As it is quiet in he-)

Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across
some floppies!

The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged one
in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.

However, no reference found in program accessories and does not display
under *devices*.

Where do I start?
--
Tim Lamb

Tim Lamb wrote:

However, no reference found in program accessories and does not display
under *devices*.

Where do I start?

check it's detected/enabled in BIOS?
See if it'll attempt to boot from floppy if you set A: as the first boot
device?

First make sure its a known good disc?

Often the stepper motor gets stuck or if its one of those driven by a little
belt they stretch as well and the thing does not rotate.
Brian

--
----- --
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...

Blind user, so no pictures please
Note this Signature is meaningless.!
"Tim Lamb" wrote in message
...
As it is quiet in he-)

Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across some
floppies!

The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged one
in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.

However, no reference found in program accessories and does not display
under *devices*.

Where do I start?
--
Tim Lamb

Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)

Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across
some floppies!

The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged
one in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.

However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
display under *devices*.

Where do I start?

Just watch it! I did this a few years ago with some floppies. First one
worked, second one froze the computer up. They are all back in the loft.

"Brian Gaff (Sofa)" wrote in message
...
First make sure its a known good disc?

Often the stepper motor gets stuck or if its one of those driven by a little belt they
stretch as well and the thing does not rotate.
Brian

If its enabled in the BIOS then drive a: should show
in Windows Explorer regardless of whether the drive
actually works just so long as a signal is detected
in the POST on startup/reboot. If its enabled in
the BIOS and no signal is detected as a result of the
drive being totally dead, disconnected, whatever
then it should show a message "Drive a: not
detected/present" or similar on startup.



michael adams

....

On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)

Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across
some floppies!

The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged one
in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.

However, no reference found in program accessories and does not display
under *devices*.

Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?

In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across
some floppies!
The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged
one in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.
However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
display under *devices*.
Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?

You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)

This PC is a refurbished educational Stone so it is quite possible the
floppy was considered redundant.

We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim* will
be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run through the
bios? and possibly spot what is going on.



--
Tim Lamb

On 31/10/2019 18:12, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
Â*Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came across
some floppies!
Â*The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I plugged
oneÂ* in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light comes on
occasionally so I am confident it has power.
Â*However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
displayÂ* under *devices*.
Â*Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?

You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)

This PC is a refurbished educationalÂ* Stone so it is quite possible the
floppy was considered redundant.

We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim* will
be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run through the
bios? and possibly spot what is going on.




If it is ex-educational then there is a strong possibility that the
floppy drives had their data cable unplugged or even cut to stop
students trying to reboot with virus-laden floppies.

In message , Andrew
writes
On 31/10/2019 18:12, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
*Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came
across some floppies!
*The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I
plugged one* in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light
comes on occasionally so I am confident it has power.
*However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
display* under *devices*.
*Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?
You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)
This PC is a refurbished educational* Stone so it is quite possible
the floppy was considered redundant.
We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim*
will be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run
through the bios? and possibly spot what is going on.


If it is ex-educational then there is a strong possibility that the
floppy drives had their data cable unplugged or even cut to stop
students trying to reboot with virus-laden floppies.

So I took off the cover:-)

The alternative was doing some rotavating in the rain!

No cut or disconnected cables associated with the floppy drive.

A push button on the front panel (unknown purpose as I don't have a
manual) *broken ring forming an arrow*, has been unplugged from the
mother board.

The floppy drive light comes on briefly on re-start. But nothing happens
on plugging in a diskette.

Other than my daughters university thesis, I don't think there is
anything vital going astray. I copied most stuff to DVD before junking
the last m/c.



--
Tim Lamb

On 01/11/2019 17:57, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 31/10/2019 18:12, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
Â*Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came
acrossÂ* some floppies!
Â*The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I
pluggedÂ* oneÂ* in. No response of any sort:-( The little green light
comes onÂ* occasionally so I am confident it has power.
Â*However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
displayÂ* under *devices*.
Â*Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?
Â*You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)
Â*This PC is a refurbished educationalÂ* Stone so it is quite possible
theÂ* floppy was considered redundant.
Â*We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim*
willÂ* be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run
through theÂ* bios? and possibly spot what is going on.


If it is ex-educational then there is a strong possibility that the
floppy drives had their data cable unplugged or even cut to stop
students trying to reboot with virus-laden floppies.

So I took off the cover:-)

The alternative was doing some rotavating in the rain!

No cut or disconnected cables associated with the floppy drive.

A push button on the front panel (unknown purpose as I don't have a
manual) *broken ring forming an arrow*, has been unplugged from the
mother board.

The floppy drive light comes on briefly on re-start. But nothing happens
on plugging in a diskette.

Other than my daughters university thesis, I don't think there is
anything vital going astray. I copied most stuff to DVD before junking
the last m/c.



to be honest, a USB based floppy drive is probably less hassle

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Floppy-Exte...dp/B01FXNDJGU/

At least Linux still has drivers...so ypou could boot a live CD and get
your data off.

There seem to be possible issues with some versiuons of Windows.



--
Karl Marx said religion is the opium of the people.
But Marxism is the crack cocaine.

In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
On 01/11/2019 17:57, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 31/10/2019 18:12, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
*Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came
across* some floppies!
*The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I
plugged* one* in. No response of any sort:-( The little green
light comes on* occasionally so I am confident it has power.
*However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
display* under *devices*.
*Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?
*You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)
*This PC is a refurbished educational* Stone so it is quite
possible the* floppy was considered redundant.
*We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim*
will* be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run
through the* bios? and possibly spot what is going on.


If it is ex-educational then there is a strong possibility that the
floppy drives had their data cable unplugged or even cut to stop
students trying to reboot with virus-laden floppies.
So I took off the cover:-)
The alternative was doing some rotavating in the rain!
No cut or disconnected cables associated with the floppy drive.
A push button on the front panel (unknown purpose as I don't have a
manual) *broken ring forming an arrow*, has been unplugged from the
mother board.
The floppy drive light comes on briefly on re-start. But nothing
happens on plugging in a diskette.
Other than my daughters university thesis, I don't think there is
anything vital going astray. I copied most stuff to DVD before junking
the last m/c.

to be honest, a USB based floppy drive is probably less hassle

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Floppy-Exte...dp/B01FXNDJGU/

That's cheap!

At least Linux still has drivers...so ypou could boot a live CD and get
your data off.

There seem to be possible issues with some versiuons of Windows.

Windows 7 32 bit.

--
Tim Lamb

On 02/11/2019 08:38, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , The Natural Philosopher
writes
On 01/11/2019 17:57, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 31/10/2019 18:12, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Andrew
writes
On 29/10/2019 17:16, Tim Lamb wrote:
As it is quiet in he-)
Â*Clearing the office in preparation for the house move, I came
acrossÂ* some floppies!
Â*The current desktop Win 7 32 bit PC has a suitable slot so I
pluggedÂ* oneÂ* in. No response of any sort:-( The little green
lightÂ* comes onÂ* occasionally so I am confident it has power.
Â*However, no reference found in program accessories and does not
displayÂ* under *devices*.
Â*Where do I start?

Just because power is connected to the drive doesn't mean that the
ribbon cable is. You may have upgraded in the past and simply
not bothered to plug the data cable in thinking 'why bother' ?
Â*You mean I have to take off the cover?:-)
Â*This PC is a refurbished educationalÂ* Stone so it is quite
possibleÂ* theÂ* floppy was considered redundant.
Â*We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim*
willÂ* be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run
through theÂ* bios? and possibly spot what is going on.


If it is ex-educational then there is a strong possibility that the
floppy drives had their data cable unplugged or even cut to stop
students trying to reboot with virus-laden floppies.
Â*So I took off the cover:-)
Â*The alternative was doing some rotavating in the rain!
Â*No cut or disconnected cables associated with the floppy drive.
Â*A push button on the front panel (unknown purpose as I don't have a
manual) *broken ring forming an arrow*, has been unplugged from the
mother board.
Â*The floppy drive light comes on briefly on re-start. But nothing
happensÂ* on plugging in a diskette.
Â*Other than my daughters university thesis, I don't think there is
anything vital going astray. I copied most stuff to DVD before
junking the last m/c.

to be honest, a USB based floppy drive is probably less hassle

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Floppy-Exte...dp/B01FXNDJGU/


That's cheap!

At least Linux still has drivers...so ypou could boot a live CD and
get your data off.

There seem to be possible issues with some versiuons of Windows.

Windows 7 32 bit.

Should be good.
Frankly unless uyou have it as a hobby, folling with old hardware is not
worth it ...unless its valuable...

(Currently staring at the guts of perhaps the most expensive HiFi
turntable ever made - Revox B790 that won't turn its platter)


--
"Anyone who believes that the laws of physics are mere social
conventions is invited to try transgressing those conventions from the
windows of my apartment. (I live on the twenty-first floor.) "

Alan Sokal

On Thu, 31 Oct 2019 18:12:31 +0000, Tim Lamb
wrote:

snip

We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim* will
be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run through the
bios? and possibly spot what is going on.

My pleasure. ;-)

I wonder if the disconnected front panel button is 'Reset'? The only
other button I can think of was the old 'Turbo' (Brake?) but that's
not been used to *years*.

So, do you have a Reset button on that PC Tim (often near the power
and sometimes recessed against accidental pressing (don't press it
when the PC is on normally as a way of testing. Best boot into the
BIOS and test it from there).

It could be that that particular diskette is faulty (though you
probably tried more than one) or that the drive is but even if it was
I'd expect it to show us as a drive on Windows. If the interface is
enabled in the BIOS and the drive not disabled in same, it should
appear under My Computer as a floppy drive symbol?

I should still have your old PC in the heap and if that has a floppy
drive I can test it and put it in your current PC if required. ;-)

As mentioned elsewhere, USB / floppy drives aren't expensive but would
be another thing to be kicking about.

Good luck with the move. If you hired a removals lorry you could just
walk all your belongings though it to River Cottage. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

In message , T i m
writes
On Thu, 31 Oct 2019 18:12:31 +0000, Tim Lamb
wrote:

snip

We have a pending house move and it is quite possible *spaced Tim* will
be called in to help get me back on line. If so, he can run through the
bios? and possibly spot what is going on.

My pleasure. ;-)

I wonder if the disconnected front panel button is 'Reset'? The only
other button I can think of was the old 'Turbo' (Brake?) but that's
not been used to *years*.

There are 3 buttons all moderately recessed. They each have obscure (to
me) symbols. The main stop/start has a backwards C and an inserted
hyphen.
A fully recessed button has a side view cylinder and the other a
backwards circular arrow.

I wouldn't bother about the old XP drive. This one is close mounted with
the CD drive and not easily got at.

I expect it is not called up in the bios so a look may solve the issue.

For £10.00 I can copy stuff and then throw the drive away.

So, do you have a Reset button on that PC Tim (often near the power
and sometimes recessed against accidental pressing (don't press it
when the PC is on normally as a way of testing. Best boot into the
BIOS and test it from there).

It could be that that particular diskette is faulty (though you
probably tried more than one) or that the drive is but even if it was
I'd expect it to show us as a drive on Windows. If the interface is
enabled in the BIOS and the drive not disabled in same, it should
appear under My Computer as a floppy drive symbol?

I should still have your old PC in the heap and if that has a floppy
drive I can test it and put it in your current PC if required. ;-)

As mentioned elsewhere, USB / floppy drives aren't expensive but would
be another thing to be kicking about.

Good luck with the move. If you hired a removals lorry you could just
walk all your belongings though it to River Cottage. ;-)

A fair bit has moved already by fork lift truck and flat barrow:-)

--
Tim Lamb

On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 12:51:18 +0000, Tim Lamb
wrote:

snip

I wonder if the disconnected front panel button is 'Reset'? The only
other button I can think of was the old 'Turbo' (Brake?) but that's
not been used to *years*.

There are 3 buttons all moderately recessed. They each have obscure (to
me) symbols. The main stop/start has a backwards C and an inserted
hyphen.

Is that 'Power button?'

A fully recessed button has a side view cylinder

Could that be the hard drive activity light?

and the other a
backwards circular arrow.

I think that's reset.

I wouldn't bother about the old XP drive. This one is close mounted with
the CD drive and not easily got at.

I'm not sure any PC mechanics would bother me. ;-)

I expect it is not called up in the bios so a look may solve the issue.

It might be in the Onboard Peripherals section or some such. Floppy
drive controller Enable / Disable.

For £10.00 I can copy stuff and then throw the drive away.

Or I lend you mine. ;-)

snip

Good luck with the move. If you hired a removals lorry you could just
walk all your belongings though it to River Cottage. ;-)

A fair bit has moved already by fork lift truck and flat barrow:-)

Did you sort the leaky ram on your loader (or was that the fork lift
you mention)?

Cheers, T i m

In message , T i m
writes
On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 12:51:18 +0000, Tim Lamb
wrote:

snip

I wonder if the disconnected front panel button is 'Reset'? The only
other button I can think of was the old 'Turbo' (Brake?) but that's
not been used to *years*.

There are 3 buttons all moderately recessed. They each have obscure (to
me) symbols. The main stop/start has a backwards C and an inserted
hyphen.

Is that 'Power button?'
Yes.

A fully recessed button has a side view cylinder

Could that be the hard drive activity light?
If it is, it doesn't do anything.

and the other a
backwards circular arrow.

I think that's reset.
OK.

I wouldn't bother about the old XP drive. This one is close mounted with
the CD drive and not easily got at.

I'm not sure any PC mechanics would bother me. ;-)

I expect it is not called up in the bios so a look may solve the issue.

It might be in the Onboard Peripherals section or some such. Floppy
drive controller Enable / Disable.

For £10.00 I can copy stuff and then throw the drive away.

Or I lend you mine. ;-)

snip

Good luck with the move. If you hired a removals lorry you could just
walk all your belongings though it to River Cottage. ;-)

A fair bit has moved already by fork lift truck and flat barrow:-)

Did you sort the leaky ram on your loader (or was that the fork lift
you mention)?

Yes. All done. Rather epic loading that cylinder into the Zafira. I now
have a spare set of hardwood semi circular chocks!

--
Tim Lamb