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DiskTest
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READ_ME
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1993-05-12
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Notes for DiskTest (DT) v2.10
=============================
DT is one of the first programs I have written for the Amiga, and
from its first public release (on Fred Fish disk 539) I did not notice
other similar programs in the Public Domain: this means that or DT is
still actual, or that nobody needs a similar program :-) .
What is DT? It is a program that checks the integrity of floppy
disks, that I have found useful in several circumstances: if you need
to transport files on floppies, e.g. from Europe to the U.S., or to
archive your data on floppies, it is better to be sure that all the
files you have copied are readable before slipping 7,000 miles away
from the original data (or before deleting the same data from your
hard disk). This program, named DT for "Disk Test", checks the whole
floppy: in two steps, firstly reading all the tracks one by one to be
sure that the support itself is reliable; and then reading, record by
record, all the files on the disc. Optionally you can avoid the first
step; the last one can take a long time if you have a lot of files,
but is, in my humble opinion, the most important in order to check the
data reliability. For the first DT I decided to mimic the aesthetic
of the program with the same name from Peter Norton (in the IBM-PC
Norton Utilities).
This program can be run from the CLI (detaches itself from the
CLI), or from the workbench; and opens a window on the Workbench
public screen. The gadget buttons corresponding to DF0 to DF3 start
the full test (both phases) on the selected drive; or, optionally, you
can drop any icon inside the DT window (that is a so called AppWindow)
to perform the second step only (file reading). In particular, if the
dropped icon is related to a directory structure (i.e. it is a disk,
a drawer or a trashcan icon) this test is performed on ALL files
belonging to ALL directories in the tree starting from there: so that
you can use DT e.g. to check your hard disk. The last gadget, that
is a checkmark button, enables or disables the listing on the screen
of the checked file names; you should find convenient to disable the
listing before dropping the icon of a 120 megabyte hard disk inside
DT's window...
Why DT? You see, I began to write programs in the pre-historic
age of the punched cards (exactly in 1968, on an IBM 7090), and when
the first mass storage devices appeared they were fragile: tests for
data reliability, to be run at fixed times, were essential. And they
_still_ are: your disks WILL fail, sooner or later, and having the
habit of performing periodic backups and diagnostics is wise.
The last release of DT (2.03), for the operating system 2.x, has
appeared on Fred Fish disk 828; version 2.10 is an upgrade that
incorporates also some changes and refinements required from users.
Between them: the support for multiply selected icons dropped in the
AppWindow; the support for the ASL file/directory requesters to select
the target of the integrity test; new menu commands; and improved text
scroller routines.
DT is a Public Domain program: you can freely distribute and
modify the program and the source; maybe you will find useful only the
routines that implement a text scroller in an almost environment
independent way (partially inspired to an example from Martin
Taillefer published on AmigaMail). Please, if you find bugs (or if
you modify in any way DT--but PLEASE leave my comment headers and my
name there) take the time to send me your comments (or your changes)
at the address given at the end of this file.
A thank to:
- Commodore: for the Amiga;
- SAS: for SAS-C v6.2;
- Gimpel Software: for FlexeLint;
- ASDG, Inc.: for CygnusED;
- Martin Taillefer: for his BOOPSI scroller;
- Peter Norton: for the original DT.
Have fun !
MLO
-----
Maurizio LORETI
Home address: Via G. Donizetti, 6
35010 CADONEGHE (PD) - Italy
Home setup: A4000, 10 MB RAM, 120 MB HD, HP DeskJet 500
Work address: University of Padova
Department of Physics
Via F. Marzolo, 8
35131 PADOVA - Italy
Work setup: A3000, 6 MB RAM, 50 MB HD, HP DeskJet 500
EMail (TCP/IP): loreti@padova.infn.it
BIX: mloreti
Work FAX: (39) (49) 844-245