Floppy disk errors

[Monty99]

Hi,

now this may seem pretty basic to some.....but why is it that some floppy disks work in some PC's and when you take it to another...it doesn't want to be read. Says the disk is not formatted etc.? Is is a problem with the floppy drive themselves, or moving from one OS to another?

Also, some files will open on one system but not on another......drive seems to keep trying but file never opens.

 

[paparazi]

A few issues here!
Floppy disk and drive technology dates back decades and is not the most reliable of media/hardware to read/write data.
In order to open a file you often need the same program or at least one that will read the same file format.
Example: a document saved as a PDF file will require Adobe Photoshop or similar to read it.
If it's two specific computers you are talking about, try and install the same key programs on both so you don't have incompatability when swoping files.
Floppy drives are cheap enough ($9) to replace them if suspect. Martin Replying helps further our knowledge, without comment leaves us wondering.

 

[Monty99]

Thanks for your reply. I do have the same programe on different PC's, so software shouldn't be an issue.
I can open one of the disks on my PC that is 2 years old. When I try to open files on a laptop with an external drive (newish), it will not open them.
COuld be the drive I suppose?

 

[wolluf]

Yes - floppies formatted on one drive sometimes can't be read on another. If you're commonly doing this, try formatting a number of floppies on the machine which will ultimately be reading them. Then, if the 'other' machine can write to them ok, you should be in business when you return to read them on first machine.

Also, as paparazi says - they're just not reliable.

 

[Monty99]

Why is this? Why can't floppies be read on ANY machine. Would like to give my users a straight forward answer on this!

 

[diogenes10]

On old 5.25" floppies, it was an issue of head alignment varying from one disk drive to another. I think there was also a problem with the intensities of the magnetic charges given by one drive or another. I kept a genuine IBM drive which could read floppies the cheaper clones could not, specifically for that reason.
I didn't realize 3 1/2" diskettes were unreliable, but I presume the same kinds of mechanical alignment and media magnetization issues carry forward to them.

 

[Monty99]

Thanks.,....that sort of answers my question. Thanks.

 

[diogenes10]

I just did a google search, these two articles might help you a little. Also they reminded me about cleaning.
You could try a cleaning diskette on both drives and see if that helps.

http://home.att.net/~t.f.cook/tc5.htm

http://www.rescue.to/diskettes.html

 

[ceh4702]

Don't get your floppy near any speaker or other magnet!

This seems obvious, But what the hay.

Just dont attach the floppy to the refrigerator with a magnet, Hee Hee. If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.