3.10.1.2. Where can I find 3.5" DS/DD Media for my Lisa?

[LisaFAQ] > [Hardware] > [Floppy, Twiggy, and Tape media used with the Lisa] > [Floppy Media]

3.10.1.2. Where can I find 3.5" DS/DD Media for my Lisa?

The Apple Lisa 2 uses normal 3.5" Double Density (DD) floppies (not High Density HD 1.44MB)

DD floppies and drives were originally available Single Sided (SS) and later, Double Sided (DD), which are still available (ca. 2006).

DS/DD floppies are commonly referred to as 720K due to their capacity when formatted on a PC MFM drive; the same DS/DD floppy will format to about 800K in a Macintosh with an 800K drive. Similarly, a 400K SS/DD disk may be labelled 360K.

The 400K drives in stock Lisa 2 computers use only the bottom side of the floppy, so either SS or DS floppies can be used for those drives.

If you have installed the 800K drive upgrade for use with MacWorks Plus/II, use DS/DD floppies if possible.

When DS/DD floppies first became available, they were quite a bit more expensive than SS/DD floppies, so many people used SS/DD floppies in DS drives. This usually works fine, however there is a potential concern in that the second side of the SS floppy may have failed certification testing. There was also a rumour that the second side was not always polished, which may cause faster wearing of the upper head of a DS drive.

In a pinch you might be able to cover the HD detection hole on a 1.44M floppy and try to use that, but it's best to locate DD floppies for your Lisa as the magnetic properties of HD and DD disks are different.

Used floppies are plentiful and can be re-used. PC formatted floppies can be re-initialized for use on a Lisa. Note that the Lisa 2/10 will sometimes have problems re-initializing a previously initialized disk. See the section on making floppy disks from images for more information.

I'm not affiliated, associated, or even a customer of the following links. They came from froogle. YMMV. Caveat Emptor. If you find other sources, please let us know.

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