Re: Reading Apple II CP/M diskettes

["mc" <look@www.ai.uga.edu.for.address>]

<a2fan@hotmail.com> wrote in message 
1168468723.339331.179780@p59g2000hsd.googlegroups.com">news:1168468723.339331.179780@p59g2000hsd.googlegroups.com...
>
> mc wrote:
>> Is it possible, in 2007, to read 20-year-old Apple II CP/M diskettes?
>> They contain WordStar files and my understanding is that a CP/M Z80
>> card was used rather than the native CPU.  I'm open to either acquiring
>> software or using a service bureau.   (Is there software for older PCs
>> that will read these?  I have a PC XT available.)   Thanks!
>
> I'm not aware of any easy options, though this might help when it's
> finally released:
>
> http://silme.pair.com/~goldman/deviceside/
>
> Since these are CP/M disks that were created on an Apple II, you'll
> need an Apple II with a Z-80 card to read them. Apple drives use GCR
> encoding, while just about every other CP/M machine back then used MFM
> (or variant). This means that media for CP/M on the Apple isn't easily
> interchangeable with the rest of the CP/M world (or MS-DOS)... so, if
> you want to convert and read the files on something more modern, you'll
> have to transfer them, via serial connection or other method.

Thanks.  That would mean that it's basically physically impossible to read 
an Apple II disk (CP/M or no) on an IBM PC of any vintage, right?  Now that 
you mention it I do remember reading that the Apple II used an unusual disk 
format in order to keep costs down.

> I think there are a couple of people here who can transfer media...

Thanks.  I may have a paying client for them!