Xref: utzoo comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware:7329 comp.multimedia:298 comp.misc:12000
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!apple!agate!web-1g.berkeley.edu!c60b-1eq
From: c60b-1eq@web-1g.berkeley.edu (Noam Mendelson)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware,comp.multimedia,comp.misc
Subject: Re: Diffs between DD & HD disks
Message-ID: <1991Apr6.234019.2894@agate.berkeley.edu>
Date: 6 Apr 91 23:40:19 GMT
References: <1991Apr6.170017.24990@news.iastate.edu>
Sender: usenet@agate.berkeley.edu (USENET Administrator)
Organization: University of California, Berkeley
Lines: 33

In article <1991Apr6.170017.24990@news.iastate.edu> jdwhite@iastate.edu (White Jason David) writes:
>	In a recent catalog from The Software Labs, I saw an ad for a "Disk
>Doubler".  It's a $34 piece of hardware that puts a hole in DD disks to make
>disk drives think that they're HD disks.  Here are an excerpt from the ad:
>	...will convert your low cost 3 1/2" 720K disks to work at high cost
>1.44MB disks with NO COMPROMISE in media reliability. [...] This is possible
>because there is no difference at all between the media in 720K and 1.44MB
>disks used today! ...
>This ad is EXTREMELY bogus!  I can tell many horror stories of people who have
>attempted to do this, only to lose data in a matter of days.  I know that there
>IS a diffenence in the type of media used in DD and HD disks, but this ad
>really surprised me.  I'd like to know what you netters think of this ad.
>I hate to think of all the people out there that believe this ad.
>Please post your comments to the net.

Another important point is that these "disk doublers" do damage to your
diskettes.  If you punch a hole in the diskette, fragments from the cover
may scratch the diskette surface.
Some diskette drives (such as my 1.44M Mitsubishi) allow you to set
DIP switches that turn off the sensor which recognizes 1.44M diskettes.
That way every diskette will be recognized as 1.44M.  I don't recommend
this for two reasons: (a) only your machine will be able to read these
diskettes; (b) 720K diskettes will probably not be recognized by the drive.
And, of course, these 'faux' 1.44M diskettes will be less reliable
than true 1.44M.
The point?  I am surprised how these companies stay in business, considering
the inevitable law suits which they may face.  And always read the fine
print.

+==========================================================================+
| Noam Mendelson   ..!agate!ucbvax!web!c60b-1eq | "I haven't lost my mind, |
| c60b-1eq@web.Berkeley.EDU                     |  it's backed up on tape  |
| University of California at Berkeley          |  somewhere."             |