Chepponis@Cmu-20c@sri-unix (09/09/82)
From: Mike Chepponis <Chepponis@Cmu-20c> I've gotten a lot of requests for more information on the Western Dynex WD505 drive. Western Dynex Corp is at 3536 W. Osborn Road, Phoenix AZ 85019; telephone 602/269-6401. A large ad on page 26 of the 9/6/82 "Electronic News" lists a price of $495 quantity one. 5.0 Megabytes formatted, 612 tracks/disk, 8192 bytes/track, 32 sectors/track, 256 bytes/sector. Data Rate 5.0 Megabits/second. Access times: 3.0 ms track- to-track, 35 ms average, 55 ms maximum, 10 ms settling time. Average latency: 8.33 ms. Rotational speed 3600 RPM. Recording density 9022 bits/inch. Track density 345 tracks/inch. MTBF 11,000 POH. MTTR 30 minutes. Preventative Maintenance: none. Design Life: 5 Years. Error rates: hard errors - 1 in 10^12 bits read, soft errors - 1 in 10^10 bits read, seek errors - 1 in 10^6 seeks. Power: +12 @ 2.5 Amps, +5 @ 1.5 Amps, power dissipation: 30 watts. 3.25 x 5.75 x 8.00 (inches) H x W x D; 5.0 pounds. ST506 interface. Maximum of 4 drives/system. Standard cartridge: ANSI X3B7/1981-54 (Cost: $50). Micro- processor controlled, user programmable PROM. Delivery: November 1982. If anybody also gets this drive, I'd like to hear of your experiences. Thanks, chepponis@cmuc. -------
Mendelson.es@Parc-Maxc@sri-unix (09/10/82)
Mike, Do you have any information on interfacing software? Specifically, I have an Apple II, and I am interested in just such a unit. Do you know what Apple II software it will interface to, e.g. Pascal, Basic, Visicalc, Apple Pie? Most of these Winchester disk things sound great until you find that you have to get into the bowels of canned software written by someone else in order to make them useful. Unfortunately, I'm just too busy to spend time that way. I must admit that I barely have time to use canned software for the things I need at home. Also, have you looked into the SyQuest SQ-360 3.9 inch Winchester drive? It looks like it's about the same thing. See Mini-Micro Systems, June 1982.