========================================================================= (C) 1993 by Atari Corporation, GEnie, and the Atari Roundtables. May be reprinted only with this notice intact. The Atari Roundtables on GEnie are *official* information services of Atari Corporation. To sign up for GEnie service, call (with modem) 800-638-8369. Upon connection type HHH (RETURN after that). Wait for the U#= prompt.Type XTX99437,GENIE and press [RETURN]. The system will prompt you for your information. ========================================================================== ************ Topic 34 Thu Jan 11, 1990 D.BECKEMEYER at 02:34 PST Sub: Beckemeyer Development ST Software This topic is for the discussion of all Beckemeyer Development Tools Products and anything else related to BDT. 201 message(s) total. ************ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 1 Wed Jan 01, 1992 M.EVERHART2 [MIDIMIKE] at 15:38 EST Just read a message about HARD DISK SENTRY in another Cat. I use the MICHTRON HD ToolKit with moderate success and am very interested in another optimizer - tell me about it. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 2 Wed Jan 01, 1992 ST-INFORMER at 19:15 EST Mike, Hard Disk Sentry is a *very* reliable file check utility and disk optimizer. It supports big partitions (HDT does not). I've used HDS for years with no problems. Hopefully Beckemeyer will post a feature list with the latest version number, upgrade policy and pricing. Ron @ STI ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 3 Thu Jan 02, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 03:23 EST Hard Disk Sentry is a software package for ST/TT systems that diagnoses and repairs TOS disk partitions. It runs numerous tests on the FAT and the directory and file structures. It also includes a low-level surface anaysis disk test program. Hard Disk Sentry is also a disk optimizer. It will unfragment all the files and folders on a disk, thus speeding up file accesses. It is fully GEM based and is automatic and easy to use. The current version is V1.23. The upgrade policy is to either send in the disk with a $10 fee to: Beckemeyer Development PO Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 Or register on the free support BBS (510) 530-9682 and download the latested version of the program. An all new manual is in the works. When it's finished, the new manual will be available to registered Sentry owners for $15. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 4 Fri Jan 03, 1992 R.ROSADO [Lyre/DG CL] at 20:14 EST David, Thanks for the infor regarding Hard Drive Sentry.... But I have one question, How do I buy it? I mean, you talked upgrades but not purchases. :) Richard ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 5 Sat Jan 04, 1992 K.CAVAGHAN2 at 23:06 EST David, Could you read my message (#81) over in the ICD topic and tell me if your program might help. Also if you take Visa orders via Genie. Thanks, Kent Cavaghan OakSprings Software ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 6 Mon Jan 06, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 03:30 EST Richard, Hard Disk Sentry can be purchased directly from BDT at the address in the previous message for $49.95 US. You could also contact Pacific Software Supply, who distribute the program to dealers, to see if they can locate a dealer in your area that might stock (or be able to obtain) HD Sentry. PSS is the most active Atari distributor, so just about any Atari dealer will know of them. The BDT main office number is (510) 530-9637. Thanks. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 7 Mon Jan 06, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 04:11 EST Kent, Sentry cannot repair real hardware errors. Sentry can help with the FAT problems (unless the drive is totally inoperable) and it can salvage what data you do have left on the disk after getting the H/W errors, in most cases. The surface analysis program included with Sentry may also help diagnose problems. Your symptoms sound like a combination of intermittent hardware errors and TOS file system problems. For the hardware problems, I'd look at all the simple stuff first, like heat, static, and low-power coming out of the HD and/or ST power suplies. Also check all the cables and connectors. Watch the routing of the SCSI cables to avoid noise. Good luck. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 8 Tue Jan 07, 1992 A.MASON4 [Anna] at 21:56 EST What is the current cost of Hard Disk Sentry and is it more useful on the larger hard drives (as opposed to the smaller ones like the MegaFile 30 that I have). While I know nothing about diagnosing/repairing disk partitions, I am interested in its ability to unfragment files and folders. Thanks. Anna ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 9 Wed Jan 08, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 00:34 EST Anna, Hard Disk Sentry has a suggested retail price of $49.95. You don't need to know anything about diagnosing/repairing disks because Hard Disk Sentry will automatically test the disks and fix any problems it finds. Fragmentation can affect performance on almost any sized hard disk, even as little as 5MB. In can actually affect a 20MB or 30MB drive more than a larger drive because the larger drives tend to have faster seek times. Unfragmentation reduces the amount of read-write head movement required to access the files, which is what seek-time refers to. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 10 Thu Jan 09, 1992 JMGSOFT [George @ JMG] at 01:00 EST I thought it was "defragmentation", not "unfragmentation" :-) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 12 Thu Jan 09, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:48 EST See file #22206 DISKDIAG.ARC which is a program that will examine your hard disks for problems. If you don't have Hard Disk Sentry, you may want to download DISKDIAG and verify that your disks are clean. Run it on a regular basis to avoid disk problems. Enjoy. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 13 Thu Jan 09, 1992 GENIELAMP [John Peters] at 17:08 EST David, Just wanted to say thanks for such a nifty little program. It has found a permanent place in my auto folder. John Peters GEnie Lamp Online Magazine ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 14 Thu Jan 09, 1992 A.MASON4 [Anna] at 23:56 EST Thanks for the information about Hard Disk Sentry. I have added it to my list and hope to be able to order it from you by the end of January (next paycheck...) It sounds like it's just I need as I THINK I may have some bad sectors on my HD and I'm sure I have fragmented files by this time. Anna ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 17 Thu Jan 16, 1992 A.VALENT [Mike] at 22:18 EST I've purchased upgradeable (with disclaimer letter from prior licensee) copies of MT C-Shell and VSH manager. They're old - verrsion 1.10 of MTC and the equivalent for VSH. Question is, for a non-programmer like myself, what do they do? Here's what I've been able to do after running INITVSH: I've found I can run two TTP apps in windows simultaneously. But if I run a GEM application and open the Multiview window it comes up with neither TTP in it. Blank window with unresponsive cursor is all I get. I can see no way to run a second GEM app. Dave, can you answer these questions for me (as they apply to the latest updated version)? 1. Can I run more than one GEM app at a time? 2. Is the Multiview window... what does it do? 3. Are the VSH windows useful for running anything other than text based programs? In short, am I looking in the wrong place for a multitasking OS that'll work better than Multigem? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 18 Fri Jan 17, 1992 A.DIPIETRO [Anthony D.] at 21:21 EST Mike: Yes, you are looking in the wrong place. MT-C and VSH are only meant to multi-task TOS/TTP programs not GEM. They can run one GEM program. I don't think the new version improves the situation. Anthony ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 19 Sat Jan 18, 1992 B.STOREY [Bill] at 11:33 EST What software does Bekemeyer produce? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 20 Sun Jan 19, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 19:35 EST Mike, MT C-Shell runs one GEM program at a time, but you can have TOS and TTP programs in the VSH multiview window. In many ways this is not that different from the real-life capaibilities of MultiGEM, since so few GEM programs are actually usable at the same time, in a useful way. And in most of those cases, there are Desk Accs that perform the desired task. For an idea of what I mean, go read the complaints about the limitations of MultiGEM in the MultiGEM topic. With the version of MT and VSH that you have, you must open the Multi-view window at least once BEFORE you run a GEM program. Bill, we produde a number of products. Our most popular titles are Hard Disk Sentry - disk repair / optimizer Hard Disk Toolkit - disk backup/restore Hard Disk Accelerator - disk cache MT C-Shell - Multitasking Unix-like Operating System There are also a number of MT C-Shell add-on products, like the Visual Shell GEM interface, UUCP networking, A Software development system, etc. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 21 Mon Jan 20, 1992 A.VALENT [Mike] at 18:26 EST Thanks, David. It's an interesting piece of programming to me despite my "user" (or perhaps "fiddler") orientation. At the very least, by playing with it I can get some idea of what that Unix jargon is all about. I'd like to get the license change registered just in case I might get "advanced" enough to want the newest version. I'll send the transfer letter plus what else? BTW - I'm very glad that I did follow the Multigem topic when that was first released. With your obvious knowledge of the ST's OS, have you ever considered trying to extend, expand or modify MT/VSH to provide GEM multitasking? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 22 Thu Feb 06, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 03:04 EST An all new version of the Hard Disk Sentry Manual is now available to registered owners of Hard Disk Sentry for $15. The new manual covers many topics including more information on disk defragmentation, advanced options, disk surface analysis, and recovering orphan files. Order From: Beckemeyer Development PO Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 (510) 530-9637 FAX: (510) 530-0451 ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 23 Thu Feb 06, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 19:54 EST Dave, What is the latest version of HD Sentry, how much to upgrade, and what is new in it. My last update was to version 1.22 Thanks, Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 24 Sat Feb 08, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 00:07 EST Wayne, the latest Sentry is V1.23. There is a bug in the print feature in V1.22 and there were some improvements to optimization added in V1.23. The update is $10. Send your disk to: Beckemeyer Development PO Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 If you don't wan't to send in the disk, leave me e-mail with your reg. # and M/C or Visa card number and exp. date. There is a $5 additional charge for a replacement disk. There is also a new manual available. You can get the upgrade the new manual for $15. You can also download the update from our BBS at (510) 530-9637. Connect at 8- N-1 and press RETURN as soon as your modem connects. Then login as 'bbs' and follow the prompts. You'll need to call twice, once to request access to the private area, and then when you call back in a day or so, you will be able to download the new sentry. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 25 Sat Feb 08, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 22:08 EST Thanks Dave. I don't know if I'm still on the BBS or not. I was at one time, but I think the last time I called was when 1.21 came out. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 26 Sun Feb 09, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 12:26 EST Dave, Are you sure that phone # you gave for the BBS is correct? I called that # and got a voice answer. The # you gave was (510) 530-9637. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 27 Sun Feb 09, 1992 J.BUDIL [Fiction Man] at 20:48 EST Dave, does your Hard Disk Sentry support ICD large-sector partitions in all of it's features? --Jonathan Budil ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 28 Sun Feb 09, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 22:40 EST Sorry, Wayne, that # is the BDT voice number. Ths BBS is 510-530-9682. Jonathon, Sentry includes support for all large-partition formats for the ST that I am aware of, including ICD's. Because Sentry is clean, if TOS can use the partition, then Sentry should be able to too, so even future unforseen formats should work. E.g. Sentry was released before the BGM Atari formats existed, and even the early releases of Sentry work on BGM partitions. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 29 Mon Feb 10, 1992 D.LIVINGST11 [Big Earnest] at 03:04 EST I just got Hard Disk Sentry (from Beckemeyer direct.) Each time I optimize a partition, and then run ICD's CLEANUP, CLEANUP asks "OK to create files from apparently good chains?" I answer "yes" and Cleanup creates 2 1024-byte files of garbage. Actually one file is always all $96.b, and the other I can't read or load using any GEMDOS file system functions. I can, however, delete them normally, with no further problems. What's going on here? Anything to be concerned about? CLEANUP never found any problems when I used to run my previous optimizer (Tune-Up). But now I can't use Tune-Up because I have partitions > 16MB. Also, should I slow my AdSpeed down to 8MHz while running HDSentry? I hope not; it takes a while to optimize. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 30 Fri Feb 14, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 18:28 EST Dave, I called the BBS and I was still registered there so I could download the latest version of HD Sentry. Thanks for letting me know the new #. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 31 Sat Feb 15, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 06:25 EST I just purchased V1.1 of Hard Disk Sentry from Wedgewood Rental. There was no registration card but I'll mail or EMAIL the disk # today. Anyways, I have a few questions for the author or anyone else. 1.Is it really that important to boot from floppy as said on pg. 4 of the manual? This doesn't make sense to me. How can I do that? Or is this obsolete. BTW, what is the newest version and how does it differ. What would be cost of upgrade? 2.Just what is the X option? 3.On pg.12 mention is made that there are 2 copies of the FAT but only 1 is used. So TOS isn't brainy enough to use the 2nd 1? Does DOS or any other op. sys.? Is this the only prg. that looks at both? 4.How does this prg. differ from Tuneup? I've used Tuneup for yrs. with never a problem. I get very, very nervous with software that tinkers with directories, FATs, etc. Is there anything I should be forewarned about with this prg.? 5.How does 1 learn more about disk structure? The best stuff I've found so far are the help files that came with Disk Doctor. I've found some other stuff in some DOS books but its all very sparse. I'd love to see a very detailed explanation of disk structure understandable to someone who is not a professional programmer. 6.I'm tempted to read "all" messages in this topic but for the cost. I suspect that some of questions could be answered there. Is it worth it? 7.What will H.D.S. do if bad sectors are present? Disk doctor will write a file using them. I'll hold off using H.D.S. until I get some feedback on this stuff. Thanks in advance. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 32 Sat Feb 15, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 20:10 EST Joe, There are many of us who DID have problems with Tune Up trashing our drives who have never had any problems with HD Sentry. When partitions are very full and/or very fragmented the older versions (1.24) of Tune Up can totally trash that partition requiring you to at least zero that partition and restore it from backups, or at worst require you to format the whole drive. In over 3 years of using HD Sentry I've NEVER had it do any damage to any partition while Tune Up trashed partitions on several occasions. The latest version of HD Sentry is 1.23 which I just updated to a few days ago. There is also a new manual available which I'm probably going to get. That old manual you got with v 1.1 does leave alot to be desired. My original version was 1.1 also. By booting from the floppy you eliminate the possibility of any of your AUTO programs or DA's interfering with HD Sentry. To boot from the floppy usually you just hold down the Control, Alternate, and Left Shift keys while you boot up the machine. On machines with Tos versions 1.2 and higher you have to wait until you see the floppy drive light come on and then you hold down those keys. Then the computer will boot from the floppy instead of the HD. All that does is eliminate anything on your HD bootup procedure from interfering with HD Sentry, you still leave the HD turned on and the booter on the HD Sentry disk (you should use a backup of it and keep the original in a safe place) will recognize the HD. You only use the (X) option when it tells you to. I forget exactly what it does, but it's a safety feature. Dave will fill you in I'm sure. Yes two copies of the FAT are on every disk (even floppies) and usually only programs like HD Sentry even look at the second one. It picks the 'cleanest' one (the one closest to the actual disk structure) and uses that. If you feel safe using Tune Up then you should feel absolutely invincible if you use Hd Sentry (IMHO). I don't work for Beckemeyer, so I'm only saying this as a user who got burned by Tune Up several times before trying HD Sentry. Since using HD Sentry I've never had any problems with it messing up my HD's. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 33 Sat Feb 15, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 20:37 EST Big Ernest, Are you reseting the machine after doing the optimization when Sentry requests you to do so? Does Sentry also report errors (e.g. orphan files) after doing the optimize? If not, then the disk is clean and CLEANUP is confused. Make sure you have the ICD write caches turned OFF when you run Sentry. I have never heard of any problem running Sentry in 16Mhz mode. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 34 Sat Feb 15, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:36 EST Joe, I'll reply to issue of Wedgewood re-selling a used copy of HD Sentry to you as new, the lack of a reg. card, and an illegible reg # on the disk, separately, privately. Wayne answered most of your questions. Thanks Wayne. The "boot from a floppy" instructions are somewhat obsolete. They were written before there were auto-booting hard drives. The goal is to make sure that no TSR (AUTO folder) programs or Desk. Accs are preventing HD Sentry from reading and writing physical disk sectors on your drive. This means disabling Disk Caches and such. The latest HD Sentry is V1.23. The upragde is $10 without the new manual or $15 with the new manual. The (X) option causes Sentry to pre-allocate more memory than usual and is only needed when the program itself recommends it, which is only when a drive has an unusually large number of problems. HD Sentry will do its best to work with bad sectors. Bad sectors in the boot, system, or FAT can be disastrous for TOS and Sentry cannot do anything about that. The latest Sentry also includes a surface analysis program to help detect and correct problems with bad sectors. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 35 Mon Feb 17, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 21:50 EST I am one of those that have many problems with Tuneup. I have also found that it doesn't correct my problems, it appears. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 36 Tue Feb 18, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:58 EST I'd like to point out, for those not following along, that Tuneup is NOT a Beckemeyer Development product. It was (is?) sold by Michtron. The product from Beckemeyer Development is Hard Disk Sentry, a disk repair and optimize utility. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 37 Tue Feb 18, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 05:10 EST Thanks Wayne: Dave: I'll send my disk from Wedgewood off to you with the receipt and $15 for the current upgrade and manual. Amazingly, Tuneup never caused any trouble except once when I had cachv4.prg installed. Tuneup went nuts. It trashed about for several minutes. I was tempted to turn the system off but thought that might be worse than the thrashing- and then it eventually said something like , "Can't write to the boot sector". I thought for sure that my partition was wasted but luckily no damage was done. I guess that proves the value of H.D.S wanting nothing else installed that could get in the way. BTW: I would like to study this subject more- not so that I can compete with Dave. I couldn't do that in a million years, just for interest sake. Any recommendations for good books on disk structures? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 38 Tue Feb 18, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 23:33 EST Darlah, Get HD Sentry from Beckemeyer. It's user interface isn't quite as 'pretty' as TuneUp,(as Dave said it's a Mictron product) but in my experience it's FAR more reliable. For those that give their HD's are real workout by filling it to the brim and doing alot of moving things around, etc it is the best I've found. Dave, I was mentioning HD Sentry vs. Tuneup as a "Good cop vs. Bad cop" type scenerio. I hope nobody got the idea that Tuneup was a Beckemeyer product. HD Sentry it the "Good cop". :-) Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 39 Wed Feb 19, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:34 EST Joe, The Norton "Programmer's Guide to the IBM-PC" and "Inside..." series have some information about DOS file structures, which is identical to what TOS uses, execpt for the boot sectors and partition tables. The Atari GEMDOS manual from the Atari Developers kit also has some helpful information. The Microsoft "MS-DOS Technical Reference" and "MS-DOS Programmers Reference" can be helpful too. If you just want some information about disk operating systems in general, that isn't specific to Atari or MS-DOS, try "The Design of the Unix Operating System" by Bach. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 40 Wed Feb 19, 1992 AD-VANTAGE at 23:49 EST I also recommend HD Sentry from Beckemeyer to anyone with a hard drive. I've used the product for years and never experienced a problem. Beckemeyer was one of the original supporters of the ST which means something in my book - - anyone who can survive this long deserves our support ;-) A couple of minor wishes for a future version include: a graphical mapping feature to give you a quick view of the free space -- perhaps with some statistics (the drive is X% fragmented) and the ability to select a maximum write gap. // Ron @ Atari Advantage // ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 41 Thu Feb 20, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 05:07 EST Dave: I think everyone understands that Tuneup is not your product. But the comparison here with your product, Hard Disk Sentry, so far is making your product look very, very good! My check is in the mail. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 42 Thu Feb 20, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 13:00 EST It appears that I truly need this program. What I have, just won't fit the bill. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 43 Fri Feb 21, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:56 EST Ron, I suppose I shouldn't let the cat out of the bag, but I do plan to implement the graphic mapping idea you suggested. Time is just tight right now (I'm buying a new house... maybe). Don't let this hold back your Sentry purchases however :-) because a new version may not be out for some time, and as with all of our Sentry updates to date, the price will be very reasonable (free to D/L from the BBS). ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 44 Sat Feb 22, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 05:40 EST Thanks for the references on disk structures. I sometimes wish I had been a computer science major instead of natural resources. I intended to major in it when I graduated from high school in '67 as a "nerd". But then I became a "real cool" hippy in college and got "back to the land". Then came the ST in '85 and now I'm a "real cool nerd." Maybe I'll even be able to understand disk stuctures as I'm very impressed that anyone can do so. AD-VANTAGE: I've DL'd a program call DSKCHART.PRG that will do much of what you want. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 46 Mon Mar 02, 1992 B.MENAGH [Bill] at 18:38 EST I was pleased to notice that you take orders viw e-mail. Can orders be made via GENIE? This would be a great help to Canadian customers. Thanks in advance for you help. Bill ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 47 Tue Mar 03, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:01 EST Yes Bill, customers can order via GEnie Mail. MC/VISA accepted. It's time for a features request notice. Please send me your wish list for HD Sentry features. I'm working on a new version. Thanks. - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 48 Tue Mar 03, 1992 J.PATTERSON3 [Ted] at 19:44 EST David, Is it possible to set up Sentry to let the user choose whether he wants to optimize for reads/writes like Michtron's Turbo kit? _____ /ed ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 49 Wed Mar 04, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 04:19 EST Ted, I'm not sure what Turbo kit did/does when one optimizes for read vs. write, but I would expct that you could achieve the desrired results using the "Write Gap" feature of Sentry. To opimize for reads, specify a zero "write gap" and to optimize for writes, specify the largest possible write gap. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 50 Fri Mar 06, 1992 D.LIVINGST11 [Big Earnest] at 03:25 EST David, the Michtron HD Toolkit optimizer gives you 2 choices. Instead of specifying a "write gap" as HDSentry does, Toolkit lets you either "optimize for reading" which packs all files in the lowest-numbered clusters, or "optimize for writing" which puts them all at the other end. There are no options in between like HDSentry has. When Toolkit optimizes for writing, it chooses the biggest possible write gap, which would usually be bigger than the 4000K limit of HDSentry. You want a wish list for the next version? Some things I like about the Toolkit that you might consider: - If you double-click on a drive icon, Toolkit opens a window with a graphic repesentation of which sectors are used. I really like this. It would be even nicer if it could show all the sectors of any one file too, in some way. Click in the picture, and all the clusters of that file blink, or change color, maybe. This would show file fragmentation graphically. I know, you can't easily follow the FAT links backwards, but... - Toolkit has 3 things you can do before defrag. It's nice that these are separate: 1. Disk info : how many tracks, where's the FATs etc (things that don't change) 2. Disk statistics : how many files, directories, etc plus 'file space fragmentation' and 'free space fragmentation' as percentages. It might be nice to see numbers and percentages. 3. Check disk structure : find and optionally try to fix errors before you defrag and really screw it up. - While it's optimizing, Toolkit tells you what it's doing. For example it might show: Trying to make file E:\GFA\SEARCH.GFA contigous. File E:\GFA\SEARCH.GFA is now contigous. Trying to make file G:\ME\XYZ.S contigous. Not enough room to make file G:\ME\XYZ.S contigous. Reading file G:\ME\XYZ.S into memory. [ with some other info, sector # ] [ ... optimization continues, then when there's enough room, ] Writing file G:\ME\XYZ.S back to disk. File G:\ME\XYZ.S is now contigous. [ ... ] [ tells you it's done, and FORCES a reboot when you quit. ] - All the in-progress messages go into a scrollable GEM window, so you can go back when it's done and scroll up and check what it did. - Toolkit seems faster than HDSentry, but I'm not sure if it actually is. The continuous reports about what it's doing sure make it SEEM faster than HDSentry. Better it should be reliable than fast. - Once you have optimized a partition with Toolkit, subsequent optimizations are much faster if few files have been written. This doesn't seem to be the case with HDSentry, since if I write just one file, optimization still takes as long as it did the first time. Apparently, Toolkit's algorithm causes those files that are never changed (and never become fragmented) to migrate to the higher-numbered sectors, where they don't have to be rewritten during later optimizations. HDSentry, however, seems to rewrite all the files when only one has to be defragged. Maybe HDSentry does this to maintain a constant "write gap" in the sectors below the files, but wouldn't this be unnecessary if you kept the constant "gap" (such as a zero gap) above all the files, instead of below them? - Toolkit misspells 'contiguous' as 'contigous' (You don't have to copy this feature.) - Toolkit puts everything in GEM windows, and has a more "professional" appearance than HDSentry despite some window-confusion bugs in the redraw stuff. I realize that GEM windows are about as important as whether you wear a necktie when you write the prg, but still it's kinda nice. Don't wear a tie. I never had any problems with Toolkit, and I'd probably still be using it today, but I switched to HDSentry when I got a bigger disk with larger partitions ( > 16 MB ) which they say Toolkit can't handle. In fact, Toolkit erroneously reports that my FAT copies don't match, now that I have > 32767 sectors (or is it clusters?) I still use Toolkit's graphic sectors-used display, but I'm afraid to defrag with it. None of this stuff is as important as reliability of course. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 51 Sat Mar 07, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 03:56 EST Tonight I will be uploading GMAP.ARC which contains a program for generating a graphical map of the data on a disk. Use it with HD Sentry to to help you decide when to optimize your disks. Very soon I will be making a new Beta release of HD Sentry available to registsred HD Sentry owners. Watch this space and the BDT BBS (510) 530-9682 for details. Contact me in e-mail if you'd like to Beta test the new Sentry. Functionally it is nearly identical to V1.23 -- but it's a lot more fun! GEM Progress bars, and such. And now you can actually watch graphically as Sentry de-fragments your drive. Almost makes you want to de-fragment more often just to watch the show Sentry puts on! ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 55 Sun Mar 08, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 17:13 EST Big Ernest, Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. I would like you to Beta test HD Sentry V1.3. Are you wiling and able? Contact me in email. I think some of the things in it are along the lines you're asking for. Now I'll address a few specific points in your message. Regarding "finding errors and fixing them before you de-frag", the way Sentry does things in stages, it will never let you de-frag a disk without checking it for consistency first. If it doesn't pass the checks, and you don't elect to fix it, Sentry won't even ask if you want to optimize (de-frag). I'm a little worried about adding too many "visual" things to HD Sentry due to memory restrictions. I think Sentry still runs on 512K machines. V1.3 has the "sector usage" graphical map. I thought about the "show the use of each cluster chain" idea too, but decided that the scheme I used, of differentiating between contiguous and fragmented "used clusters" in the display was useful enough to give the necessary information without taking too much code or memory. The idea of scrolling back on the messages is nice, but I wonder if the memory can be spared? How big should the buffer be, etc? I like the idea of FORCING a re-boot too, but this is on Atari's list of "don'ts". There isn't a "system call" for it and the way Atari documented to do it on the STs doesn't work on TTs and systems with certain add-on 3rd party hardware. I think it's not that much trouble and less likely to cause problems in the future to just let the user do the re-boot. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 56 Sat Mar 14, 1992 G.NORTON at 11:08 EST With regard to any new versions, I would like to see TT compatibility and the ability to work with 1K clusters. By the way I am also willing to beta test for you. Graham Norton Wizard Computer Systems ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 57 Mon Mar 16, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:37 EST Graham, what version do you have? The programs have been TT compatible for over a year now. And what do you mean by 1K clusters? The original ST format spec. even for floppy disks is 512 byte sector and a 2-sector, or 1024 byte, or 1K cluster. Sentry supports all Atari HD sector/clustor sizes, including BGM partitions. On another note, I will be uploading a new version of the GMAP program tonight which is a little smaller and fixes a bug reported by a few users which causes it to lock-up sometimes. The file is called GMAP_2.ARC. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 58 Mon Mar 16, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 19:39 EST Dave, I downloaded the new BETA version of HD Sentry off the support BBS. I haven't actually let it optimize a partition yet but the new graphic additions are very nice. I especially like the graphic partition map showing used, unused, fragmented and bad blocks. Has much changed internally in the program itself besides the addition of the graphics? Also how fragmented does a partition have to be before it says that optimization is recommended? That's one reason I haven't let it optimize. I just optimized all my partitions about a month ago and they are still very clean. I do have one partition though that comes up as "optimization not recommended", which has files all over the place with blank spaces in between the files. The files themselves aren't very fragmented it's just that there are alot of empty spaces in between the files like 10 clusters in between file A and file B, 3 empty between B and C, 30 empty between C and D, etc. Does it just consider file fragmentation when figuring whether to recommend optimization or any fragmentation? I would also like to see the framentation and used/unused space in percentages similiar to Tune Up. It shows the percentage of used and unused space, and the percentage of fragmentation in files, and free space. If implemented I'd preferably see that info after the partition map, or possibly be able to jump back and forth between those two before going on to the prompt whether to optimize or not. What I've seen so far though is very nice. I feel it makes the program give the user a better idea of what's going on while HD Sentry does it's thing. Thanks, Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 59 Tue Mar 17, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:44 EST Thanks for the feedback Wayne. I'll consider a dialog that shows the fragmentation as a pecentage after the MAP dialog. As you can see, the map is pretty full already and there isn't much room there to add more info. Keep those suggestions coming. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 60 Tue Mar 17, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 19:02 EST Yeah, I realized the map was quite full. The original dialog with all the partition info (files, errors, cluster info, etc) is pretty full also so I figured that a new dialog would be needed. BTW, last night I had to repair an error on one of my Syquest Carts and I used the new version so I got to see the repair dialog showing its progress. Very nice also. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 61 Tue Mar 17, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 19:52 EST Dave: I have been checking out your utilities and now I wonder how I ever did without them. I have a severe problem with one directory. I get illegal cluster link reading subdir errors plus I have 5 errors. Do I need to reformat to rid myself of this? What I need is a formatting program that will just format one partition. :-) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 62 Wed Mar 18, 1992 S.SCHAPER [Meneldil] at 19:52 EST Obviously I am going to have to get the defragger if I ever have enough money. :-( ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 63 Thu Mar 19, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 03:29 EST Darlah, if the disk sectors are not actually bad, you might not need to re- format the disk. The DT program included with Sentry will perform low-level sector testing and mark-bad operations. Run it in the "test-forver" mode to see if the drive is flakey. Press the mouse button anytime while the test is running to stop testing. Let it run for several passes and see if you always get the same errors in the same places. If the errors move around, I'd advise that you have HD controller or other ACSI/DMA related problem (such as a bad cable). Once you have the low-level hardware I/O errors under control, Sentry should be able to repair the "illegal cluster link" error. Well at least it can put the disk back to a sound state. Depending on what "should" be where the illegal cluster link is, you might lose some files and/or directories. These might come back as "fix" files (recovered orphans). ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 64 Thu Mar 19, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 07:49 EST David: I did not run it in forever mode but I ran it numerous times with the errors always in the same spot. I will check it out after Syscon. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 65 Sat Mar 21, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 12:24 EST >format the disk. The DT program included with Sentry will perform low-level >sector testing and mark-bad operations. Run it in the "test-forver" mode to Hmmm what is this DT program? I have been updating my HD Sentry from your BBS and I don't have anything besides HD Sentry and the PCDBOOT programs. Is it something I need to send in an update fee for? Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 66 Fri Mar 27, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:28 EST Wayne, the DT program started shipping with Sentry a few years ago. It is available on the BDT BBS in the SENTRY file area as DT.ARC. Attention all TT030 users. If you are using any version of HD Sentry with an Atari TT030 computer, I need to hear from you about beta testing some changes. There is a rumor that not all TT's are created equal, especialy with respect to SCSI, and I only have one TT to test with. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 67 Sat Mar 28, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 05:17 EST A few questions: 1. If I check out a partition but do not optimize it then why should I have to reboot? A message comes up to do so whenever I want to leave the program. 2. Your program lists all active drives. How do you know that drive B is not turned on? I've tried using the BIOS routine Drvmap() with Laser C but it always says that drive B is active since (I think) it assumes that drive A can pretend it is drive B. If you prefer to not give out your programming secrets I'll understand. 3. Sentry can mark out bad sectors. How does it do this? I assume that it does what disc doctor does- puts them in a bogus hidden file? Is that why you recommend using low level programs to map out the bad sectors? How do they do it? I assume that if I later try to optimize the partition and have a "bogus hidden file" with bad sectors then it too will get moved- causing havoc? If I use SUPUTL.PRG from Supra to map out bad sectors can it do so without any damage to the partition? How does it map to SCSI? What does that mean? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 68 Sat Mar 28, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 08:36 EST David: I have a TT and have been trying to fix my H partition. I am afraid that it is useless though. It marks certain bad sectors and others I keep getting the error that my data is bad. This is a prompt from TOS not your prg. I select cancel and it forces it to go further until finally it bypasses those sectors. When it runs again, it does the same exact thing at the same exact point. What can I do? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 69 Sat Mar 28, 1992 P.GRIFFITH2 [PGRIF] at 17:17 EST I wish to upgrade my HD Sentry and wish to do so via modem. What do I need to do? Can you answer me in E-mail? Thanks. Paul ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 70 Sat Mar 28, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 22:00 EST >2. Your program lists all active drives. How do you know that drive B is not >turned on? I've tried using the BIOS routine Drvmap() with Laser C but it >always says that drive B is active since (I think) it assumes that drive A can >pretend it is drive B. If you prefer to not give out your programming secrets >I'll understand. I found a method to figure out if Drive B was actually online. In the Abacus Atari St Internals book it gives a memory location for a system variable called _nflops. By reading the value of that location you can figure out if there is an no floppy drive, A: drive, or both A: and B: online. (Note: Online means powered up at the time of the boot. The drive may be physically attached but not online because you didn't power it up when you booted the computer) The address was $4A6, but I'm not sure that is the same in newer Tos's (1.6x and up) I know it's valid for Tos 1.0 through 1.04 (Rainbow Tos) A value of 0 is no floppies, 1 is an A drive, and 2 is A and B online. It aggravated me too that Drvmap showed drive B as being online whether it was or not also. Real aggravating when you're running a program from remote and can't click the cute little dialog saying "Put Disk B in Drive A". Mapping the bad sectors to SCSI means that there is no hidden file. It marks the bad sectors to the SCSI mech itself and the mech substitutes a good sector for the bad one requested by the OS. It does it transparently so that as far as the computer is concerned it is accessing the sector it requested. It is much more efficient than the old bad sector map, but you must have a SCSI drive for it to work. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 71 Sat Mar 28, 1992 DOUG.W [ICD RT] at 22:22 EST _nflops at $4a6 is a document (i.e. guaranteed never to change) system variable. --Doug ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 72 Sun Mar 29, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:52 EST J. ZORIN, Yes, the current version of Sentry (V1.23) does tell you to re-boot sometimes when you really don't need to. If you have done no repairs and no optimizations, then you do not need to re-boot. The new soon to be released version only tells you to re-boot when you erally have to. There is a system variable at location $4A6 which contains the number of floppy drives on the system. That's how sentry knows there really isn't a drive B. TOS (and MS- DOS) define a range of FAT values to indicate bad sectors. Sentry recognizes such clusters in the FAT and won't move them, so an optimize will still work. The reason I recommend the manufacturer's software to map out and test bad sectors is because that software whouls be able to perform the hardware- specific intelligent bad-sector mapping provided by many SCSI drives and controllers. DARLAH, is your H partition on the internal TT SCSI drive, or is it an ACSI drive? Did you run DT on the H partition? Or is it DT that you're talking about? What size partition is it and which HD format (ICD, AHDI, Supra, BMS)? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 73 Sun Mar 29, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 09:16 EST Dave: I have an internal SCSI partition I must check as well as it is non deletable, unreadable files with characters for file names. I will check that out this morning. The H partion is formatted with AHDI. It is 10.5. I ran DT. It doesn't appear to get rid of the problem on that partition. I wish you were going to TAF. If you have a Megafile, I would send you the cartridge so you can play with it yourself. Off to check D. I know what happened here. I was compressing files and LZH kept writing temporary files to partition D. Now I can't delete them. Just what I needed when I am getting ready for TAF. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 74 Sun Mar 29, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 15:24 EST The sectors will still show up as having errors, even efter mapping them out with DT. What happens is that DT goes ahead and checks them again, and if they are still bad, but marked as such, it simply tallys the error and goes on. So if you are seeing "error on drive X" messages from TOS, but DT doesn't ask if you want to mark the cluster bad, then the cluster is probably already marked bad. The clusters will show up as "unusable clusters" in the Sentry statistics report. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 75 Sun Mar 29, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 23:09 EST I guess the cat's getting out of the bag on this a little bit, so I'll mention it here. I'm considering putting together a "do it yourself" SCSI tape backup kit. This would include generic SCSI tape drivers that allow you to connect nearly any SCSI tape drive to your Atari full-SCSI capable host adapter. GEM based application software would be provided for tape backup and restore. The kit might not include any hardware; it might be simply the software and instructions, along with a list of sources to obtain the required hardware. Comments? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 76 Mon Mar 30, 1992 G.NORTON [G.NORTON] at 00:01 EST I'd definately be interested...a 105Mb Hd is a real pain to back up using 800K disks. Also I have a number of customers that are interested in just such a device...although, at a lower price than what the ICD unit is currently running at. Graham Norton Wizard Computer Systems ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 78 Mon Mar 30, 1992 R.STUTZMAN2 [RUSS] at 19:59 EST David, I think this is an ideal way to go, it allows users to get the necessary software and the best deal possible on SCSI tape drive's. You've certainly got my attention, just make sure it's TT compatible although I'm sure you would anyway. Russ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 79 Mon Mar 30, 1992 D.FARRINGTO1 [David <>< .] at 23:33 EST David: I would also be very interested in tape back-up software/kit. I think your idea is a good one. I have a SCSI 600meg FH drive waiting for such a unit. Thanks for your concern. David <>< ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 80 Tue Mar 31, 1992 B.KANTOR [CadMan] at 00:34 EST David, I am very interested in a generic SCSI tape backup. Please support SCSI-1 as well as SCSI-2. Also please document you driver interface rquirements so that we can write our own if (by odd chance) yours don't work with our hardware . I have a little experience in this area. Please E-mail if you would like to discuss it. Bruce M. Kantor ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 81 Tue Mar 31, 1992 S.SCHAPER [Meneldil] at 02:40 EST Sounds interesting, Dave, what do you estimate something like that would cost? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 83 Wed Apr 01, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 04:21 EST Wayne and others: Thanks for your comments. When I get back into "progamming mode" I'll try your method for determing if drive B is alive. Working with system variables is pushing the envelop for my skills. About mapping bad sectors to the SCSI mechanism: Gee, I don't know if mine is or not- it is a custom made drive containing the following: miniscribe 3650 drive, BMS-100 host adaptor (Berkeley), Adaptec 4070 controller. Can anyone tell if this is a SCSI machine? I think it is. Anyways, how would a SCSI machine get maped to? I.E., does it have a memory? I'm really fascinated with the inner workings of disc drives and it amazes me that anyone can understand it. Do computer science majors study this stuff. Or are you born with it? Well sorry for getting away from the topic heading. I'm guess I'm a born drifter. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 84 Thu Apr 02, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 05:26 EST Dave: I'm very interested in your SCSI tape backup kit. I can't afford the other product already available. Since I run my consulting business on my Atari I'm very concerned about backups. I use Diamondback but I'd prefer a tape system for the speed. I suggest making the instructions understandable to someone who isn't comfortable with wires and no soldering please. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to do it. I have the DVT system of backing up to a VCR. But I think the product is a bad joke. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 85 Thu Apr 02, 1992 J.HAYDEN [JOHN] at 12:57 EST Joe, The Miniscribe 3650 is a MFM drive and if my memory serves me right, you are using an RLL controller. You are not using a SCSI drive. Miniscribe has folded a few times, but some of the drives are still available. On the new SCSI drives bad sectors are mapped internal and in your case bad sectors are mapped using the FAT table. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 86 Thu Apr 02, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 20:52 EST Dave, As the others have said if the "price is right" I too would be VERY interested in a SCSI tape backup kit. My only criteria is that you be able to get individual files off the tapes as well as being able to restore whole partitions. Another MUST for my situation is support for removeable media. I have a SyQuest with several carts that I would really like a tape backup for. Right now I'm backing up my HD (Quantum 105s) onto SyQuest carts with GOOD Backup which works fine and is infinitely faster than doing it to floppies. :- ) But my SyQuest carts are being backed up onto floppies. I keep all my Fonts, pictures, etc on SyQuest carts so they don't clutter my HD. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 88 Sat Apr 04, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 03:58 EST John: Thanks for the info. on the Miniscribe 3650. But guess what? My bad sectors have just had a "spontaneous cure". I had several bad sectors that were there for the past year as I kept checking with Disc Doctor. Then yesterday I checked again with Sentry, Supra, and Disc Doctor and they were not there! I.E., no more bad sectors. A miracle maybe? Praise the lord. But just out of curiousity, how does a S.C.S.I. drive have bad sectors written to it? It has some kind of memory? Regarding the tape backup- I'd feel much more secure with it. I'm less concerned about the price than I am about setting it up and being confident that it will work. I'd prefer to pay you to put it together for me unless it the kit is very, very easy. Is that a possibility? Now regarding that price....... ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 89 Sat Apr 04, 1992 DOUG.W [ICD RT] at 09:23 EST Joe, The SCSI controller writes the bad-sector information to a reserved portion of the hard drive. When you power up the drive, the controller reads that information for use during that session. --Doug ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 90 Thu Apr 09, 1992 D.FARRINGTO1 [David <>< .] at 02:24 EDT Since we have started talking about SCSI tape units and software I started looking at tape drives. I have some questions about them and would like to ask about the terms used. I saw a 5.25 HH Tandberg 3360, 150MB, using 1/4" streaming tape (DC-6150) for $195. I don't know what "streaming tape" is? And what does "DC-6150" mean? Maybe if you wanted to you could post what type of tape drive to be looking for. This is just a thought to past the time. Thanks David <>< ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 91 Fri Apr 10, 1992 E.KRIMEN [Ed Krimen] at 02:08 EDT An idea for tape backup if no one's thought of it already: ability to backup Spectre GCR and MS-DOS partitions as well. The tape backup idea sounds good though. It's about time. :^) I remember some people on Fidonet discussing this a while ago, saying that they wanted to build their own since the ICD drive was too expensive. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 92 Sat Apr 11, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 04:48 EDT But maybe the ICD drive will come down in price if they see some competition. Viva la supply and demand. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 93 Sat Apr 11, 1992 G.T.GRAY [Gary Gray] at 14:57 EDT Sell me something David. I have a 200 meg drive on this TT. It is full, I dare not get more storage without an affordable backup. I can't justify the price of the ICD unit. A SCSI drive I could move from machine to machine. Thanks Gary. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 94 Sat Apr 11, 1992 R.GIERL [Rick] at 15:07 EDT Joe, actually the ICD tape unit is not overpriced, at least in relation to what the components. I know someone that was impressed with mine and wanted to build himself one. He found that the Teac SCSI tape unit, in addition to being hard to find, was going wholesale for well over $500.00. When you add the cost of the case, the power supply, the host adaptor, the cables, and finally the software, the retail price ICD has set is really quite reasonable. One other thing that you may need to take into consideration will be speed. One of the reason ICD used this particular Teac unit had to do with the speed it was capable of. It can back up a full 15 meg partition in *well* under 5 minutes. Another is capacity - the tapes used with the ICD can hold 155 megs each, so most systems can be stored on one tape. I will admit that, other than my ICD unit, my only real experience with tape backup units is our system at work. It takes over 1.5 hours to back up a 60 meg hard drive on our work system. (My ICD unit backs up my Quantum 210 meg system in under a half an hour). I assume that tape technology is improving and prices are falling. Hopefully the systems that Dave's software will work with will be both cheap enough and fast enough. Who knows, it may well end up that you will be able to put together a tape backup system that will be both cheaper AND faster than the one ICD has available. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 95 Sun Apr 12, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 14:03 EDT Rick: Well then I guess I can't point the finger at ICD for their price on their tape unit but I'll point the finger at Teac. Since I haven't seen the price on these units ever drop I can only assume something fishy. But I've heard that you can buy units for DOS systems for as little as $200 which I think are without a power supply. It seems that there is room for a price drop and the more competition the better. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 96 Mon Apr 13, 1992 MIKE.KELLER [ST Aladdin] at 00:01 EDT Rick: Interesting your story about the tape backups at work and at home. You'd think one would have the slower (and cheaper) unit at home, where I can do a backup late at night, or unattended. The fast unit would be at work, where I presume downtime to be more critical. I imagine that for most of us (even if your business is at home, you do sleep!), we could stand to have a slower tape backup if it is reliable and reasonably priced. mike.k ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 97 Mon Apr 13, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:38 EDT I didn't mean for the tape-kit suggestion to be any kind of a reflection on the ICD tape unit. I just know there are lot of hacker types out there in Atariland that like to try alternatives and the tape-kit seemed to fit nicely there. It's probably true that to build an ICD clone, the price wouldn't justify it. However, if you can handle a lower-priced tape drive, or desire different tape media, the tape kit seems like one of the only solutions, short of writing your own low-lever SCSI drivers. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 98 Mon Apr 13, 1992 R.GIERL [Rick] at 18:39 EDT Dave - I agree 100%. As I said above, I am not familiar enough with what is currently available, and the costs and specifications. And I CERTAINLY wasn't trying to cast aspersions on you or your products! It could well be that one can, with your software, put together a comparable unit for 1/2 that of ICD (Frankly, I doubt it, but you never know). Whether one goes with ICDs unit, or makes their own, one of the results is the same -- you will have a faster, easier, more reliable system of doing backups. As compared to floppies, that is. Mike - My system at work is a 6 year old Altos running Xenix. The tape unit it has with it, and the backup software, is fairly old but reliable for the most part. It is part of the system and I doubt it could be upgraded without a serious upgrade to the entire system. I'd love to do it, but right now the $$$ aren't there. Pity. My personal system at home is both newer, larger, and FAR more powerful. With a Gadgets SST (68030 @ 33 mhz) and 12 megs of ram, 310 megs of hard drive at home and an Altos 986 (8086 with one meg ram, 60 megs hard drive) at work, which one deserves the slower tape backup!!??? Actually, the only advantages the system at work has over my home system is the fact that it is a 10 user multi-tasking system and the software for it fits our business fairly well. Other than that.... Rick ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 99 Tue Apr 14, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 07:20 EDT Rick: interesting you mention the Altos. A friend of mine had 1 for many years and he tells me of how much he disliked the tape backup. He has a very specialized service business for which software was available on the Altos. But the software has now been converted to DOS and he went over to a 486. Perhaps your software could be converted to DOS and you could run it with an emulator on your home sysem. When this tape drive kit comes out I'll have to compare the price and inconvenience to put it together with the low costs on removable hard disks which will have the convenience of being familiar to work with. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 100 Tue Apr 14, 1992 R.GIERL [Rick] at 19:52 EDT Joe - I don't DISLIKE the tape backup system on the Altos. It's just that it is slow as molasses compared to the ICD system on my ST. While I don't have anything else to compare it to (not being familiar with any other tape systems other than the two I use), perhaps the (exceptional??) spped of the ICD system is unusual, making the Altos SEEM slower than it really is. The ARE other ways to go other than converting to DOS. We have looked at getting a 386 or 486 box and converting from Altos Xenix to SCO Unix, but - unfortunately - the $$$ aren't available right now. While I DO prefer my ST and TOS/GEM to the Altos, I DO like Xenix and would MUCH rather stick with Xenix/Unix rather than go to DOS. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 101 Tue Apr 14, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 20:53 EDT Dave, I too agree that I can get by with a tape backup both slower and cheaper than the ICD unit. While I wouldn't want to take 1.5 hours to backup 60 megs I can stand more than approx 20 minutes for the ICD unit. The size of the ICD unit is nice (155 megs) but many wouldn't need that much size.(I do ) I think the whole idea of the tape kit is to allow the user to tailor it to his/her needs instead of buying a unit all premade which may be too powerful, or not powerful enough for their needs. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 102 Tue Apr 14, 1992 B.KANTOR [Bruce] at 22:13 EDT David, I'm not an expert on tape drives but I have enough knowledge to be dangerous. Streaming 1/4" tape drives usually adhere to the QIC format specification (I am most familliar with QIC-36 type drives). They are usually quite reasonable. Several controller venders (e.g EMULEX and Adaptec) make QIC-36 to SCSI type 1 controllers. These are also avaialable quite cheap. I think both a 60 meg drive and controller can be had for under $250. I hope this helps. Bruce M. Kantor p.s DC-6150 is the cartridge type. (i.e the type of tape, similar to the difference between 5.25 and 3.5 diskettes.) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 103 Wed Apr 15, 1992 D.FARRINGTO1 [David <>< .] at 01:53 EDT Bruce: Thanks for the info. The unit must come with the SCSI controller because the add said it can be used directly from the Macintosh SCSI port. The price on the unit was $195. From what you tell me the price sounds ok, but I'll see. Now I'll start to looking for some cartridges... Thanks again. David <>< ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 104 Wed Apr 15, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 18:35 EDT Just received Hard Disk Sentry and I have one question before giving up on a partition. When I used Sentry.prg on drive "E" I get "Unknown Disk" message and when I use DT.PRG program I get "Unrecognizable Disk" message. This partition was corrupted by PC Ditto (disk version) and I bought HD Sentry to recover it. Do you think this partition is lost forever? ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 105 Thu Apr 23, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:59 EDT Smokey, those messages mean that the boot sector for the partition is damaged in some way. Sentry operates at a level above that and needs at least a valid boot sector to do its job. It might be possible to manually reconstruct the boot sector, assuming that is easier than re-formatting and restoring from backups (you do have backups, right? :-) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 106 Fri Apr 24, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 20:10 EDT >D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:59 EDT >Smokey, those messages mean that the boot sector for the partition is damaged >in some way. Sentry operates at a level above that and needs at least a valid >boot sector to do its job. It might be possible to manually reconstruct the >boot sector, assuming that is easier than re-formatting and restoring from >backups (you do have backups, right? :-) I was afraid that was the answer. Yup, I have a b/u but there was some changes since last Sunday. (For me every Sunday is b/u day.) I have gone ahead and b/u and repartition the drive. My little 50 megs is now 6 partition long! Unfortunately, it took me the whole day to rearrange everything. Another question - I have autover.tos, Sentry, DT and GMAP. DO I need them all? Won't DT, autover and GMAP accomplish the same aim? (I know autover can be used at bootup.) ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 107 Sat Apr 25, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:24 EDT B.Harvey, As far as testing of the drives, DT, AUTOVER and GMAP perform most of the functions of Sentry. Only the SENTRY program itself, however, will repair and optimize those drives. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 108 Sat Apr 25, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 08:09 EDT David: I used your backup prg and it worked like a charm. Thanks!! ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 109 Sat Apr 25, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 11:22 EDT D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:24 EDT >B.Harvey, As far as testing of the drives, DT, AUTOVER and GMAP perform most >of the functions of Sentry. Only the SENTRY program itself, however, will >repair and optimize those drives. Therefore, I can dump AUTOVER and DT? GMP will recommend if you need to optimise while SENTRY doesn't. Are you planning to implement the graphic part of GMAP in the next version of SENTRY? I read you have one in the works and I am just curious. ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 110 Wed Apr 29, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:34 EDT Smokey, Don't dump DT. It performs low-level disk testing which Sentry doesn't perform. The new version of Sentry V1.3 is now out and the graphics of GMAP are incorporated into it. You can upgrade for $10 or download the new version from the BBS at (510) 530-9682. Then you could dump GMAP, if you really have to "dump" anything :-) - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 111 Sat May 02, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 17:38 EDT David Can I upgrade via modem if I give you my reg # but have't sent in the card? I have a reason!! I will be buying a house half way accross the continent and don't want to forget to change addresses for all my new software purchases. Other than GMAP are there any other changes? Will DT be included, eventually? ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 112 Tue May 05, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:31 EDT Smokey, if you send in the reg. card, you can be cleared for the BBS and you can download the software from there. You can't get the new docs that way though. There is no way unless you have sent in the reg. card. Use your old address on the reg. card and then you can send your new address info via the BBS, or here on Genie, after you move. At this point the plans are to keep DT a separate program, to keep the size down. Other changes to the latest sentry include a scrollable window for the "threatened files" list and lot's of new graphics (grow bars etc.) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 113 Fri May 08, 1992 B.AEIN [B Man] at 20:26 EDT ADD ANOTHER to your list of tape backup chronies. I am using Tos 1.2 and will be upgrading from a Quantum 105 to a Q 240, and unless Michtron doesn't release their upgrade to HDtoolkit when they said (less than a few weeks, yes I spoke to them 5/8/92) I will need to buy your software. My dealer said I should upgrade to Tos 1.4 if I'm gonna use a 240 megger. Anyone use larger than 16 meg partitions with Tos 1.2, any opinions about doing this? Thanks Bman P.s. The Tape backup software should allow a list of files and folders to be excluded from back up (preferable have a backup all BUT option, where a file selector is given to the user to pick what they do not want backed up and to repeatedly use the file selector to build up the excluded list), singal file restore, and an estimation of how long backup or restore functions will take. Is it safe to make image backups of Data Diet compressed files? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 114 Wed May 13, 1992 G.NORTON [G.NORTON] at 00:15 EDT Your Dealer was correct in saying that TOS 1.2 can only support partitions up to 16MB. Upgrade your machine to either TOS 1.4 or the TEC board from the Codeheads (TOS 2.06) which your dealer should be able to get. Whichever one you decide to go with you will not an incredible difference in speed accessing your hard drive amoung other improvements. Graham Wizard Computer Systems ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 115 Wed May 13, 1992 B.AEIN [B Man] at 22:44 EDT G. Nortan, "decide to go with you will not an incredible differnce" Is that Not or Note? I hope Note. What is the going price of Tos 1.4? Bman ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 116 Sat May 16, 1992 W.LAMAR [Walter] at 00:16 EDT David, I am a registered user of both HDTOOLKIT and SENTRY. I recently logged onto your BBS and am wondering how to get authorized to download the upgrade to SENTRY. I would have left a message to the SYSOP but couldn't figure out how to do that. Could you point me (and others with this problem) in the right direction? Walter Lamar ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 117 Sun May 17, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 17:38 EDT Walter, you're cleared on the BBS. I got the message you left on the BBS, so I guess you figured out how to send one. For anyone else having this problem, type 'M' at the main menu of the BBS, which takes you to the Message base menu. Then type 'E' to enter a message to the default message base, which will be the GENERAL message base, which is fine. Send the message to SYSOP asking for access; leave your name and the reg. numbers of the software. David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 118 Mon May 18, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 02:28 EDT Is it possible for BDT to send me a catalog of their ST software? If so, can I Email my address to David, or could you post your office number so I can call to request one? I am especially interested in your harddisk utilities and your upcoming tape backup software. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 119 Tue May 19, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:18 EDT Vince, no problem. Email to me at D.BECKEMEYER, or call 510-530-9637. Also, feel free to ask any specific questions here. Thanks. David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 120 Tue May 19, 1992 J.GNIEWKOWSK [GE-Lamp ST] at 21:48 EDT David, I recently purchased Hard Disk Sentry version 1.23 and was wondering what the upgrade consisted of and upgrade policy. Also I would like to ask your opinion on hard disk cacheing software. When I bought my new STe, I lost the use of ICDs cache and would like to install something similar to it on the STe. Right now I am test driving Kwik Disk Plus by Magnum Software (v 6.5) but notice this does not have read/write caches, only TOS and FAT buffers. Do you have any suggestions (or anyone!)? Thanks! John GEnie Lamp ST Co-Editor ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 121 Tue May 19, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 23:19 EDT David @ BDT - Thanks. I'll email my address to you. BTW, how soon before the software kit for HD backup to SCSI tape is ready? Vince ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 122 Wed May 20, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 22:55 EDT John, The V1.30 upgrade consists of the software and (optionally) a new manual. You can upgrade by sending the disk to: Beckemeyer Development PO Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 Along with the $10 update fee. Or you can sign on to our BBS at 510-530-9682 (V32bis/V32/24/12 24hrs) and download the new version, if you're registered (sent in the reg. card). If you would also like the new manual, please send an additional $5 ($15 total). The new manual has a blue cover. If your manual has a white cover, then you have the old manual. The new Sentry V1.3 has a bunch of nifty new graphic dialogs, including a disk- map feature which shows a picture of the data arrangement on your disk, which can be helpful to decide whether or not to optimize. The list of "threatened files" is also saved in a scrollable window. As far as caching software, we have HD Accelerator. An all new version was recently released. It does write-thru caching; it doesn't do write-back caching. It caches both data files as well as FATS and TOS buffers. You can control how much memory it uses. It is TT/STe compatible and works with any mix of partition sizes -- even BGM partitions. It has a suggested retail price of $39.95. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 123 Sat May 23, 1992 G.NORTON [G.NORTON] at 11:33 EDT Bman, Yup, your right it is "note". As to pricing it depends if you have a 6 chip set or 2 chip set. I'm pretty sure all TOS 1.0 machines were 6 chips. The Canadian street pricing is around $70 (2 chip) and $80 for the 6 chip set. Based on that I'd imagine you'd be looking at around $50. Best thing is to check with your local retailer for pricing. Graham Wizard Computer Systems ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 124 Sat May 23, 1992 MSP [Martyn] at 12:01 EDT I have recently started reading the messages here on Genie, and based on the messages I have seen you seem to have some interesting products. Could you leave a message listing the products, descriptions and pricing information. Thanks Martyn Phillips ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 125 Sat May 23, 1992 J.WISNIEWSK2 [Jeff - ST'er] at 14:05 EDT Toad Computers in the US has TOS 1.4 chips for $59.00, either 6 chip or 2 chip set. And yes all the early ST's had the 6 chip set. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ Jeff W. ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 126 Sat May 23, 1992 J.GNIEWKOWSK [GE-Lamp ST] at 23:16 EDT David, Thanks for the reply. I've sent in my regisration card, so i should be in your system, but I think I'll just send in the disk (as long as I can get the neon-orange one back! What a color ;) HD Accelerator, okay, that sounds like it fits the bill. I see if my local store has it in stock. John ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 127 Mon May 25, 1992 BDHALL at 14:12 EDT D.FARRINGTO1 <- Where did you see the Tandberg 3360's for $195? They are a QIC (Quarter Inch Cassette) drive.. Do they happen to have any 36xx series tape drives? The generic tape software I have (TAPEBIOS) says that the 36xx series work perfect. If I can get one of these drives for anywhere near the $200 price, I will order one NOW. You can expect about 10 Megabyte/min (at least with whatever drive the Intergraph uses at work) from a 150Mb QIC drive. "MICRO" ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 128 Mon May 25, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 15:47 EDT PARTIAL CATALOG OF BECKEMEYER DEVELOPMENT ATARI-ST PRODUCTS MAY 1992 ALL PRODUCTS LIST BELOW AVAILABLE FROM: Beckemeyer Development P.O. Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 510-530-9637 510-530-0451 (Fax) 510-530-9682 (BBS) Hard Disk Accelerator Hard Disk Accelerator is a state-of-the-art disk caching system. It improves the performance of any Atari hard drive. It makes reading and writing files faster and extends the life of your drive. Easy to use GEM interface for configuring the buffer sizes and disabling and enabling caching on specific drives. Suggested Retial Price: $39.95 Hard Disk Toolkit Hard Disk Toolkit is a reliable disk backup program. The fast, easy, and reliable way to backup your valuable data. Data compression, error correction, restore, and verify all included in this package. Backup to floppy disk, Syquest cartridge, or any TOS file - even supports SCSI tapes. Easy setup screen defines the backup options. Load and save multiple backup configurations. Predetermines how many disks will be needed for a backup. Shows the progress graphically as the backup proceeds. Suggested Retial Price: $29.95 Hard Disk Sentry Hard Disk Sentry is software to analyze, repair, and optimize hard disks. Hard Disk Sentry optimizes your hard disk, speeding up its performance. It reorganizes the physical location of files and folders on the disk, which reduces disk head movement, whic, in turn, speeds up file accesses and reduces wear on the drive. Hard Disk Sentry also automatically diagnoses and repairs common - and dangerous - disk problems. Problems that can cause your system to have trouble recognizing files, opening, closing, or deleting folders, locating files or running programs. Hard Disk Sentry detects and corrects most disk problems automatically. Suggested Retial Price: $49.95 MT C-Shell MT C-Shell is a mature and stable multitasking operating system. It allows the user to concurrently execute several programs or tasks. The complete line of MT C-Shell products includes a graphical user interface, networking, on-line help, and more. Includes powerful Unix-like C-Shell and over 70 Unix-like commands and utilities. Supports electronic mail, print spooling, networking, and a sophisticated C-like batch programming language. Suggested Retial Price: $129.95 ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 129 Mon May 25, 1992 AD-VANTAGE at 23:44 EDT David, When was support added to HD Toolkit for SCSI tape? -- Ron @ Atari Advantage ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 130 Sat May 30, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 18:53 EDT Ron, HD Toolkit recognizes the BMS-200 SCSI tape driver. When you have that driver loaded, HD Toolkit will allow you to select TAPE as an output medium. To get the SCSI tape drivers, you need to get the "SCSI tape-kit" from BDT or BMS. Contact me here in email or via phone for the details. The "tape-kit" is not fully finalized, and so far has only been sold with tape drives, but there are many users that are using the system and software now. The HD Toolkit backup to SCSI tape works much the same as backing up to a TOS file; it's fast and you don't have to change disks. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 132 Sun May 31, 1992 B.KANTOR [Bruce] at 18:03 EDT David, Does the "SCSI tape-kit" still require a BMS host adapter? I thought you were going to release a generic "SCSI tape-kit". Bruce M. Kantor ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 133 Mon Jun 01, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 00:36 EDT David - Excuse me if this question has been answered before, but does the SCSI tape kit software have all of the features of HD Toolkit? In other words, can I opt to back up to floppy instead of tape? Also, does it contain any repair or optimization features? Thanks, Vince ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 134 Mon Jun 01, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 07:07 EDT Nice upgrade! Does the program run faster or is it just the graphs fooling me? ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 135 Mon Jun 01, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 22:39 EDT Bruce, the tape-kit will support the BMS-200 and ICD Advantage-Plus host adapters. There will be limted support for older, partial-SCSI, host adapters (e.g. Supra, earlier ICD, and BMS cards). However, most tape drives will require a host adapter that supports the full SCSI command set. This is hardware issue. You just can't talk to some (most) SCSI tape drives without issuing SCSI commands which these older host adapters don't support. Here is some more information from Chris Rhodin about tape compatibility: Compatible tape drives can be broken down into two broad catagories. Those with built in SCSI interfaces and those with seperate SCSI controllers. In tape drives with seperate controllers the actual drive mechanism is irrelevant for our purposes, it need only be compatible with the controller. Controllers that have been tested are: 1) Adaptec ACB-3530 SCSI to QIC-36. 2) Emulex MT-02 SCSI to QIC-36. 3) NCR ADP-53 SCSI to Pertec 9-track interface. Tested drives with embedded SCSI are: 1) Archive 2150S. 2) Tandberg TDC 3820. 3) Sankyo CP-320SE (CP-525SE). In my experience any SCSI device that conforms to the Sequential Access part of the SCSI specification and will read and write 512 byte blocks will work. Notable tape drives that will NOT work are those that use the DC-1000 or DC- 2000 cartridges. SCSI tape drives based on these mechanisms do not conform to the Sequential Access spec. and have block sizes of 1K byte. Chris ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 136 Mon Jun 01, 1992 J.GNIEWKOWSK [GE-Lamp ST] at 23:11 EDT David, I'm not sure if I asked before, but does HD Accellerator handle > 1024 byte secotor sizes? What is the current version? John ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 137 Tue Jun 02, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:09 EDT Vince, yes the HD Toolkit for SCSI tape includes all the standard HD Toolkit features. In fact the two versions will be merged, with the tape drivers being an optional external TSR module, only available in the Tape-kit, or with tape-drive sub-system purchases. The tape kit isn't bundled with HD Sentry at this time. Sentry is the program with the disk repair and optimization features. Brian, thanks for the comments re the new version of HD Sentry. I don't think it is really much faster, but it sure seems like it is! ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 138 Wed Jun 03, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 03:13 EDT David - The SCSI Tape Kit sounds great. When will it be shipping? I have an Archive 2150S that is waiting to roll. Any plans to bundle the HD Sentry with the tape kit in the future? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 139 Wed Jun 03, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 22:46 EDT John, The latest version of HD Accel is V1.2 and it supports any mix of partition sizes. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 140 Thu Jun 04, 1992 B.KANTOR [Bruce] at 18:50 EDT David, >the tape-kit will support the BMS-200 and ICD Advantage-Plus host >adapters. There will be limted support for older, partial-SCSI, host >adapters (e.g. Supra, earlier ICD, and BMS cards). It sounds as if the "tape-kit" is not ready yet. When it's ready, can I upgrade from the old "Hard Disk Tool Kit"? If so, what's the upgrade cost and availability date? Bruce M. Kantor ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 141 Fri Jun 05, 1992 J.ZORZIN [Joe] at 06:27 EDT Will the tape kit work with the BMS-100? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 142 Fri Jun 05, 1992 B.HARVEY7 [Smokey] at 22:20 EDT David I have a question regarding viruses and HD Sentry. I have been reading the virus topic (Cat 12, topic 16) and the person have been mentioning problems with his hard drive; as far as I heard there are no HD viruses for the ATARI. The question, could/does HD Sentry detect viruses on HD/Floppy? I know, I know, it isn't a checker but it does examine the boot sector therefore, it must "see" executable boot sectors, right? ~~~~~~~~~~~~^^B^--SMOKEY--^^H^^~~~~~~~~~~~~ ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 148 Fri Aug 28, 1992 G.KICHOK at 01:52 EDT David @ BDT >John, The latest version of HD Accel is V1.2 and it supports any mix of >partition sizes. I very recently puchasedthe HD Accel and the version was 1.1, when I checked on the BDT BBS I couldn't find a category for HD Accel, I also own the SENTRY and TOOLKIT and like the ability to update them through your BBS. Where, or how can I get an update for the HD Accel, thanks Gerry. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 149 Sat Aug 29, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 00:15 EDT Gerry, we don't have a formal HD Accel registration list and that's why there's no area on the BBS for it. The only option I could think of would be for me to create an HDACCEL area. You'd have to send in your disk the first time to get validated and from then on you could download from the BBS. The "current" procudure is to send in the disk. There is a $10 US update/processing fee plus shipping. You can use your Visa or Mastercard by phone 510-530-9637. The address is: Beckemeyer Development P.O. Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 Thanks. - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 150 Sat Aug 29, 1992 D.FLORY [ALERTsys*Cop] at 19:03 EDT David, (love that name!) bought disk sentry from you at BDT by mail a while back and wanted to say that I really like it. I was surprised at how fast it is. I have (and do) use(d) similar programs on the Atari, IBM and Mac and all take a lot longer to do the same thing. Both the disk checking part and the optimization part. Nice work! Would you mind reposting the number of you BBS? I assume I could get access to the Disk Sentry area after providing my serial # and having you check the reg. list? Have had no problems with it at all, but would like to receive any updates that come along. Dave Flory, ALERTsys*Cop 09:16 PDT - 08/29/92 ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 151 Sun Aug 30, 1992 AD-VANTAGE at 02:03 EDT Beckemeyer BBS: 510.530.9682 -- Ron ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 152 Sun Aug 30, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 16:03 EDT Thanks for posting the BBS no. Ron. Dave, I cleared you for access to the SENTRY file/message areas on the BBS. Thanks for the nice comments about the program. - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 153 Sun Sep 06, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:40 EDT For those of you who are subscribing to the Internet servive here on GENIE, you can reach me for Beckemeyer Development tech. support, or for any reason at the Internet address: david@bdt.com Feel free to use it anytime. - David Beckemeyer ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 154 Thu Sep 17, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 23:52 EDT The SCSI Tape Kit is now available. The introductory suggested retail price is $49.95 including the HD Toolkit backup software ($29.95 retail). Current owners of HD Toolkit may purchase just the SCSI Tape Kit for $20. The SCSI Tape Kit allows you to connect any standard SCSI tape drive to your Atari computer and use the HD Toolkit software to do tape backups. The HD Toolkit programs are fully GEM based, easy-to-use, fast, and reliable. Multiple partitions may be written to a single tape. Backup by file, directory, partition, or the entire disk at once. Has the ability to restore a single file or directory, or restore an entire partition. Save configurations, scripting, and more. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 155 Sat Sep 19, 1992 DARLAH [RT~SYSOP] at 18:26 EDT Thanks, David for letting us know! The SCSI Tape Kit is now available..........that's great! ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 156 Sun Sep 20, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 16:34 EDT I've been using the SCSI Tape Kit for a few weeks now, so I thought I'd throw in my two cents worth. This is a really good program. I average about 3.25 meg per minute on backups. My 150 meg HD is about 60-70% full and can be backed up in about 30 minutes. Another nice thing is having David here on GEnie. He has been very quick to respond to my problems and suggestions. Vince ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 158 Mon Sep 21, 1992 R.JOHNSTONE1 [Robert J] at 00:45 EDT David, In the instructions for the Tape Kit you state that the tape device must be at SCSI 4. I have a SCSI tape device that that was designed for a Macintosh. I am getting ready to hook up and am wondering on the connections that I should use. I would like to go with Gadgets MegaTalk but that would put the SCSI address out at 8 to 15 I believe. Is there a way to change the address to handle this configuration? Robert Johnstone Modesto, CAlif ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 159 Tue Sep 22, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 23:53 EDT Robert, yes you can change the SCSI ID that the Tape driver uses. But the only valid numbers are 0-7. There is no such thing as ACSI/SCSI device 8 on the Atari. To change the SCSI ID used by the driver, change the name of the TPDVR.PRG file in the AUTO folder to TPDRVxy.PRG, where "x" is the SCSI device ID (0-7) and "y" is the logical unit number (LUN). If you leave off the LUN, zero is assumed. E.g. to use SCSI device ID 7 and LUN 0: TPDVR7.PRG On the ACSI bus, device IDs are semi-standardized as follows: 0 - First system Hard Disk 6 - Clock (ICD and BMS cards) 7 - Lazer printer ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 160 Wed Sep 23, 1992 ST.REPORT [Ralph] at 08:34 EDT Actually, #s 5 or 7 can be the SLM Laser Printer. The difference being if SCharger is used. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 161 Sat Sep 26, 1992 B.KANTOR [Bruce] at 10:20 EDT David, Does your SCSI tape kit work with an ICD Host Adapter? How do I upgrade my HD Toolkit? Bruce M. Kantor ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 162 Sun Sep 27, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 22:43 EDT Bruce, The SCSI Tape Kit works great with the ICD Advantage series or newer host adaptors. I think that the older ones did not support SCSI-2 commandset and that is needed for the Tape Kit. I have an ICD Advantage and use the Tape Kit with an Archive Viper 150 tape drive. It works great. Vince ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 163 Tue Sep 29, 1992 B.GRIER at 22:41 EDT I would like to connect a tape drive up to my TT via the SCSI port, not the ASCI port. ICD access the SCSI port as SCSI addresses 8->15. Is it currently possible to hook the tape drive to the SCSI port or will I need an ICD Link and go through the ASCI port? Brian ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 164 Wed Sep 30, 1992 LEXICOR2 [Ringo] at 01:34 EDT I am also looking for a Tape drive for the SCSI port, can anyone recommend one and prices, please. Ringo ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 165 Wed Sep 30, 1992 ICDINC at 09:49 EDT Presently you need an ICD host adapter for our Tape Software. Keep checking the ICD RT for announcements on new offerings on thius subject. - TOM - ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 166 Wed Sep 30, 1992 B.GRIER at 21:23 EDT I think I need to rephrase my message. Since ICD supports the Atari standard of the ASCI port using addresses 0->7 and the SCSI port using addresses 8->15, are you planning on adding support for addresses 8->15 anytime soon. To Ringo: I have hooked up an HP DAT to my ST and used TAPE BIOS for the driver and gtar as a backup. This did not work on my TT. I had to return the DAT to work, but it was nice to transfer 30 meg of data between home and work. I used a LANTECH lan to get the info to the TT. Not the best but it did work. Brian ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 168 Thu Oct 01, 1992 B.MENAGH [Bill] at 18:27 EDT David: In early June I sent my disk and money order for HD SENTRY UPGRADE and new manual. By September, my bank was able to tell me that the Money Order was not cashed and I have received mu refund. However, I have now lost my master disk in the Canadian or US mail. Question: do you have records that would confirm my ownership of HD Sentry so that I canm replace my order despite loss of the master disk. Thanks for any assistance. Bill ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 169 Fri Oct 02, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 00:54 EDT Bruce, you asked if the Beckemeyer Development SCSI tape kit would work with an ICD host adapter. The answer is yes. The SCSI Kit works with all Atari ST host adapters, including Supra, Atari, Astra, all models of the ICD cards, and the BMS-100 and BMS-200 cards. early versions only worked with the BMS-200 and ICD Advantage, and this may have caused some confusion. B.Grier, ther SCSI Tape Kit from Beckemeyer Development current only supports the Atari ST ACSI port (DMA port) using one of the starndard ACSI->SCSI host adapter. Future plans are for a native TT/Falcon SCSI version. TOM @ ICDINC, I don't think anyone was asking about ICD tape software here. I think they were asking about the new SCSI Tape Kit from Beckemeyer Development, which allows users to build a do-it-yourself SCSI tape backup solution. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 170 Fri Oct 02, 1992 V.CROSS1 [Vince_C] at 01:00 EDT If you want to use the BDT Tape Backup software, you need a SCSI tape drive that supports the Sequential Access part of the SCSI spec. It must also support 512 byte blocks. I use the Archive 2150s (also called a Viper 150). I don't know how much it or others cost as I got it for free from a friend. The manual for the BDT software also mentions the Tandberg TDC 3820 and the Sankyo CP-320SE. Vince ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 171 Fri Oct 02, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:34 EDT Yes Bill Menagh, you are registered in the SENTRY database. A replacement disk is $5 US (plus the update $10 update fee). Sorry to hear the disk got lost. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 172 Fri Oct 30, 1992 J.KRZYSZTOW [JEFFREY] at 20:32 EST Just wanted you to know that Hard Disk Sentry saved 42 megabytes of non- backedup data!! This is an excellent product!!!!!! I also have a competitors product and it was unable to salvage the drive. Jeffrey ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 173 Sat Oct 31, 1992 WAYNED. [Wayne] at 21:46 EST Congrats Jeff. I too have had HD Sentry save me a few times when a competitors product didn't. Then again when the competitors product trashed my HD for about the 3rd time is when I bought HD Sentry to begin with. I've never looked back since. :-) Truly an excellent product. Wayne ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 174 Sun Nov 01, 1992 R.JOHNSTONE1 [Robert J] at 01:28 EST David, I would like to see the "Continue" button change to a "Stop" button while in the disk optimize part of the Hard Disk Sentry program. This evening I would have liked to stop the optimization procedure temporarily to get at a file on the disk. I would also like to see the "Print" feature configured to add form feed for those of us that have the SLM series of lazer printers. Robert Johnstone Modesto, CAlif ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 175 Sun Nov 01, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 18:22 EST Thanks for the nice comments, Jeffrey. I'm very glad HD Sentry was able to help you. Don't forget to tell all your friends :-) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 176 Sun Nov 01, 1992 J.CARREIRA [Joe C.......] at 21:30 EST Could you tell me what the latest version of HD Sentry is and the particulars on upgrading. I have had HD Sentry for a few years now and can't recall upgrading it recently. Thanks... Joe C....... ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 177 Tue Nov 03, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:12 EST Joe C, the latest version of HD Sentry is V1.3. There are basically two ways to upgrade. You can send in your disk, plus a $10 update fee and $5 for S&H (US). We will upgrade your old disk and send it back. If you would also like a new manual, include an addional $5 ($20 total). Send to: Beckemeyer Development P.O. Box 21575 Oakland, CA 94620 The other way to upgrade is to call our BBS and download the latest version. The phone number is 510-530-9682. 1200/2400/9600/14.4K (V32bis) speeds are supported. 24hrs, 365 days/yr. You could also call the office and order by phone ($5 extra for duplicate disk). The voice number is 510-530-9637. Thanks. - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 178 Mon Nov 16, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 01:34 EST I have received so many calls lately asking where to obtain SCSI tape drives that I have decided to offer a few models for sale. I'll be offereing complete external tape subsystems, bare drives, and do-it-your self SCSI enclosures. I can't claim that these are the best prices out there becase selling SCSI hardware is not our primary business area and we don't do enough volume to qualify for huge reseller discounts. I have uploaded a file called SCSITAPE.ARC which contains a one-page 200 DPI IMG file, listing the products and their prices. If you don't want to download the file, I can fax you a copy of the price sheet. Leave your fax number here or in e-mail. Thanks. - David ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 179 Thu Dec 03, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:31 EST I have uploaded a file which should answer most questions about Tape backup and the ST. Especially concerning the selection of a SCSI drive for use with the Beckemeyer Development SCSI Tape Kit. The file is called SCSITAPE.ARC. A copy of this file is also available on the BDT BBS at 510-530-9682 in the NEWS file area. Enjoy. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 180 Fri Dec 18, 1992 G.KICHOK [Gerry Kichok] at 02:57 EST Hi, David Received HDAccel version 1.2 in the mail Thursday, and was a little dispointed. It crashed a couple of times, I known it says in the manual that it should run in the AUTO folder after AHDI.PRG, but I have my MEGAFILE 60 self booting. I put it early in the order, after the fix programs for TOS 1.4 . Should I place it first in the folder or does it HAVE to go on a boot diskette. I know there is know good reason for my disappoint but after buying HD Sentry and HD Toolkit, I thought the Accelerator would be more polished. I know it's an older program. And if I could get it to work I would be happy. Another problem I've had is with the HD Toolkit configuration save feature, even with the newest version 3.02, it still only saves the first few extensions. For example i would want all the files *.HAP, *.DBF, *.NDX, *.DBH, *.TXT, and *.IMG in the D:\HYPRLINK.200\ path. and when I've reloaded the configuration I'd get a messy Gerry kichok ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 181 Sat Dec 19, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 21:40 EST Gerry, I'll need to try and duplicate your HD Accel. crash. It should work where you have it in the AUTO folder. What version of Auto-booter/HDX are you using? What TOS do you have? Have you tried disabling all other AUTO programs and ACCs? Please send me the contents of your CACHE.INF file. I'll have to look into the HD Toolkit save problem too. It's never been reported before. BTW, the current version of HD Toolkit V3.20. I'll be back, with more info after I've had a chance to look into it. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 183 Mon Dec 21, 1992 G.KICHOK [Gerry Kichok] at 01:10 EST HI DAVID, Sorry for the unorganized previous message, I've _JUST_ started using aladdin and I anted to send you a message, but I wasn't quite done editing and didn't realize aladdin was so efficient. The HDAccel problem, I am using Atari HDX5 booting of my MegaFile 60 Hard Drive, I have a 520ST with ZRAM 2.5 upgrade, DEKA keyboard extender, and have upgraded TOS from 1.00 to 1.04. The reason I was going to hold off leaving you a message is because now I can get HDAccel to load properly and can't reproduce the crash. BUT the disk read times are VERY VERY SLOW. I tried Quick Index to confirm my observations, Quick Index reported a NON-Cached response of 5860%, after re-booting with HDAcell installed 580% was reported. I've tried booting with only HDAccel and Data Diet 1.0a (and I made sure the CACHE.INF file was not dietized. Contents: buffers=256 cache=c cache=d cache=e cache=f It didn't matter where I placed the program in the AUTO folder or if it was alone with Data Diet. While using HD Toolkit version 3.20 to backup only certain files, for example *.TXT, *.HAP, *.IMG, *.NDX, *.DBH, *.DBF, *.ICN in my HYPRLINK.200 folder I found that after saving the configuration, then reloading the configuration another time, only the first few extentions where saved. I also loaded the configuration file HL.DB into a text eeditor to check what was actually saved. This is what the HL.DB file looks like with just the folder and all files selected, my original setup: E(arrows)*.*\HYPRLINK.200 This is what the file looked like after selecting only the certain files: E(arrows)*.TXT,*.HAP,*.IMG,*.NDX,*.DBH,*.YPRLINK.200 I always backup with DC DataDiet turned off and the DB files not dietized. Ps I have also used version 3.20.1 of DB3.RSC with the same results. I recently downloaded it from your BBS, would you please note that the date of the file is 12/2/91 which is older than the complete version 3.20 release. Thanks, Gerry. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 184 Tue Dec 22, 1992 G.KICHOK [Gerry Kichok] at 01:55 EST Well, Mistakes again those HL.DB files should be HL.DBI, the DB files are obviously the archive files. Also, Is there an easy way to make the Backup program look and find DBI files in its start up folder. The the version I used was the 3.20 of Oct.28/92 not the Sept.10/92 version 3.20. Why is the DB3.RSC an such an old rsc file when the 3.01 was a newer file. Questions, questions, thanks for being patient, Gerry ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 185 Wed Dec 30, 1992 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 02:29 EST Gerry has indeed found a bug in the HD Toolkit config files. They don't save all the patterns. A new version of the HD Toolkit has been uploaded to the BBS (510) 530-9682. The version is 3.21.0. One other chnge with this version is that the .DBI files are now looked for in the current folder rather than "C:\". I'll have to test some more with HD Accel and Data Diet. Can you list for me all the programs in your AUTO folder and all .ACC files? Thanks. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 186 Wed Jan 06, 1993 G.KICHOK [Gerry Kichok] at 01:25 EST David, thanks the HD Toolkit update is great. If you check my previous message I stated that with only HD Accel and DataDiet in my auto folder their was a 10x slowdown. No ACCs, the hardware, TOS 1.4 on an upgrade 520ST (circa 1985, original owner) with a Z-Ram 2.5meg (which is probably the culprit). Gerry ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 187 Sun Jan 10, 1993 D.BECKEMEYER [David @ BDT] at 22:45 EST OK, I'll see if I can duplicate the situation, Gerry. What version of Data Diet was it? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 188 Thu Jan 14, 1993 G.KICHOK [Gerry Kichok] at 03:34 EST Let me TEST again, AUTO-XBoot.prg II HDACCEL.PRG v.1.20 (copied off the original disk again) ACC-none AUTOBOOT- nothing TOS 1.4 Z-ram 3d 2.5meg MEGAFILE 60-Atari HDX 5-4x15meg partitions No DESKTOP.INF file. Verify appears to be OFF Well now I get a value of 1977% instead of the 580% I had before and indeed it didn't seem as slow, but its still not as fast as with out a cache at 5860%. This was for the DMA 64k read using Quick Index 2.2. Thanks for the reply, Gerry ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 191 Sat Apr 03, 1993 J.KRZYSZTOW [JEFFREY] at 14:24 EST David, I purchased your Hard Disk Toolkit Plus SCSI Tape Kit (v3.21.0) and have some questions and minor problems. ===== First the problems. >>>>> DB.PRG: 1) The very first time I use DB to backup a partition, DB gives me an error dialog box: Cannot Initialize Tape Unknown Error I just hit enter for and all is OK. 2) There was a file called ????????.O on a partition and DB gave me the following dialog box: \RESCUE\????????.O is not a va Check the spelling and try aga When I pressed enter, the program bombed with 2 bombs and then I was back at the desktop. >>>>> DR.PRG: 1) The first time I run DR.PRG to verify a tape, I get an error dialog box: Cannot Initialize Unknown Error I just hit entry for and all is OK. 2) After changing tapes to verify the next tape, I get a error dialog box: Cannot Rewind Tape Media Changed I press enter, and the new tape rewinds and goes about OK. ===== Now for some features/questions. In order of importance. >>>>> DB.PRG 1) How can I exclude certain files and / or sub-directories? I use a program called Data Rescue to track file deletes. It copies the file(s) I delete into a folder at the root of each partition called RESCUE\. I would not like to back these files up as well as any file ending in .BAK. Is this possible currently? If not, can it be added? 2) When using compression, how can I found out how much space was actually used? This information would be useful to know if I can backup multiple partitions to tape. 3) Have the DB default to TAPE for backing up. 4) Is there any way to determine the capacity of a tape? 5) If the current tape fills up, will DB prompt for another tape? >>>>> DR.PRG 1) Have the DR default for SOURCE be tape. >>>>> Backup.ttp/Update.ttp/Retore.ttp Do these support the tape drive? So far I have been very pleased with the product! I have already backed up and verified all 222 megabytes of my hard drives. Jeffrey ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 192 Sun Apr 04, 1993 D.CADY [DUANE CADY] at 17:27 EDT Test -- Is anybody out there ?? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 193 Sun Apr 04, 1993 BRIAN.H [ST~SysOp] at 17:54 EDT Duane, the last time Dave was here was the 10th of January with message 187. I will EMail him. *******Brian********* Written on Sunday 04 April 1993 at 06:54 p.m. AST ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 194 Mon Apr 05, 1993 S.SCHAPER [Meneldil] at 00:27 EDT What is the relationship of Hard Disk Toolkit and Hard Disk Sentry? What is Hard Disk Toolkit? I'm about ready to order Sentry - meant to a couple of weeks ago, but what is this other product? ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 195 Tue Apr 06, 1993 A.FASOLDT [Al Fasoldt] at 03:25 EDT Test -- yep! Al ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 196 Tue Apr 06, 1993 J.KRZYSZTOW [JEFFREY] at 23:20 EDT Hard Disk Toolkit (and the new Hard Disk Toolkit Plus SCSI Tape Kit) is a program to backup your hard drive drives to floppy (or tape). Hard Disk Sentry is a program to fix errors and optimize your hard drive. The only relationship I know of is they are both by Beckemeyer Development. I have been using Hard Disk Sentry for a couple of years now and have found it to be an EXCELLENT program! Jeffrey ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 197 Wed Apr 07, 1993 G.KICHOK [Gerry K] at 01:29 EDT Meneldil, Well I own 3 of Beckemeyer's hard disk products, and if you can read back 50 or so messages David posted information about the Hard Disk Toolkit and Hard Disk Sentry. The third is the Hard Disk Accelerator, a good program that I had problems with crashing at first. In my opion I am beginning to find some of these products dated and slow. I log onto the Beckemeyer BBS about once a month and have been a little disappointed by the lack of attention these products recieve as compared to some of his other work. I hope that he is working or considering working on this trio to increase speed and compatibility with the falcon's new features. I tried the demo of Diamond Edge here in the library and liked it better than the Hard Disk Sentry, so I bought it and have found that it is much, _MUCH_ faster at checking and optimizing drives. Diamond Edge disk repair and optimization also has more options, but I found the Hard Disk Sentry repair and optimization to be a very steady and safe product. Then I kept an eye on the Diamond Back II disk backup category and found it better supported by Oregon Research Associates, than the Hard Disk Toolkit is by Beckemeyer Development. I had a friend bring over his copy of Diamond Back II and tested it side by side with the Hard Disk Toolkit. Well, there were pros and cons for both, and they backed up at about the same speed. No compression (DataDiet already did it); write verify off (to floppy); full 15 meg partition on a MegaFile 60; TOS 1.4; no disk cache (please). DB II: More backup configuration options, exclusions. Uses a standard backup format, so you would be able to go and copy one file of the disk. Excellent restore options. Plus the fast format option (Diamond Format). Hard Disk Sentry: Backup to a single file on a partition, such as tape backup (extra), or cartidge, or floptical. Verify backup option. Writes information to EVERY sector of the disketes, therefore 1 or 2 less disks. Why was I considering another backup utility? The Restore options gave me problems when I wanted just ONE file back. And the backup diskettes must be in perfect conditions, I had several unsuccessful backup attempts. I am now looking at Master Cache here in the library as a replacement for the Hard Disk Accelerator, I gotta keep up with the times. Gerry K. - HBO-AUG Librarian (Hamilton-Burlington-Oakville Atari User Group Librarian) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 198 Wed Apr 07, 1993 D.LIVINGST11 [ErnestBovine] at 06:35 EDT Sentry's greatest virtue is that it is so reliable. It hasn't caused any errors (physician: first, do no harm) and has been able to repair every problem I've had. Old Hard Disk Toolkit has the best de-frag algorithm. It puts the files that it de-frags at lower sectors, and lets the ones that never change eventually migrate to the higher sectors. Thus you can use it regularly, and it never takes very long, since it rarely has to move more than a few files. Sentry and Diamond Edge, on the other hand, move lots of files every time you defrag. Sentry moves them all every time, and Edge often does, depending on which folders they are in. I really prefer the HDToolkit way, since there's less wear & tear, and it's so much faster, and less chance of catastrophe when you only move aa few files. Unfortunately, my HDToolkit won't run on partitions > 16 MB, so I cant use it anymore. Edge is the most fun to watch. ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 199 Wed Apr 07, 1993 E.WISNIEWSK1 [Jeff - ST'er] at 14:22 EDT Meneldill, Hard-Drive Tookkit was put out by Michtron a long time ago. Hard-Drive Sentry is the one put out by Beckemeyer Development. Given a choice between those two and I would get Sentry. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ JSW ^^^^ ^^^^ ST'er ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Tuesday, April 6, 1993 - 6:04:40 pm ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 200 Thu Apr 08, 1993 J.MORRISON38 [~ Jimmo ~] at 03:58 EDT J.KRZYSZTOW [JEFFREY] What sort of tape drive are you using? Speed? Cost? Could you briefly describe your hard drive and tape setup? ------------ Meneldil... I posted a message on Canada Remote Systems (probably 6 years ago) asking what hard disk checker/optimizer was bullet-proof; I was told 'Hard Disk Sentry'. I bought it then, and have never been sorry. It has been very stable (perhaps it is a bit dated in its interface)! The options selected in various programs can vastly affect their performance; e.g. 'write gap' in Sentry; make sure the options in comparable programs are also equal. ------------ I think everyone should try and be as 'accurate' as they can in their advice to someone who is looking for help with a product that is new to them. For example, in the last few posts, someone has said that 'Hard Disk Sentry' does back-ups; it does NOT do backups. Someone else has also said that 'Hard Disk Toolkit' has the best de-frag algorithm; it does NOT do disk optimization. Probably just careless typing errors, but no doubt this is a little confusing; let's all try and keep the company and product names straight (Hard Disk Toolkit vs Hard Drive Toolkit, etc.). ---------- ~ Jimmo ~ Would someone please proof-read the above post? :-) ------------ Category 2, Topic 34 Message 201 Thu Apr 08, 1993 E.WISNIEWSK1 [Jeff - ST'er] at 07:35 EDT My mistake - Michtron also put out a Hard-Drive utility program that was fairly close in name to the one put out by Beckemeyer Development. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ JSW ^^^^ ^^^^ ST'er ^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Wednesday, April 7, 1993 - 6:54:28 pm ------------