VOGONS


First post, by Lylat1an

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I'm looking for a free alternative to WinImage that can write floppy disk images in Windows 10.

I'd like one that's truly free: As in doesn't have a trial version, nag me to register, nor have any other limitations.

Reply 1 of 6, by Grzyb

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There's dd.exe in Cygwin port of coreutils...

dd if=somefile.img of=\device\floppy0

Edit:
I tried it in Windows 11 with a USB floppy drive, and the following worked:

dd if=somefile.img of=/dev/fd0

But it was slow.
For good performance, larger block size is necessary, eg.:

dd if=somefile.img of=/dev/fd0 bs=65536

Unfortunately, Windows is retarded as usual, and keeps creating the "System Volume Information" directory on the diskette 😜
I don't feel like fighting it now, luckily I have DOS and Linux machines at hand...

Nie tylko, jak widzicie, w tym trudność, że nie zdołacie wejść na moją górę, lecz i w tym, że ja do was cały zejść nie mogę, gdyż schodząc, gubię po drodze to, co miałem donieść.

Reply 2 of 6, by Jo22

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Lylat1an wrote on 2024-04-24, 03:07:

I'd like one that's truly free: As in doesn't have a trial version, nag me to register, nor have any other limitations.

"Was nichts kostet, ist nichts wert" 😸
(What Costs Nothing Is Worth Nothing)

"Time, it seems, doesn't flow. For some it's fast, for some it's slow.
In what to one race is no time at all, another race can rise and fall..." - The Minstrel

//My video channel//

Reply 3 of 6, by Lylat1an

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Jo22 wrote on 2024-04-24, 14:28:
Lylat1an wrote on 2024-04-24, 03:07:

I'd like one that's truly free: As in doesn't have a trial version, nag me to register, nor have any other limitations.

"Was nichts kostet, ist nichts wert" 😸
(What Costs Nothing Is Worth Nothing)

Then what program would you advise using?

Reply 4 of 6, by elszgensa

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The most expensive one you can find will be best, obviously.

In unrelated news, the Greaseweazle software is free, so there's no way that thing's ever gonna be useful for anything. No way at all.

Reply 5 of 6, by Lylat1an

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elszgensa wrote on 2024-04-24, 15:12:

the Greaseweazle software is free

I hadn't considered using that since I don't have their hardware, might it work with a generic USB floppy drive?

Last edited by Lylat1an on 2024-04-25, 01:04. Edited 1 time in total.

Reply 6 of 6, by Grzyb

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Windows isn't free, but it somehow doesn't make it good for imaging diskettes...

When dumping a diskette to a file, it's always a good idea to write-protect the diskette - no problem then.
But can't write-protect when doing the opposite, and:
- Windows 9x writes the "IHC" signature in the boot sector
- modern Windowses create the "System Volume Information" directory

Nie tylko, jak widzicie, w tym trudność, że nie zdołacie wejść na moją górę, lecz i w tym, że ja do was cały zejść nie mogę, gdyż schodząc, gubię po drodze to, co miałem donieść.