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From: ryan (Ryan Jorgenson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.hardware,comp.unix.aux,comp.sys.mac
Subject: Re: Request for Info on FLOPTICAL drives
Summary: *NOT A CD-ROM or WINCHESTER*, Magnetic/Optical Floppy
Keywords: FLOPTICAL, REMOVABLE
Message-ID: <855@amc-vlsi.UUCP>
Date: 4 Dec 89 00:40:11 GMT
References: <853@amc-vlsi.UUCP> <848@appleoz.oz.au>
Sender: news@amc-vlsi.UUCP
Followup-To: comp.sys.mac
Lines: 44

In article <848@appleoz.oz.au>, ksand@appleoz.oz.au (Kent Sandvik) writes:
> ryan (Ryan Jorgenson) writes in article <853@amc-vlsi.UUCP>:
>       Has anybody out there used one of the new FLOPTICAL 3-1/2" drives on a 
>       Mac?  Specifically, I'm looking at the Insite Peripherals Floptical SCSI drive
[lines deleted]
>       I'd like to hear from anybody that's got one of those up and running, whether its
>       under Mac OS or A/UX.   
> 
> I have a COSMOS 600mb from RACET optical read/write unit for testing.... 
[more lines deleted]
> 
> Kent
> 
> -- 
> Kent Sandvik  --  ksand@appleoz.oz.AU  | Apple Australia DTS  Ph: +61 2 452 82 93
> {uunet,mcvax}!munnari!appleoz.oz!ksand | AppleLink: AUSTAUX, Discl: All comments mine
> -- CyberSpace, the Final Frontier --

  I should have been more specific in my original posting:

     A "FLOPTICAL" disk is Insite Peripherals term for a standard 3.5" magnetic
floppy which has had optical track-alignment marks added to the media.  These 
alignment markings allow them to pack a *HUGE* number of tracks on a 3.5" floppy,
and hence cram a *HUGE* (20 MB) amount of data onto a floppy.
     The prices I've seen for the drives (in recent BYTE Magazine issues)
are ~$500 U.S, with the cost of the Floptical disks being ~$7 - $12 U.S.

     Better still, the access times are quoted as being (working from memory)
around 65 ms.  These things would not only make great BACKUP devices, but 
are practical as low-cost removable hard-drives.

   So, to reiterate my original question:  has anybody got one of these 
up and running on a MAC under either MacOS or A/UX?

			--Ryan


    


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ryan@amc-vlsi.uucp		|	Ryan Jorgenson
ryan@amc-vlsi.ucalgary.ca	|	The Alberta Microelectronic Centre
				|	Calgary, Alberta Canada