Re: newbie disk II question

[Rubywand <rubywand@swbell.net>]

Tanya Whyte writes ...
> 
> I got an Apple IIe recently but I've been storing things on cassette
> because my Disk II drive will not load anything.  It grinds for a few
> seconds and then spins, but nothing is ever loaded.  Is an adjustment
> needed? 
 ....

     First, congrats on getting a cassette tape setup working-- it's not
quite as easy as the Apple II manual claims.

     On most 8-bit Apple II's, the Disk II drive will grind and spin if no
bootable diskette is present (until you do a Reset).  If you have not tried
booting more than one diskette, the problem could be with the diskette you
tried and the drive may be fine.

     If the problem is with the drive, the most common maintenance needs are
...

o- Cleaning: The drive R/W head (which contacts the bottom side of an
inserted diskette) is gunked up and needs cleaning. A 5.25" 'Head Cleaner
Kit' from places like Radio Shack will include a Cleaner Diskette plus some
Cleaner Fluid (mainly isopropyl alcohol).

You open the bottom panel on the Cleaner Diskette, squirt some fluid onto the
paper disk, and stick it into the drive (with the open panel facing down). 
Then you get the dive spinning-- like, you could just turn ON the Apple II
and let it try to boot the diskette. Let it spin for about 20 seconds.


o- Speed: The Disk II occasionally needs to have its speed adjusted. You can
check Speed by booting Copy II Plus and selecting VERIFY-- SPEED. (Be sure to
stick in some blank or 'don't care' diskette for the speed check as directed
by the program.)

If you do not have Copy II Plus (or some other program which checks speed) or
if nothing boots, you can check speed by removing the drive cover and bottom,
flipping the drive, and viewing the strobe pattern on the drive pulley under
a fluorescent light. If the pattern which corresponds to your power line
frequency (probably 60Hz) is stable, the drive is on-speed.

If it looks like your drive is off-speed, you can use a mini-screwdriver to
turn the speed adjustment screw. The thing you need to adjust is located on
the little rear-mounted board at the right rear side of the drive.


     There are a few other things to try; but, the two above are, by far, the
most frequently needed fixes. See the newsgroup Floppy Drive FAQs at
http://home.swbell.net/rubywand/Csa2FDRIVE.html for more about Apple II disk
drives.

     Since your Apple is a IIe, it is very likely that you have the right
Disk Controller card (i.e. the one for 16-sector diskettes).  If you want to
check the card, see the info supplied by Neal Parker in the FAQs at
http://home.swbell.net/rubywand/Csa2FDRIVE.html#017 . (Be sure the Apple II
is turned OFF when you unplug the board.)

     In case you need some getting started software (e.g. bootable DOS 3.3
and ProDOS diskettes with a few useful programs) you can email some regular
poster to this newsgroup. Cost will usually be $5-$10 (i.e. enough to cover
mailing and materials).



Rubywand