Q: Unreadable floppies on a Performa 5300?
Hi all,
I'm trying to install some software on a Performa 5300. So far I have tried three programs:
- Lemmings
- Sim City 2000, and;
- Space Quest IV.
The Mac reports that all the disks are in an unreadable format. I know these disks work, so is it simply the case that this software is incompatible with the OS? Its running 7.5.1.
Or is it that the floppy drive itself is knackered? I have vague memories of going into the System preferences on past machines, locating the drive prefs and trashing them, but I couldn't find any such drive prefs on this computer.
Any ideas very much appreciated.
MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Mid 2014), OS X Mavericks (10.9.4), 16Gb, 256Gb SSD
Posted on Feb 15, 2016 2:45 AM
Hi,
>The Mac reports that all the disks are in an unreadable format.
The floppy drive in a Performa 5300 is capable of handling (400K)800K and 1.44 MB Mac-formatted disks, so the format as such should not be a problem. Have you tried reading the disks after booting the Performa 5300 with Extensions Off?
>I know these disks work
How did you test the disks? Are they DD or HD diskettes?
>is it simply the case that this software is incompatible with the OS? Its running 7.5.1.
System 7.5.1 is able to handle the formats mentioned above. If the software on the disks would be incompatible, the floppies should at least be recognised and readable; the problem would appear in connection with an installation.
>Or is it that the floppy drive itself is knackered?
Possibly. Have you tried formatting and writing to another diskette on the Performa 5300 itself? Is it then readable? Have you tried to format and write to another diskette on another computer? Readable on the Performa 5300? It could even be a Windows PC, just for a test? The Performa can read/write PC-formatted 720K (DD) and 1.44 MB (HD) floppies, in addition to the aforementioned Mac formats, providing that the PC Exchange control panel is installed and active.
Posted on Feb 15, 2016 6:48 AM