A drive says need to format

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics (More info?)

Hi.
Ive got some floppy disks that have work on them... I tried to access them
but i get a message saying disc isnt formatted do you want to format it
now...NO i dont cos my work is on them. Is there a way that i can get my data
back off of the discs. why does it say it need to format when ive been using
them fine until now.Many thanks for any input.
Phill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics (More info?)

The floppy drive could be going bad or have a loose connector. Try the
floppies in another machine.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"Phill" <Phill@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
newsD92DDEF-38DE-4047-9949-4F833B2FFA60@microsoft.com...
> Hi.
> Ive got some floppy disks that have work on them... I tried to access them
> but i get a message saying disc isnt formatted do you want to format it
> now...NO i dont cos my work is on them. Is there a way that i can get my
> data
> back off of the discs. why does it say it need to format when ive been
> using
> them fine until now.Many thanks for any input.
> Phill

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics (More info?)

Colin Barnhorst wrote:

> The floppy drive could be going bad or have a loose connector. Try the
> floppies in another machine.
>

good advice; If the floppy drive is external however, unplug it from the
computer and plug it in again after a few seconds.

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.windowsxp.basics (More info?)

Phill wrote:
> Hi.
> Ive got some floppy disks that have work on them... I tried to access
> them but i get a message saying disc isnt formatted do you want to
> format it now...NO i dont cos my work is on them. Is there a way that
> i can get my data back off of the discs. why does it say it need to
> format when ive been using them fine until now.Many thanks for any
> input.
> Phill


Because they are floppies. Seriously. You do *NOT* store precious data on
floppies. I have a 1GB pen drive for that and it's as hard as nails - it's
been through the wash (40°C long spin cycle) and the tumble dryer (60
minutes on high) and it survived. Just try doing that to a floppy!

Floppies are slow, unreliable, expensive (my 1GB pen drive cost me £45 -
that would buy 225 floppies-worth - 324MB -) bulky (where do you store them
all?). A pen drive is 3" long and can be attached to a keyring (OK, that's a
dangerous thing in my case - the number of times I've lost the sodding thing
down the back of the sofa).

You want to store important data? Buy a pen drive - they're indestructable
(well, most are).

Just an additional, a friend dropped his and then accidentally backed over
it with his car - it *STILL* can be written to - and read from!

The floppy is dead - long live the pen drive!

--
Facon - the artificial bacon bits you get in Pizza Hut for sprinkling
on salads.