Linux Format forums

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

Nigel — Sat Jun 04, 2005 10:25 am

Author: Nigel

Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2005 10:25 am

Yippee

That's a modern version of the one I remember (you can tell it's modern because it doesn't include a cigarette smoke particle, also it's in colour), but it will suit my purposes admirably !

Many thanks

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

wyliecoyoteuk — Sat Jun 04, 2005 10:10 am

Author: wyliecoyoteuk

Posted: Sat Jun 04, 2005 10:10 am

After a google for "winchester drive heads" found this site, I think that the picture you want is near the bottom of the page.

http://www.storagereview.com/guide2000/ref/hdd/op/heads/opHeight.html

There is a lot of interesting stuff in the article

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

Nigel — Thu Apr 28, 2005 11:04 pm

Author: Nigel

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 11:04 pm

I thought I found it earlier, there's a link on http://neil.franklin.ch/Links/comp_folk_hist.html called "the flying head, the hair, the dirt particle...". Unfortunately it just gives a "Click here" gif with no URL attached.
I worked more ICL & DEC sites than IBM, so have been using those in with my searches. Although I also seem to remember looking at the diagram on the wall during the endless wait for the DG Nova to compile anything

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

towy71 — Thu Apr 28, 2005 10:20 pm

Author: towy71

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 10:20 pm

Could try trawling through IBM sites but I can't think of the right sort of question to ask, though I do remember seeing such a drive cut through at a college in Helmond in the Netherlands back in the early nineties, the case and disk weighed in at about 80 kilos the case was armour plated steel as used on Sherman tanks. This from the days when a proper computer came on two trucks and was attached to a small power station and tended by a team of dedicated technicians, the progammer was god and he was likely to be conscripted to work on COBOL programs oh joy
Dick

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

Nigel — Thu Apr 28, 2005 9:57 pm

Author: Nigel

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 9:57 pm

Wow - fantastic pictures Many thanks for the link.
But rather more modern than what I'm looking for, I'm afraid.

RE: Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

towy71 — Thu Apr 28, 2005 9:43 pm

Author: towy71

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 9:43 pm

http://www.bcae1.com/comptutorial/moreonharddrives.html

is the best I could find

HTH

Dick

Looking for a diagram of a disc drive

Nigel — Thu Apr 28, 2005 8:39 pm

Author: Nigel

Posted: Thu Apr 28, 2005 8:39 pm

Back in the "good old days" when I first got paid to play with other people's computers, every computer room had really expensive aircon, halon dumps in case of fire and a poster on the wall showing a much enlarged disc platter and head, with various bits of airborne detritus (hair, smoke particle, dust particle) to the same scale. The idea was to illustrate that they are all bigger than the gap between the platter and the head, and will all destroy the disc if they get into that gap.
Don't forget, this was when we still used removable discs that had to be stored in airtight cases - Winchester technology was still being developed.

Anyhow, I'd love to get my hands on a copy of that diagram. I've googled around, but I haven't (yet) found it on the web. I'm sure it's out there somewhere...

Can anybody point me in the right direction, please ?