Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!aplcen!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!sdd.hp.com!ucsd!usc!wuarchive!udel!mmdf
From: archer%segin4.segin.fr@prime.com (Vincent Archer)
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Re: Needing TOS to format (was Needing DOS to format)
Message-ID: <21682@nigel.udel.EDU>
Date: 11 Jun 90 15:14:26 GMT
Sender: mmdf@udel.EDU
Lines: 29

Rob J. Nauta  ( wsinrn@win.tue.nl, wsinrn@tuewsn.lso.win.tue.nl) writes:
> [stuff from me about tos formatting]
> I've been wondering about something, since IBM invented the IBM-PC, a lot
> has happened, especially in hardware. The original PC started out with
> single-sided, 160K drives, with 8 sectors/track, later on DOS started using
> 9 sectors/track. Nowadays DOS still uses 9 sectors/track, while other OS's
> use more, 10 or 11, the amiga packs 880K on a 3.5" disk. The hardware and
> diskettes is the same, and since Minix is not bound by MS-DOS, is it possible
> to put more than 720K on a 3.5" disk ?

I won't answer for MS-DOS, but I'm now adapting my old 1.1 stwini.c that used
to enable me to work with "any format" disks, with any number of tracks,
sectors and sides on a ST. Given my hardware (I've got a cheap drive), I can
support as much as 810K disks, with 81 tracks, 10 sectors, 2 sides (The Amiga
use 80 tracks, 11 sectors on 2 sides). With the new driver, dd0 and dd1 vanish,
the driver adapts itself to the disk type. I'm working on the format stuff,
which was introduced since 1.1

Anyway, when you control the hardware, there's no reason not to push it to its
limits - provided that everybody else will be able to do the same (I hate those
software editors who use track 81 for protection scheme: I CANT ACCESS track
above 80!!!).


    Vincent


Vincent Archer                   | Email:archer%segin4.segin.fr@prime.com
"People that are good at finding excuses are never good at anything else"