at the University of Victoria dos not yet have
posting capabilities. I am therefore posting this through a friend's
account at the University of Waterloo.
Thanks
Glen Field