#AMAX disk drive problems
17 messages in this thread
I'm having problems with my disk drives under System 7.1 and Amax II+. I
have a high density in my 3000 and an external low density from Roctec.
I can't fully install MacWrite II from the hi density drive but I can from
the lo density drive. It says I have disk errors.
I can't fully install FileMaker Pro from either drive because it says I
have disk errors.
I can't even begin to install MYOB because it says I have a disk error.
All of these install perfectly on my friends MAC.
Anyone else having similar problems?
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .
Do you have ReadySoft's latest revision (2.55, I think.).
There's supposed to be a few bugs with 7.1 & the earlier revision of Amax
software. . .
I have an A3000 w/HiD & LoD floppies installed. I have noticed some
problems reading out past 500K on LoD Mac floppies, but have never had any
trouble reading/writing HD floppies. Raymond at ReadySoft tech support
says they are aware of some units that have this problem, but they have no
solution.
Good Luck,
Erik Flom
P.S. Why not just install it on your friends system, Stuff or Compact the
resulting files, and cart them over on HD floppies?
I've got version 2.56.
I do have my friends MAC networked to mine so I have just installed the
programs to his MAC and then copied them to mine. Still, this is not an
acceptable solution for me.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .
I'm still waitng for that upgrade (2.56). I called a few weeks ago & it's
not here yet. I'm still using v2.54 & Mac OS v7.0.1
I have been having trouble reading & writing LoDensity floppies, but I got
an HD floppy drive (which works just fine), and that kind of satiated my
hunger for technology, if only temporarily. :^)
My dad has a MacII, and he said that he's been having trouble using disks
formatted under Mac 7.0 on other systems running 6.x. Could this be your
problem?
Have you considered getting an HD floppy? <G>
Good Luck,
Erik Flom
I do have an HD floppy in my 3000. That, as well as my external lo
density are giving me different problems with different disks. All of
which are lo density.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .
Well, it seems we do share a similar problem. I have trouble reading most
DD disks beyond about 500K. HD disks seems to work just fine though . . .
Several months back, Raymond of Readysoft Tech Support hinted it might be
some electrical problem (ie: some components on some of their earlier
boards may have been slightly out of tolerance, or have drifted over time
or due to heat buildup. I never resolved the problem – I can only spend so
much per month on Long Distance calls to Canada. :^)
Sorry I can't offer any help.
Maybe if all of us AmaxII+ owners with this problem got together and
started hassling ReadySoft en masse?
Good Luck,
Erik Flom
Sounds good to me if we all start complaining about disk drive problems to
ReadySoft. It is becoming quite an issue now that I can't install some
programs.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .
I have to admit that since I upgraded to the HD floppy drive, my DD disks
didn't get much use, but it is inconvenient (I was lucky I had no trouble
reading my Word & Excel disks when I installed them!)
I'd like to get a better idea of how prevalent the problem is.
Who else, besides Don & I, is having this problem?
(Please respond to my message if you have an AmaxII+, whether it works or
not. Thanks!)
Later,
Erik Flom
I have just installed AMAXII and am having a problem with the MAC
initiallizing disks. It goes thru all the motions but doesn't create
an icon for the disk. With a MAC, that seems to make the disk
totally inaccessible. When I reload this disk, the MAC says it's
damaged – pretends to reformat it – then SOS – no icon. The MAC
system I'm using is version 6.0.5 – AMAX version 2.56 – standard 800K
CBM disk drives in an A2000HD with GVP030 card. Raymond of ReadySoft
suggested I had bad MAC system files stuck to my harddisk, so I
reformatted the entire drive – reinstalled the AMAX stuff and
reinstalled the MAC system. Same story.
Anybody got any ideas about this one? The AMAXII+ is supposed to read
MAC disks thru the CBM drives, and it does. It just doesn't want to create any
MAC formats. Oh yeah – I tried the format routine under Apple File Exchange –
same story.
Next?
Dan Thomas.
Ok, let me get everything clear here . . .
You're using an AMAXII+, correct? If not, then you have to buy a Mac
floppy drive to be able to read/write/format Mac floppies.
I am assuming that your problem arises when trying to format LoDensity
floppies in a Mac floppy disk drive in Macintosh format. (If you are
actually referring to hard drives, please correct me. Or, are you trying
to format A-Max floppies, or what?)
Can you read/write already formatted Mac disks with this drive? (Even a
normal Mac is real finicky about floppy disks. I have had trouble
formatting some older disks with other formats on them. . . .)
Your answers to these questions will give me a better idea of where to go
next.
Good Luck,
Erik Flom
Erik: I am using AMAXII+ <Plus> with standard 800K Amiga drives. The system and
drives seem to work fine with MAC disks from other sources – the icons are
displayed, etc. – and the system seems to work fine with the AMAX partition I
have installed on my harddisk and formatted for MAC files.
I have tried to initialize several different disks – same results. I
have removed the MultiDOS configuration I normally use on these drives – no
change.
I am running DOS 2.0, and have tried to find a mountlist that may
affect the floppies, but haven't found anything like that. I would appreciate
any thoughts you might have – thanks for the reply. Dan
Dan –
I have a similar problem with AMAXII (v.2.54). I first noticed it while
trying to rename a disk, and the new name wouldn't stick (After ejecting
and re-inserting the disk the old name was still there.) – Same with
program names.
Then I discovered – like you – that it would format a new disk and leave,
iconless.
I, too, am running Mac 6.05 System software – which, for various reasons,
this being one – I've decided to upgrade to 7.1. (And I've had to request
the latest AMaxII software to run that) I'll let you know if this
combination solves my problem. If not, I don't have any other options.
– Joe
P.S. I'm still using the AMaxII cartridge with an Apple drive.
Joe: Thanks for your reply – I have been on the phone again with ReadySoft-
their recommendation being to copy the system folder off and try to run it on a
Mac. It began life on a MAC and is still happily cooking along on a MAC, as far
as I know. Anyway, with this screwy disk stuff I can't get the system folder to
copy off properly.
Another symptom – Disk First Aid says the disk(s) "is not an HFS disk".
What does that mean?
I've requested 800K disks for the 7.1 system I've already bought – the
packaging is very subtle in its mention that HD disks are inside. Perhaps this
will solve the disk problem we're having – I am currently using the newest AMAX
software – version 2.56.
I'll let you know if anything else turns up – the AMAXII+ is useless to
me, right now.
Dan
I didn't have any problem installing Excel either. Only with MacWrite II,
MYOB and FileMaker Pro did I have various types of problems from either
drive.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .
Donovan,
I use the cartridge and AMAX II. Recently I have been having problems
reading any DD disk that has been formatted and/or written to by a
Superdrive system under System 7.x.
A friend with a real MAC II that has only a Double-Density floppy (no
superdrive) has the exact same problem reading these same disks. If I were
to take the disk in question to a superdrive equipped mac, drag the files
onto its hard drive, connect MY DD floppy drive to it and reformat the
exact same disk using the externally connected drive and drag the files
back onto it, my AMAX system has no problem with them, nor does the MAC II
machine with DD drive.
My only guess is that the DD disks your trying to use have been formatted
on a HD drive under Sys 7.
Chris
You know, now that you mention it, someone else was mentioning that same
problem:
They had DD disks formatted under 7.x that were unusable under 6.x.
How's that for compatibility! Thanks Apple!
Erik Flom
That sounds like a good assumption to me. Now, what is the direction for
a solution? I guess I'll just have to wait for Readysoft on this one.
Actually I'm thinking about buying an LCIII from the school bookstore.
$1300. If I do that I'll be selling my AMAX II + shortly.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . donovan . . .