Formatting Diskettes

When you get a new carton of diskettes, they are not yet ready to be used. First, they must be prepared to accept data. This is called “formatting” the diskette.

MS-DOS uses the same formatting method regardless of the computer used. This is one of the keys to intermachine compatibility. Since all PC-compatible computers use MS-DOS, they can read all disks created by any other PC-compatible machine.

Note

MS-DOS formats disks with a different "pattern" than Apple-DOS or CP/M. This is why your computer system cannot read these "foreign" disks.

To see what happens when you attempt to use an unformatted disk, insert a new blank diskette into the A drive and close the drive door. Then enter the following command:

Since the new disk hasn’t been formatted yet, your computer cannot read it. After failing three times, your computer will respond:

General Failure error reading drive A

Abort, Retry, Failure?

If you type R (fir Retry), the computer will attempt to read the diskette again, and will finally display the same message.

Using Floppy Disks 5-3