400K disks (was: some Mac)

[Pim Blokland <pibl@msmail.spc.nl>]

Cturley2 wrote:
> 
> I'm more concerned with being able to read a 400k 3.5 disk than with format or
> write with it.  The reason is that some older versions of very useful software
> comes for install on 400k 3.5 disks.  Thus, the need to hope the SuperDrive can
> at least read them.

I may have missed some of the msgs in this thread, so this may be a
duplication of what's been said before, but here's what I know about it:

- Since the 400K disk has exactly the same sector layout as one side of
a 800K disk, there is no hardware problem. Any 800K drive (Mac or A//)
can read it.
- The Mac OS fully supported the 400K MFS disks until quite recently; I
think even up to v7.61. With full support I mean the ability to read,
write and initialize.
- There used to be an A// program that could read MFS disks; long before
GS/OS and FSTs. I don't remember the name however; nor if it was 8 bit
or 16 bit (GS-only).

Pim Blokland
Sorry, no e-mail.