tony@cs.tamu.edu (Tony Encarnacion) (05/17/91)
Why is it that the Mac can read DOS diskettes, but the PC cannot read Mac diskettes? If there is a PC program that allows a PC to do this, I'd be interested in having it...
mike@bluemoon.uucp (Mike Cooper) (05/17/91)
tony@cs.tamu.edu (Tony Encarnacion) writes: > Why is it that the Mac can read DOS diskettes, but the > PC cannot read Mac diskettes? If there is a PC program > that allows a PC to do this, I'd be interested in having > it... Central Point's Deluxe Option Board will do the trick... Mike Cooper | cooper@cis.ohio-state.edu | CIS:76244,3627 | Fido 1:226/250.0
aaron@jessica.stanford.edu (Aaron Wallace) (05/17/91)
In article <16288@helios.TAMU.EDU> tony@cs.tamu.edu (Tony Encarnacion) writes: >Why is it that the Mac can read DOS diskettes, but the >PC cannot read Mac diskettes? If there is a PC program >that allows a PC to do this, I'd be interested in having >it... Because Apple used a non-standard encoding method, and variable speed drives, based on the old Apple II. At least, this is so for 400K and 800K disks. You can read a high-density Mac disk in a high-density PC drive just fine--well, you can read the sectors, but you'll need to make sense of the file system on your own. Now, why is there no product to do this? Probably because few people need it. Central Point has a board that lets PCs read the 800K Mac disks--but it's not sold too many units. Sounds like a fun project--I was thinking of doing it myself, but I have minimal docs on the HFS (the Mac file system) and it looks to be a terrible hack if there ever was one! Aaron Wallace
dahosek@biivax.dp.beckman.com (05/17/91)
In article <1991May17.154148.6341@leland.Stanford.EDU>, aaron@jessica.stanford.edu (Aaron Wallace) writes: > Because Apple used a non-standard encoding method, and variable speed > drives, based on the old Apple II. Actually, the II had straightforward 16 (or 13) soft sector formatting on its disks. It was the Apple Lisa (do any of those puppies still exist?) which introduced variable speed disk drives. They had special 5.25 disks with extra notches and slots and it sounded like it was singing when it wrote to the disk. -dh -- Don Hosek // Quixote Digital Typography 714-625-0147 dhosek@ymir.claremont.edu On contract to Beckman Instruments 714-961-4562 dahosek@beckman.com
danr@bcsfse.boeing.com (Dan Richardson) (05/18/91)
Seems to me PC Magazine reviewed a product that would do just that about two or three years ago. Rattling around my brain is the dim memory of a product called Xenocopy, too, that would read/write a myriad of diskette formats. The last I heard of this company was back in 1985 or so. What I do remember is that they were somewhere in the Silicon Valley area. Sorry I can't be of more help. Best of luck! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dan Richardson | "If there's anything more important than my Analysts International Corp. | ego around here, I want it caught and shot for Boeing Computer Services | now!" --Zaphod Beeblebrox ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "My opinions are not necessarily those of either my clients or my employers." ==================================================================================
leonard@qiclab.scn.rain.com (Leonard Erickson) (05/20/91)
dahosek@biivax.dp.beckman.com writes: <In article <1991May17.154148.6341@leland.Stanford.EDU>, aaron@jessica.stanford.edu (Aaron Wallace) writes: <> Because Apple used a non-standard encoding method, and variable speed <> drives, based on the old Apple II. <Actually, the II had straightforward 16 (or 13) soft sector <formatting on its disks. It was the Apple Lisa (do any of those <puppies still exist?) which introduced variable speed disk <drives. They had special 5.25 disks with extra notches and slots <and it sounded like it was singing when it wrote to the disk. The encoding on an Apple II is *not* standard from any point of view except Apple's. The used an oddball customized circuit instead of a standard floppy controller. Thus, the disks are unreadable on "normal" equipment. It'salso possible to do some weird and strange things with Apple disks because of this. This is the basis of several copy protection methods. -- Leonard Erickson leonard@qiclab.uucp personal: CIS: [70465,203] 70465.203@compuserve.com business: CIS: [76376,1107] 76376.1107@compuserve.com