Subject: Re: Par Problems
From: [email-masked]
To: [email-masked]
Cc: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 24 Oct 1995 15:09:34 -0400

In a message dated 95-10-23 21:03:06 EDT, you write:

>I have a  Amiga Par card/Micrapolis 2217A.  I've had no problems for a year
>or so, but now after the par plays back a few anims it starts to flash
>colored pixelated information on screen. Was told by DPS that it was a drive
>problem. Heat probably! 

The Mic. 2217 is an extremely HOT drive. I burned up my first one by
just mounting it in the case like any other drive. After that, I went to
extremes to make sure the next one would last. The new one sits
in a TO tower, opposite the PS intake with 3 inches airspace above
and below. It has run glitchless for over a year now.
...NOW...
*IF* ALL the animations are playing back with the colored blocks then it 
probably IS a heat problem. Back up and reformat the drive as others
have suggested.
...BUT!...
*IF* it's just one or two animations playing back blocky, then you're 
trying to play back at data rates higher than the disk surface being 
used can permit. The data at the outer cylinders of the platter travels
under the heads much faster than at the inner. As the disk fills from 
outside-in, your data rates go down. If the rate drops too low, you get
the colored blocks. Export the bad animation as PAR to your harddrive.
Delete the bad animation. Reorganize the PAR. Reimport the animation.
Reorganizing with the bad animation still on the drive will NOT fix it,
but an export-reimport usually does.

>>> Watch your block size settings! As your disk gets full, they'll need
to go down.

Dan Esmond
Animagic
Austin, TX
http://www.eden.com/~animagic
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