Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!fernwood!portal!cup.portal.com!Bob_BobR_Retelle
From: Bob_BobR_Retelle@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st
Subject: Re: floppy compatibility problem
Message-ID: <41722@cup.portal.com>
Date: 26 Apr 91 23:46:57 GMT
References: <91115.102014PHB100@psuvm.psu.edu> <5527@wucc.waseda.ac.jp>
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 19

Paul Baughman asked about a sudden disk incompatibility between his ST and
IBM PC systems.
 
I'd recommend checking the disks with a Virus Killer, such as VKILLER
immediately...    a virus on the ST will overwrite the boot sector of a
disk, wiping out the media descriptors that MS-DOS looks for.  The disk will
still show a directory on the ST, but will either display an empty directory
on the IBM, or not be readable at all.
 
It's possible that OS/2 (on the one IBM system that could read the ST disk)
may not look for the same information in the boot sectors as MS-DOS does.
 
There shouldn't be any worry of the virus spreading to the IBM system, but
every ST disk in your library may have to be checked and disinfected.
 
(I went through a baffling afternoon tracking down just this same
situation not long ago..!)
 
BobR