Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!bellcore!texbell!killer!mit-eddie!genrad!dmm
From: dmm@genrad.com (Dottie MacKeen)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac
Subject: Disk help
Message-ID: <13450@genrad.UUCP>
Date: 19 Nov 88 02:52:47 GMT
Sender: news@genrad.UUCP
Lines: 41


Has anyone seen this problem and can you help with diagnosis/treatment

A couple weeks ago we began having problems creating MacIntosh system
& application disks from what we believed to be good disks.  When we 
tried to use the new disks, the system seemed to think the floppy disk 
was divided into two physical disks (sometimes the icon would just 
move from the top right to the next position - sometimes there were 
two icons).  Files were hidden although the disk space used count 
indicated that the files/folders were there.  In some cases, the disk 
appeared to contain the system folder (which was hidden in some 
instances) but could not read data files on another disk (would 
indicate the disk was empty).  In one case, when we copied system 
files from a hard disk that we believe to have files installed from 
distribution disks, the icon for the laser printer and laser prep were 
incorrect - showed up as sheets of paper.  When we tried to use the 
laser printer the system identified the printer name as "pixelpaint is 
great".  I assume pixelpaint is a product but it is not one that I 
know about and I am not aware that we have it in-house.

We have attempted to eliminate known problems - multiple system files 
on the hard disk, incompatibilities between versions of the system, 
physically bad floppy disks.

Once a floppy disk has developed this problem, erasing the disk and 
installing a system from another disk does not seem to resolve the 
problem.

The local computer store personnel think we have a virus.  However, 
the disk they furnished with virus detection software gives the disks 
a clean bill of health.  Which means, I guess, that at least we don't 
have a well known virus.

As far as we can determine, the programs on the disks run OK - both 
hard disks and floppies - the problems seem to appear when you create 
a new system disk.  That new disk is not usable.

Has anyone seen anything like this?  Any suggestions on possible 
cause - or even better - possible fixes?

Dottie MacKeen  dmm@genrad.com