[ih] Floppy/Stiffy Disks

[Dave McGuire]

On 12/13/25 07:52, Scott Brim via Internet-history wrote:
> You can buy a 3.5" dish reader fairly cheaply. However their bits eroded
> pretty quickly so you may not be able to recover much useful without
> special equipment. It's worth trying.

   We read and image floppy disks at LSSM all the time, in addition to 
removable disk packs, 9-track and cartridge tapes, etc.  Our results are 
generally positive.

   It may seem counterintuitive, but generally speaking, 3.5" disks have 
proven to be far less reliable than the earlier 5.25", and 5.25" in turn 
are less reliable than the much older 8".  I attribute this to the 
ramp-up in production and profit margin pressure associated with the 
rapid consumer adoption of these technologies.  3.5" disks were made in 
far greater volumes than 5.25" and 8".  The consumerization went so far 
that, in the end, one could even purchase 3.5" diskettes in supermarkets 
and drugstores.

   We regularly read 8" disks written in the 1970s, and regularly fail 
to read 3.5" disks written in the 2000s.

   Based on our experience here, I'd say it's worth a try.

              -Dave McGuire, LSSM

-- 
Dave McGuire
President/Curator, Large Scale Systems Museum
New Kensington, PA