How to treat a
floppy disk
- Never leave diskettes in the disk drive, as data can leak
out of the disk
and corrode the inner mechanics of the drive. Diskettes
should be rolled up
and stored in pencil holders
- Diskettes should be cleaned and waxed once a week.
Microscopic metal particles can be removed by waving a
powerful magnet over
the surface of the disk. Any stubborn metallic shavings
can be removed with
scouring powder and soap. When waxing diskettes, make
sure application is
even. This will allow the diskettes to spin faster,
resulting in better
access time
- Do not fold diskettes unless they do not fit in the
drive. "Big"
diskettes may be folded and used in "little"
disk drives
- Never insert a disk into the drive upside down. The data
can fall off the
surface of the disk and jam the intricate mechanics of
the
drive
- Diskettes cannot be backed up by running them through the
xerox machine.
If your data is going to need to be backed up, simply
insert two diskettes
together into the drive. Whenever you update a document,
the data will be
recorded on both diskettes
- Diskettes should not be inserted into or removed from the
drive while the
red light is flashing. Doing so could result in smeared
or possibly
unreadable text. Occasionally the red light continues to
flash in what is
known as a "hung" or "hooked" state.
If your system is "hooking" you, you
will probably need to insert a few coins before being
allowed to access the
disk drive
- If your diskette is full and you need more storage space,
remove the disk
from the drive and shake vigorously for two minutes. This
will pack the data
enough (Data Compression) to allow for more storage. Be
sure to cover all
the openings with scotch tape to prevent loss of data
- Data access time can be greatly improved by cutting more
holes in the
diskette jacket. This will provide more simultaneous
access points to the disk
- Never use scissors and glue to manually edit documents.
The data stored
is much too small to be seen with the naked eye, and you
may end up with
data from some other document stuck in the middle of your
document. Razor
blades and scotch tape may be used, provided the user is
equipped with an
electron microscope
- Periodically spray diskettes with insecticide to prevent
system bugs
from spreading
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