Rav wrote on 2024-11-13, 00:24:

Disks from that era where sometime self-bootable (Game work by booting it, without DOS). But it does not seam to be the case con […]
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Disks from that era where sometime self-bootable (Game work by booting it, without DOS). But it does not seam to be the case considering the non system disk error you get.

So, Please in order, do :

1 - Remove the floppy
2 - Boot on DOS and wait for the invite
3 - Insert and latch the floppy
4 - type "dir a:"

Thanks for the info about the formatting
So it should work then. I followed the steps and got the sector not found reading drive a error

BitWrangler wrote on 2024-11-13, 00:35:

Guess it's also possible a C64 owner used the PC side for his game saves.

So based on rav's information and advice and the sector not found error I got using dir a: I think the disk is corrupted or like you said the c64 dude overwrote the pc data for saves. 😞 thanks for all the info guys, I think I've got a bad disk. And seeing as the whole side is corrupted I think I'll format it, write it to test the drive, then return or refund it on ebay and get a working game. Trial and error I guess
Thanks yall for your help

OK I whiteknuckled it and typed format a: but there's a write protect error.
Damm it

No surprise. If you want to format it, first look at the bios screenshot you have posted earlier.

If you are able to boot DOS on this system (has to be real DOS, not a DOS
prompt from another OS).

I suggest you use my "ImageDisk" - it has very good test/analyze function
where it can give the drive a good test and report on lots of things.
(If the problem turns out to be the old "dirTy heads" thing, ImageDisk also
has a "clean heads" function where (with some cleaning solution - or at least
some alchol - it will "scrub" the heads back-and-forth, much more effective
that "doing dir to make it spin.").

ImageDisk has to run under pure DOS because it access the floppy controller
directly and in traditionally non-standard ways. (ImageDisks primary purpose
is to archive/restore "vintage computer" media - that means ANY format the
the PC FDC can physically read/write - not just DOS/MicroSoft formats - I
even use it for old 8" systems - I give information of making an adapter on
the site).

For this reason, ImageDIsk does not "go through BIOS" or make use of BIOS
floppy-drive configuration (my ImageDisk system does not even have the floppy
configured in BIOS).

Best place to get it is: "Daves Old Computers" -> "Download Software/Images"
(near the bottom).

Dave ::: https://dunfield.themindfactory.com ::: "Daves Old Computers"->Personal

DaveDDS wrote on 2024-11-13, 01:48:

If you are able to boot DOS on this system (has to be real DOS, not a DOS prompt from another OS). […]
Show full quote

If you are able to boot DOS on this system (has to be real DOS, not a DOS
prompt from another OS).

I suggest you use my "ImageDisk" - it has very good test/analyze function
where it can give the drive a good test and report on lots of things.
(If the problem turns out to be the old "dirTy heads" thing, ImageDisk also
has a "clean heads" function where (with some cleaning solution - or at least
some alchol - it will "scrub" the heads back-and-forth, much more effective
that "doing dir to make it spin.").

ImageDisk has to run under pure DOS because it access the floppy controller
directly and in traditionally non-standard ways. (ImageDisks primary purpose
is to archive/restore "vintage computer" media - that means ANY format the
the PC FDC can physically read/write - not just DOS/MicroSoft formats - I
even use it for old 8" systems - I give information of making an adapter on
the site).

For this reason, ImageDIsk does not "go through BIOS" or make use of BIOS
floppy-drive configuration (my ImageDisk system does not even have the floppy
configured in BIOS).

Best place to get it is: "Daves Old Computers" -> "Download Software/Images"
(near the bottom).

Dave ::: https://dunfield.themindfactory.com ::: "Daves Old Computers"->Personal

Thank you for the detailed post.
I think I've confused a lot of people though because the problem isn't that my computer won't boot. It's just the disk
My pc does boot. It was kind of misleading that I mentioned that I tried to boot to it. 😂 That was just part of my testing.
But the imagedisk idea for testing drives is interesting and I'll give it a try before returning the disk. Thanks

nocash wrote on 2024-11-13, 01:31:

No surprise. If you want to format it, first look at the bios screenshot you have posted earlier.

I will definitely fix the bios

Judging from the first pic, the disk's label may be slightly covering the write-protect notch.
Regardless the disk looks trashed - there's a dirty ring visible on the surface, close to the outer edge.

The odds of a floppy disk from 1988 being readable today is next to Zero due to age, specially if you do not know the exact disk type (it could be a 160k SS or 180k 1S/2D on the PC side which are typically not readable on a newer 1.2Mb drive) hence the diff game types on each side. Added: For those that have never seen them will post a picture of my Memorex 1S/2D which are 180k max per side, only readable in certain floppy drives like early 360k ones....
If you are going to get floppies to test the drive get newer 1.2Mb 5.25" blanks. Something like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/387405700970 as an example.

jmarsh wrote on 2024-11-13, 05:21:

Judging from the first pic, the disk's label may be slightly covering the write-protect notch.
Regardless the disk looks trashed - there's a dirty ring visible on the surface, close to the outer edge.

Thats a good point

Horun wrote on 2024-11-13, 07:18:

The odds of a floppy disk from 1988 being readable today is next to Zero due to age, specially if you do not know the exact disk type (it could be a 160k SS or 180k 1S/2D on the PC side which are typically not readable on a newer 1.2Mb drive) hence the diff game types on each side. Added: For those that have never seen them will post a picture of my Memorex 1S/2D which are 180k max per side, only readable in certain floppy drives like early 360k ones....
If you are going to get floppies to test the drive get newer 1.2Mb 5.25" blanks. Something like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/387405700970 as an example.

Dang the floppy disk lore is insane
Did they actually make 180k per side disks in 1988?? I thought a 1.2mb drive would have the best compatibility.... 🙁
I'll look into that ebay listing. Thanks

Horun wrote on 2024-11-13, 07:18:

The odds of a floppy disk from 1988 being readable today is next to Zero due to age...

I just (earlier this year) passed on my Altair, a system from the late 1970s.

It had over 100 floppy disks(SSSD hard-sectored, but the media is basically the same as non-HD diskettes).
These would have all been early 1980s through mid 1990s
In testing before shipping, I tried reading every diskette - and all but one were 100% readable (and the one that had a bad
sector did so years ago due to physical damage).

Dave ::: https://dunfield.themindfactory.com ::: "Daves Old Computers"->Personal