Article View: comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc
Article #9775Re: making 720K floppy 1.44M
From: Patrick J Draper
Date: Wed, 08 May 1991 04:36
Date: Wed, 08 May 1991 04:36
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2345 bytes
In article <1991May7.061300.13670@maverick.ksu.ksu.edu> devolder@matt.ksu.ksu.edu (Eric DeVolder) writes:
>Okay, all you IBM PC techno gurus, here is a question for you. What I have
>in mind is this: Is it possible to create your own device driver, for DOS
>or some other OS, that does not use the BIOS but rather communicates directly
>with the drive controller and make the drive believe that it is a 1.44M disk?
>
>I have noticed, as I am sure hundreds of other people have, that alot of the
>problems of trying to add a higher density drive to a PC is that the BIOS
>does not support it. So, why not bypass BIOS and create your own subroutine(s)
>to handle the disk drive. Outside of the check for the 1.44M hole on the
>actual disk, I don't really see any problems in doing this.
>
>If this is possible or it has already been done, I would welcome any pointers
>as to where to this driver or source to a driver would reside.
>
>Thanks,
>Eric DeVolder
This can and has been done. Many drive manufacturers include these
drivers with the hardware.
I wouldn't worry about checking the 1.44M hole. IBM doesn't, and I
disabled the hole checking on my drive with a soldiering iron. It lets
you format a 720K disk at 1.44 M.
But I don't want to start that discussion here again. :-)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick Draper "College is supposed to prepare you for the future,
cps.msu.edu but all my future's behind me."
draper@cps.msu.edu -- My GrandPa, age 85, Fall 1990 graduate
of Western Michigan University
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Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!cs.utexas.edu!uwm.edu!linac!midway!msuinfo!buster.cps.msu.edu!draper From: draper@buster.cps.msu.edu (Patrick J Draper) Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.pc.misc Subject: Re: making 720K floppy 1.44M Message-ID: <1991May8.043645.26510@msuinfo.cl.msu.edu> Date: 8 May 91 04:36:45 GMT References: <1991May7.061300.13670@maverick.ksu.ksu.edu> Sender: news@msuinfo.cl.msu.edu Reply-To: draper@buster.cps.msu.edu (Patrick J Draper) Organization: Dept. of Computer Science, Michigan State University Lines: 34 Originator: draper@buster.cps.msu.edu