
This software is an example for formatting non DOS Disk on a
compatible PC. All accesses to the floppy disk are done via the
int13 of the PC BIOS. So it should work on the most PC compatibles.

I started with the idea to make a format program for OS9 Floppy Disks.
At first I tried to make my own format routine. The result was 
just a very nice Data garbage on the Disk. This was caused by one 
wrong value in my modified Disk Parameter Block (last sector / EOT).
(32 instead of 16; thinking in cylinders instead of a track on a side)
This value didn't made any problems during read or write operations with
BIOS functions.
I made some investigations to find some Format programs with included 
Source code and found a few for MS-DOS Disks, but I found 
nothing for non Dos Disks. I tried again to make my own routine
using some new information from the different sources.
The result is this program.

The common OS9 Format uses DD-Disks (3,5" or 51/4") with 79 or 80 tracks and
16 sectors per Track. The sector size is 256 bytes. I do not explain
the logical structure of OS9 Disks in this Document because
its of no use for the most PC Users. Every OS9 user can look in his
OS9 Technical Manual in the OS-9 File System description.

I've used for this program the Borland Turbo C++ Compiler Version 1.01.
It shouldn't be very difficult to use other C Compilers because
I didn't use a lot of Borland specific library functions.

This Software, including Source, is public domain. Because of that is is
not allowed to sell this Software to anybody. You may otherwise
distribute this program freely, as long as you leave the "public domain"
notice in this package.

|=========================================================================
| If you use this program it's on your own risk. I do not take any
| responsibilities for anything which is caused by this program .
| So if you test this program with your most important backup Floppy Disk
| thats hard for you. Next time you should use the possibility to write
| protect your most important backup disk ......
|=========================================================================

If you have any remarks, questions or anything else to say about
this program please send a small note to me.


Wilfried Weigelt 
Am Frauenhofgut 44
D-71154 Nufringen
Germany
100121,3274


History: 
1.00 
Initial Version                                                     26.11.1993

1.01 
A Phoenix Bios couldn't handle a '0' for nsects in the biosdisk() call
to format a track. It aborts with Error 9 (DMA Boundary).   
More Information in formtrk.c                                       09.12.1993

The Toshiba T5200 Laptop Computer requires a call of int 13 with function 17
to set the Disk type to a DD disk. I've just found that by 
trial and error, so I can just assume that this function makes some
additional initialisations of the FDC which is implicit done by
the function 5 routine in other BIOS types                          14.12.1993

A mistake in calling of function init_disk with 0 instead of
drive in the first argument                                         20.02.1994