Path: utzoo!censor!geac!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!mcsun!i2unix!inria!litp!ilog!skyvingt
From: skyvingt@ilog.UUCP (William Skyvington)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.misc
Subject: Re: Dead floppies
Message-ID: <10655@ilog.UUCP>
Date: 3 Jan 91 14:45:53 GMT
References: <10547@ilog.UUCP>
Reply-To: skyvington@ilog.fr (William Skyvington)
Organization: ILOG, Paris, France
Lines: 58

I wish to thank all the people who responded to my initial
posting by telling me that the dirt intake of the powerful
suction pump of the Macintosh IIcx floppy disk drive could be
reduced by sticking a sheet of Post-it* over the slot.

I should have mentioned in my previous posting that I was
already aware of this kind of "solution". It so happens that
I have even invented a quite sophisticated protection system
that I call Post-card**: a name that draws attention to the
fact that my device incorporates a sturdy card-based support
(dimensions: roughly 10 x 15 cm) instead of yellow paper. Not
requiring any kind of adhesive substance, the Post-card
floppy-disk protection system is simply placed up against the
slot of the drive, with its lower edge resting on the table.
When you turn on the mighty vacuum-cleaner engine of the
Macintosh IIcx floppy-disk drive, the Post-card is held firmly
in place in a vertical position. Then, as soon as you turn off
the air intake, the Post-card device is designed to drop
gently forward onto the table. Consequently, you have the
added advantage of being able to tell, at a glance, whether
your machine is turned on or off.

I am marketing the Post-card at the unbelievably low price of
$5 a system, which is nothing compared to the cost of the
Macintosh itself, not to mention the sometimes priceless
value of deceased data. A colorful illustration on the front
surface of the Post-card system adds a note of gayness to the
austere facade of the Macintosh. All Post-card systems are
personally signed by the manufacturer, and carry a customized
greeting. You can request a system that is localized in any
of the world's languages, and the choice of images extends
from the Arc de Triomphe to the Eiffel Tower, including
Pigalle and the Crazy Horse Saloon. Even if Apple Computer
were to offer a drive that no longer killed floppies, your
investment in a Post-card system would not be lost. You could
simply put a postage stamp on the back and forward it, with
a word of thanks, to Cupertino.

Send your greenbacks to 23 Rue Rambuteau, 75004 Paris,
France. No guarantee that your floppies will cease to die...
only that they should agonize for a longer period of time.

--- William Skyvington
    skyvington@ilog.fr

*   Post-it is a registered trademark of 3M.

**  I am currently examining the possibilities of registering
    Post-card as a trademark, and patenting my invention.

=============================================================
DISCLAIMER: My employer has nothing to do with my initiatives
in the combat to reduce floppy deaths. My boss hates this
kind of data-storage device. He says it's my own bloody fault
if all my floppies are dying on me. I should be using a
serious professional system of storage. He says he wouldn't
even allow his kids to use floppies on their video-games PC.
So, please don't tell him I'm selling Post-cards.
=============================================================