Date : Sun, 16 Nov 2003 20:49:36 GMT
From : Pete Turnbull <pete@...>
Subject: Re: Yowsers: This one make of floppy discs getting damaged in drive!
On Nov 16, 19:24, BBC Micro wrote:
> The picture shows the end result of trying to read all
> this variety of disc in any of my 5 drives:
>
> http://whitebody.tripod.com/damaged_disc.jpg
>
> The disc makes a terrifying high pitch noise when it
> spins round.
That's pretty drastic. Three or four possibilites:
1) The drive head is damaged or has a lump of oxide on it (probably not
the original problem, if you've tried more than one drive, but it might
be a problem now). Solution: clean the head with iso-propyl alcohol on
a cotton bud. If the drive is dual-sided, don't lift the upper head up
too far or you'll damage the hinge and spring. A dentist's mirror will
let you see the state of the head if you can't lift it far.
2) There's some grit in the disc envelope. Have they been wet? ("wet"
is often accompanied by "dirty".) No easy cure; discard the disc(s).
If you're really enthusiastic, cut open the envelope, wash the disc in
clean water, dry carefully, and put it in another disc's envelope. If
you can turn the discs easily without damage, I doubt if this is the
problem, though.
3) The oxide layer is starting to detach from the substrate. No cure
at all, easy or difficult. The only thing to do is to check the
surface carefully, make sure your heads are clean, and try reading the
data off to make a backup. This isn't likely either, though.
Is this a single-sided drive (the disc in the picture is single-sided)?
If so, the most likely problem is that the head pressure pad has fallen
off, or has some grit in it. There should be a clean (usually white or
off-white) felt pad on the arm over the head; when the disc is loaded,
the pad applies a small amount of pressure to keep the disc in good
contact with the head. Check it!
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York