DEC RXV21 with 5.25 floppy - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

27 May 2001

On May 28,  0:01, jkunz(a)unixag-kl.fh-kl.de wrote:

...
   Well, if you
have a real RX02, it can "reformat" RX01 disks.  [...]
 This is weird. Typical DEC. ;-) 
I couldn't possibly comment :-)

...
  This means that all I need is to format a 5,25"
SD floppy with 77
 tracks, 128 bytes per sector, and 26 sectors and it will work at least
 as RX01? 
Yes, but get the data rate correct.  An 8" disk uses twice the data rate of
a 5.25" disk for the same density.  And an 8" disk spins at 360 rpm,
whereas (at least for SD and DD) a normal 5.25" spins at 300 rpm.  That's
why Mitsubishi used to make special (expensive) 5.25" drives to emulate 8"
drives.  However, HD drives normally spin at 360 rpm.

...
   Your RQDX
controllers certainly can't do it.  Even with xxdp? Just dding the xxdp image
with the VAX and using it on
 the 11/73 would be easy. I have only one PC that is in working order
 (my server), but the floppy interface on this machine is broken... 
No, I never heard of any XXDP utility to format floppies other than RX33,
and I doubt if it's possible.  The work is all done by the RQDX controller.
 RQDX1 and RQDX2 can't format floppies at all.  RQDX3 can format RX33.  You
need a Rainbow (or a PC, or an Archimedes) to format RX50.

-- 
Pete						Peter Turnbull
						Network Manager
						University of York