[ih] Floppy/Stiffy Disks

[Eberhard W Lisse]

Thanks all.

el

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On Dec 13, 2025 at 18:00 +0200, Dave McGuire via Internet-history <internet-history at elists.isoc.org>, wrote:

> 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
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