Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ncar!unmvax!nmtsun!nigel
From: nigel@nmtsun.nmt.edu (Nigel Sharples)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: floppy drive problems
Message-ID: <3368@nmtsun.nmt.edu>
Date: 23 Oct 89 20:28:02 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: New Mexico Tech
Lines: 18


A friend recently bought a 386SX machine - it refuses to format
a disk without marking off bad sectors (3.5" 1.44 meg drive).

I utilised its BIOS's 'format disk' function (AMI BIOS) which only
went to cylinder 39 before quiting and saying everything was fine.
Incidently, the BIOS does know that the drive is a 1.44 meg.  The BIOS
also has a sequential read/write test which it performed, only to fail
with a checksum error at cylinder 73.

Is the problem with the drive, BIOS, or both (or controller?....)

Any comments would be much appreciated!
Thanks in advance.

Nigel
-- 
   "Many's the night I've dreamed of cheese, toasted mostly."