Subj : PC0/floppy issues
To   : All
From : Ginger1
Date : Thu Apr 14 2022 20:21:23

Dear all,

I have recently re-acquired an Amiga 1200, which seems to be working very nicely. I cleaned the floppy heads with some isopropyl alcohol and since then, it has also been doing a good job reading floppies - to the point where this feels fairly reliable again.

I've hit an issue though trying to transfer files via CrossDos from another machine/OS, using PC formatted disks as a common medium. I format the drive as PC0: on the Amiga, then verify the disk on the other machine where it seems very happy. I can then open the disk, copy across the file of interest, and again this all happens smoothly. The problem starts when I attempt to use the floppy on the Amiga again. As soon as I insert it, I get this error:

"Error validating File Allocation Table to device PC0: Results uncertain. Proceed at your own risk."

Sometimes, the file is there but it cannot copy across beyond a few bytes. Sometimes, the file name is corrupt and I don't dare copy it. Sometimes, the disk seems completely broken, with PCO:??? on the Workbench. If I then move it back to the other machine/OS, it then says the disk is unformatted.

I don't think it's the floppy disk itself, as everything seemed smooth and error free until that point of the error message. I wonder whether it's the floppy drive on the non-Amiga, on both even, with issues of head alignment.

If it is, is there much that can be done to sort of the heads? What symptoms do misaligned heads give?

Many thanks!
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