c60a-2ce@e260-2b.berkeley.edu (Mikey) (10/17/88)
I don't know why, but a lot of my NEW blank disks will not initialize. I've tried both 400k and 800k formats; neither work. Are there any utilities out there that can seal off just the bad blocks so the entire disk won't be wasted? --------------------------------------------------------------------- Please reply via e-mail; I just don't have enough time to go thru the entire newsgroup. Thanks a lot! "A little coitus, neva hoit us!" c60a-2ce@web.berkeley.edu@ucbvax.berkeley.edu................Mike Kao
kehr@felix.UUCP (Shirley Kehr) (10/18/88)
In article <15569@agate.BERKELEY.EDU> c60a-2ce@e260-2b.berkeley.edu (Mikey) writes: > >I don't know why, but a lot of my NEW blank disks will not initialize. >I've tried both 400k and 800k formats; neither work. Are there any >utilities out there that can seal off just the bad blocks so the >entire disk won't be wasted? Is this what I can look forward to if I buy generic diskettes? I recently received a brochure from MEI/Micro Center (Columbus Ohio) from whom I bought KAO diskettes at about $1.14 per. This new ad is for (unspecified brand name) DS/DD or SS/DD 3.5" diskettes at 85 cents per (in lots of 25). I've had no problems with the KAO diskettes (formatted and used about 50 of them) but I'd appreciate hearing from anyone who purchased MEI/Micro Center's generic brand. The ad says "lifetime warranty." What does that mean? There is a bunch of technical data with which I have nothing else to compare it.Under "Certification" it says "Every diskette is tested and certified to be 100% error-free. All of these diskettes are certified to meet or exceed ANSI standards." With a "Money Back Guarantee No Questions Asked" policy, I guess I could return any that don't format, but how long would the rest of them last? Thanks for any info. Shirley Kehr
gillies@p.cs.uiuc.edu (10/19/88)
I have "revitalized" several disks that cannot be initialized using
the following procedure:
-> Take two magnets (kitchen-type), place them on either side of the
disk, and spin the disk. This is a healthy exercise for the magnetic
particles on the disk!
WARNING: THIS COMPLETELY ERASES THE DISK. Also, some disks don't seem
to insert reliably into the drive, and must be reinserted to be read.
With a little practice, you can become skillful at this.
P.S. I mark these disks with a special dot to see if they exhibit
flakeyness later. If so, I throw away the disk.
Don Gillies, Dept. of Computer Science, University of Illinois
1304 W. Springfield, Urbana, Ill 61801
ARPA: gillies@cs.uiuc.edu UUCP: {uunet,ihnp4,harvard}!uiucdcs!gilliest-stephp@microsoft.UUCP (Stephen Poole) (10/20/88)
In article <64827@felix.UUCP> kehr@felix.UUCP (Shirley Kehr) writes: >Is this what I can look forward to if I buy generic diskettes? I recently >received a brochure from MEI/Micro Center (Columbus Ohio) from whom I bought >KAO diskettes at about $1.14 per. This new ad is for (unspecified brand name) >DS/DD or SS/DD 3.5" diskettes at 85 cents per (in lots of 25). I've had no >problems with the KAO diskettes (formatted and used about 50 of them) but >I'd appreciate hearing from anyone who purchased MEI/Micro Center's generic >brand. I have made a single diskette purchase from MEI and was quite dissatisfied with the results. Out of the 50 I bought, perhaps 5 did not format and since that time I have had another 5 become corrupted. Since I started using Maxells I haven't had a problem. Of course, one pays for them in blood! >The ad says "lifetime warranty." What does that mean? Probably that if I were willing to send my bad disks back they would give me new ones. Personally, I've never known ANYONE who bothered to cash in on "lifetime warranty" disks going bad. Since the retailers obviously know this, why shouldn't they advertise with a lifetime warranty? >Shirley Kehr -- -- Stephen D. Poole -- t-stephp@microsoft.UUCP -- Mac II Fanatic -- -- -- -- I'm just an Oregon Tech Software Engineering co-op at Micro- -- -- soft. Believe me, nobody here pays attention to my opinions! --
bruceh@mntgfx.mentor.com (Bruce Holm) (10/20/88)
In article <15569@agate.BERKELEY.EDU>, c60a-2ce@e260-2b.berkeley.edu (Mikey) writes: > > I don't know why, but a lot of my NEW blank disks will not initialize. > I've tried both 400k and 800k formats; neither work. Are there any > utilities out there that can seal off just the bad blocks so the > entire disk won't be wasted? I tried sending e-mail but got a "host unknown" msg. Besides, I think others may have or will eventually run into this problem. I had this problem happen to me, too! Then I discovered that my floppy drive (a 800k DS Apple internal floppy drive) had broken...the disks were fine, it was the drive that was bad. I don't like being the bearer of bad news but I strongly suggest you go to your nearest Apple dealer and get it checked out. If they say it is ok, then maybe you got a batch of bum diskettes (but I doubt that). My floppy drive cost about $175 to get replaced, that was with the trade-in of my broken one, and included installation. This was at Businessland. You may be able to do better. Hope this helps... --Bruce -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ** These are my opinions, & not necessarily those of Mentor Graphics Corporation ** Bruce Holm, Design/Analysis Div. | USENET: bruceh@pdx.MENTOR.COM Mentor Graphics Corp. | UUCP: ...!{sequent,tessi,apollo}!mntgfx!bruceh
chuq@plaid.Sun.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) (10/21/88)
>>Is this what I can look forward to if I buy generic diskettes? >I have made a single diskette purchase from MEI and was quite dissatisfied >with the results. Out of the 50 I bought, perhaps 5 did not format and since >that time I have had another 5 become corrupted. Since I started using >Maxells I haven't had a problem. Of course, one pays for them in blood! I buy Sony double-sided disks, in bulk, from ComputerWare. I just bought another 30 @ ~$1.30 each. Add to that a label (also bought bulk) and disk holders ($10.00 for the standard plastic & smoke cover that holds 20-30), and you're at, maybe, $1.45, worst case. Now, you can save a lot of money buying cheaper diskettes. I used to, until the day I crashed my hard disk and found that my backups were worthless because the floppies had gone bad on me. Saving thirty cents a floppy seems like a good deal until it costs you twenty man-hours of work -- IF you have all the data so it can by typed in again. I've never lost a Sony diskette. More importantly, I've never lost a file that I had stored on one. Penny Wise, Pound foolish Chuq Von Rospach chuq@sun.COM Delphi: CHUQ Editor/Publisher, OtherRealms