Diskette Preswa1;ion
N
ow
that
the
system has been configured
to
take single and double-sided disk
drives into account, you
are
ready
to
start
copying
information
onto
them.
But before blank diskettes
can
be
used, they will have
to
be
formatted.
Formatting Diskettes
In
order
to
tell
the
operating
system
where
each
file
is
stored, a disk or
diskette must first
be
formatted. A program
called
FORMAT.COM
is
used
to
do
this
to
either
a
diskette
or
a
hard
disk.
The
FORMAT program writes
special characters onto
the
disk.
Some
of
these
act
as
"road
signslf
to
tell
the
system where
to
find a particular file or program on
the
disk.
Once a disk is formatted,
it
is a "clean slatelf,
ready
for
use.
However,
all
the
work you may
have
had
on
it
is
now
about
as
legible
as
the chalk dust
under
a
clean
slate.
In
short,
never
format
a disk
or
diskette
that
has
valuable information on
it.
Yau
can
use the
FORMAT
program to:
• lfinitiaUze
lf
,
or
prepare
for
use, a brand-neW fioppy diskette.
• Ifrecycle"
an
old fioppy diskette
that
has been fully backed up onto
another
storage
system, or which contains useless information.
Other
than
that,
formatting
should
be
restricted,
since
it
is
potentially
dangerous.
It
is a good
idea,
however,
to
format a new box
of
blank
floppy
diskettes
as soon as
you
receive them. Also, using Vector Graphic approved
diskettes
helps reduce
the
likelihood of any manufacturing
errors
on
the
disk
you use.
The
FORMAT
Pnlgr8D1
V-14
One advantage of
the
formatting program is
that
the operating system
Ifknows
lf
how
you have configured your drives. This means
that
you need.
not
specify
any
detailed
information about single or double-sided drives. The screen will
prompt
you
with
the
current
settings
as
you
have
specified
them
in
the
CONFIG
F program.
You
need merely
select
from the options presented.
To format a diskette, enter
the
command:
FORMAT
<RIB>
(RETURN)
You
have
the
option of using either
or
both
of
the
two options: R,
to
repeat
the
formatting process for several disks;
or
B,
to
display any
errors
that
the
I
program
uncovers
on
the
disk
surface
while
formatting
it.
To
use
both
PIN 7100-0001
9-01-82 - Rev. A
To Next Page
Loading...