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From: TS0026@OHSTVMA.IRCC.OHIO-STATE.EDU (Mike Fidler)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Michtron tools
Message-ID: <9009261231.AA25433@nisca.ircc.ohio-state.edu>
Date: 26 Sep 90 12:31:07 GMT
Sender: daemon@nisca.ircc.ohio-state.edu
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Unfortunately, my experience with the Michtron tools has been poor.
Not all bad mind you but bad enough that I don't trust them any more.
I had trouble with all forms of their backups indicating a bad sector
on my hard disk while writing to floppy during backs.  Since nothing
indicated any trouble with the hard disk, I called for consultation.
The guy I talk to told me everything that was wrong with everyone
else's programs but was ABSOLUTELY no help with my problem.

He even got off on the IBM/PC tool (PC Tools Deluxe) and how their
disk compress (on PCs mind you) would destroy directories, etc (it
doesn't EVER is my experience).  In any case, the problem I finally
found was an allignment problem in my FLOPPY drive.  That guy didn't
know anything, as far as I am concerned and the error msg was JUNK.
It was a totally wasted phone call. :-(

Now, in fact, I can and have successfully done both file level and TAR
backups (and restores) with UI II loaded (so much for the claim that
it is the problem!)  I now only use the tools under highly-backed-up
conditions.  It is the only "compressor" that seems to work well.
I don't like the fact that it doesn't really tell you what it is doing
or what it has done.  I like "pictures", if it displayed a map of
the sectors of the disk and showed me what it did, maybe I would be
happier.

In any case, use disk compression tools CAREFULLY.  They can be abused!

I recently bought DimondBack II and intend to use it for backups.

 - Mike fidler  mlf+@osu.edu