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Thread ID: 28444 2002-12-19 18:02:00 A BIG FLOOPY E.ric (351) Press F1
Post ID Timestamp Content User
107605 2002-12-19 18:02:00 Does anyone know were you could puchuse a 5¼ floppy (in Auckland), it is to get data from a 286 (that never gives any software trouble "DOS"), I tried installing a 3½ but could not get into the BIOS to change the settings, so had to install another 5¼ So I now I have to either buy another 5¼ or keep taking the floppy out and putting in another computer E.ric (351)
107606 2002-12-19 19:08:00 If you're anywhere near Tauranga, I've got about 10-20 of the things sitting on my table-tennis table just cluttering the place up. You can have one if you can pick it up or something :) I have no idea if any of them go or not - I haven't tried them out.

Mike.
Mike (15)
107607 2002-12-19 19:20:00 When you said big, I thought you meant 8", now that was big.

I ditched my middle-sized ones ages ago.
robo.
robo (205)
107608 2002-12-19 19:59:00 I have a few 8" floppys in my personal colection.


I think DSE might still sell the 5" ones for about $1 each.
robsonde (120)
107609 2002-12-19 20:06:00 Im in AK and Ive still got a 5 1/4 FDD if ur interested, Its just gonna go out with the next Inorganic rubbish collection, so might as well put it to a good home.

I dont have cabling, jsut the FDD, but am happy to send it.. :D
Chilling_Silence (9)
107610 2002-12-19 21:07:00 You also have to remember that not all 5 1/4 floppy disks and drives are the same. There were 360KB low density and 1.2MB high density disks and drives, and whilst the later drives were supposed to read the earlier disks that was not always the case, especially if the formatting was done on different machines, due to different head sizes.
If your 286 was not upgraded at any stage then it would be more likely to have a 360KB drive.
Most of these disks now may have grown greeblies on them making them unreadable.
3 1/2 drives also came in a 720KB flavour.
Terry Porritt (14)
107611 2002-12-20 02:15:00 Oi! Ive had an idea (Yes, it does happen once in a while).

Why not take out the HDD from the 286 and put it in the other PC?

Otherwise, there's always a Laplink option:
pressf1.pcworld.co.nz

*Chilling_Silence is glad that once again, he can post on Pf1!*
Chilling_Silence (9)
107612 2002-12-20 03:01:00 Terry: I think that the 286s came out with 1.2 MB drives. This was part of the "advanced technology" ("AT" geddit :D). It was the XTs and PCs which had 360k.

I'm surprised the BIOS would not allow 3.5" ... I seem to remember that there was a DOS command which would tell the system that you had 3.5" drives (there was even a type 6 for tapes). I'll look it up, but someone else will jump in with the answer before I can find it :D
Graham L (2)
107613 2002-12-20 03:37:00 You're right again Graham :)
I think there was also some sort of hybrid drive. I know it can or was a bit of a pain sometimes trying to copy software from 5 1/4" 360 K floppies to 3 1/2" disks, and getting error messages about not being able to read, or wrong format, or whatever, using a 5 1/2" drive dug out of the junk box.
Terry Porritt (14)
107614 2002-12-20 03:56:00 DRIVPARM.SYS, and DRIVER.SYS (loaded in CONFIG.SYS) are the ones ... I think DRIVPARM is the one. driver=drivparm.sys /d:1 /f:7 would make a 1.44 MB as drive B known to the system.

Is this computer a Compaq AT? Look for a BIOS setup programme on the HD. I once bought one which had the HD wiped. The BIOS had "forgotten" it had a HD. I had to use DEBUG to set the hard disk type to type 2, and work from there. I finished up with a pretty good programme to manipulate the CMOS memory.
Graham L (2)
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