[WinMac] Re: OT: MacOS 8.6 disk drivers

Daniel L. Schwartz(expresso[at]snip.net)
Tue, 25 May 1999 16:43:22 -0500

At 10:44 AM 5/25/99 -0500, Leonard R. wrote:
>At 9:34 AM -0500 5/25/99, Daniel L. Schwartz wrote:
>> This is off the WinMac topic, but since the subject of disk drivers has
>>come up, I've always recommended LaCie Silverlining. The current released
>>version is 5.8.3, and although this version has been out for almost 2 years
>>(for MacOS 8.0) it did NOT need updating for MacOS' 8.1 through 8.6.
>
> As long as you were only using it on a HFS disk and NOT an
>HFS+ disk, that's probably true. The only reason that ANY disk
>driver needed to be updated for 8.x was to support HFS+ - otherwise,
>nothing has changed.

        Silverlining 5.8.3 can't create HFS Extended partitions; but simply use
the Finder command to Erase Disk and then create a new file structure that
is HFS Extended. No big shake... And it works all the way up through beige
G3's. [Untested on B&W G3s]

> Putting Silverlining on an HFS+ disk is about as safe as
>putting the same disk in the microwave for a couple of minutes...

        Works for me... On many production NuBus & PCI 60x Macs, as well as PCI
Macs & clones with G3 cards...

>> Over the years I've found that FWB's HDT disk drivers have ALWAYS had
>>"problems" of one sort or another, constantly requiring updating.
>
> They also provide more functionality (encrypted disks, etc.)
>- and as we all know - with more features, comes more bugs. I also
>believe that HDT supported MANY more devices than SilverLining did -
>in terms of new removable media types that have appeared over the
>years.

        Not really: Silverlining supports anything I've thrown at it
- Even three
IBM DGVS 9 gig drives - Which were introduced long AFTER SL 5.8.3 was
released.

>>And whenever you update a disk driver, you darn well better back up your
>>data... Especially if it decides to move partitions around in order to
>>accommodate more driver code. Yikes!
>
> Backing up is always a good thing. However, a MacOS disk
>driver should NEVER have to move partitions to make room for the
>driver code - that's not how drivers work on the Mac.

        Wanna bet? If there's no room for the driver code, i.e. if the initial
space created was too small, then some Mac disk formatters will indeed move
partitions - Even Silverlining.

>
>LDR

        Cheers!
        Dan

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