[comp.sys.mac.apps] BASF disks are BARF

ldg@yoda.byu.edu (06/28/91)

In <91173.2026163XMQGAA@CMUVM.BITNET>, 3XMQGAA@CMUVM.BITNET (Sari Khoury)
writes:

>I had a multi-segmented VERY important compact pro archive that was my only
>copy, and when I tried to uncompact it, I get the message archive is
>unreadable or not a compact pro type (or something like that). But the
>archive is all there, I find out that the disk had gone bad. I have tried
>everything to recover the archive, I managed to get it copied to my HD thru
>MacTools Delux, but the archive is now damaged beause of the bad blocks on
>the disk. Is there ANY way to fix or recover the archive?
>
>A warning to users: never buy Kodak or Verbatim disks, this kind of thing has
>happened very frequently with these disks, but these were the only disks I had
>at the time, so now I'm paying the price. Oh well...

I would also like to advise people to _avoid_BASF_3.5"_disks_ at all costs.

I bought just over a hundred of them a few years ago because I liked
the company's tape products, and liked the disk color (you can write on them
without needing to stick on a label).

After about a year, I had a stack of nine failed disks, so I sent them in.

They sent me ten back (generous, no?) of which four failed within months.

I sent the four in, and got four back, two of which would not even
initialize once.

I sent the two back, and asked BASF to send three replacements, since one
of them would certainly fail to initialize.

They sent me three, and, indeed,  one failed to initialize.

I sent three more duds in over a year ago, but have not gotten replacements.
Maybe that is for the best, since we already have plenty of coasters and
boot-scrapers. I have had about five more failures and will probably not
send them in.

In contrast, I have bought over two hundred Kao disks and have had just
one failure. That disk happened to contain a copy of my Master's
Thesis. But since I never keep just  one copy of anything of any value, all
I was out was the disk, which Kao will cheerfully replace.

Sony and Maxell have also blessed me with low failure rates, but not as
low as Kao.

You can get Kao diskettes from Diskette Connection cheap.

I have no connection with Kao other than being a satisfied customer and
enjoying dairy products in general.

--Lyle

Lyle D. Gunderson N6KSZ | "Any technology without       | ldg@yoda.byu.edu
350 CB/BYU              | some attendant risk of misuse | CIS: 73760,2354
Provo UT 84602          | is probably trivial"          | GEnie: L.GUNDERSON
                        |             --Louise Kohl     | AOL: LGunderson

bcarter@claven.idbsu.edu (Bruce Carter) (06/29/91)

In article <505ldg@yoda.byu.edu> ldg@yoda.byu.edu writes:

>I would also like to advise people to _avoid_BASF_3.5"_disks_ at all costs.

I would like to concur with this.  Our department refuses to purchase BASF
disks anymore after having so many failures.
                                     <->
Bruce Carter, Courseware Development Coordinator      bcarter@claven.idbsu.edu
Boise State University, Boise, ID  83725              duscarte@idbsu.bitnet
(This message contains personal opinions only)        (208)385-1250@phone