Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!hplabs!hpfcdc!hpislx!hplvli!boyne
From: boyne@hplvli.HP.COM (Art Boyne)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc
Subject: Re: Floppy drives read troubles
Message-ID: <360018@hplvli.HP.COM>
Date: 2 Jun 89 15:29:06 GMT
References: <2240@blake.acs.washington.edu>
Organization: Loveland Inst. Div
Lines: 24

djo7613@blake.acs.washington.edu (Dick O'Connor) writes:

>I've recently come across a problem here involving 360K diskettes that
>can't be read by certain 1.2M drives, and I'm looking for further advice
>on diagnosing and solving the problem.
>
> (360K diskettes written by XT's can't be read by certain AT 1.2M drive)
>  
>I suspect something is out of alignment with the AIC 1.2M drives, but it
>could conceivably be a controller problem as well.

When I bought my generic AT-clone, the 1.2 Mbyte drive couldn't read one
of the MS-DOS install disks nor one disk in a 4-disk (360K) software pack
I had previously purchased.

I took the machine back to the dealer, where we found the same diskettes
failed in a number of other machines yet to be shipped, but not in a
machine in for repair.  After trying several drive/controller permutations,
we realized all the failures were machines with Western Digital controllers.
We swapped my WD controller for a DTK (DTC?) controller.  No problems
since.  BTW, the dealer told me that they were going away from WD because
of this and other quality problems.

Art Boyne, boyne@hplvla