Replace Amiga's Floppy Drive with USB Reader?

xaind · 29 April 2010, 03:38

So I came across this today:

http://www.floppytousb.com/

It's a device that replaces a PC's floppy drive. It reads files from a USB flash drive, but it still "looks like" a regular floppy drive as far as the PC is concerned. You can have more than one "disk" worth of information on the USB device too (you use a small controller to select one of the folders on the USB stick to be the "disk".)

Has anyone ever done anything like this on a real Amiga? With floppies possibly going the way of the dodo soon, this could be a very cool thing to have for my A600/1200.

cosmicfrog · 29 April 2010, 04:17

um I was getting all intrested and excited. Then I saw the Price $275.00

it says If you are not certain this device will work in your equipment, then just ask!
So I suggest you email them

found this Info in USBFloppySupplementGuide.pdf

The*USB*stick*should*not*hold*more*than*720k*or*1.44MB*worth*of*data,*or*the*USB*Floppy*will*add*these*files*on*a*first‐come,*first‐serve*basis.**If*you*purchased*the*optional*file*chooser,*you*may*pickwhich*files*have*priority,*one*at*a*time;*however*it*is*simpler*for*the*operator*to*limit*the*files.

So not only do you have to buy the drive you got to buy the software if you want to use more that 1.44 meg on your lovely 2Gig SD card hehehehe

xaind · 29 April 2010, 04:32

Ahh, sorry, I should have been clearer. The device I linked to will clearly not work with an Amiga. I was wondering if anyone had seen anything similar out there that might.

Regarding the device linked: If I've understood correctly, you can have more than 1.44 meg of data on your USB stick, you just need to put the files into separate folders, each of which must contain less than 1.44 meg. You can then use the chooser device to tell the thing which folder it should use. The contents of that folder, and only that folder, then become the data that the PC "sees" on the floppy. You can thus use the chooser to "change disks" (i.e. change which folder it is using.)

If someone were to make something like this for the amiga, it would need to understand the ADF file format, or something similar, so that it could use disk images for non-dos disks. So it would definitely need to be custom made for the Amiga.

alexh · 29 April 2010, 06:58

Sony maybe ending disk production but Verbatim Imation (3M), and Maxell have said that they have no plans to end production any time soon.

There is the Standalone SD->FDD adapter

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=180489242672

I wonder if this would work?

http://www.memorysuppliers.com/smart...LAID=327820619

mfilos · 29 April 2010, 07:12

You can try this one that is almost the same, in 1/10 price

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-5-1-44MB-USB-S...item35a8dc3050

seuden · 29 April 2010, 09:08

You have to format your USB stick to "720k or 1.44mb even you have a large(e.g. 1gb) USB stick".

Akira · 29 April 2010, 18:29

Use the HxC floppy emulator.

29 April 2010, 03:38	#1
xaind Registered User Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Sydney / Australia Posts: 95	Replace Amiga's Floppy Drive with USB Reader? So I came across this today: http://www.floppytousb.com/ It's a device that replaces a PC's floppy drive. It reads files from a USB flash drive, but it still "looks like" a regular floppy drive as far as the PC is concerned. You can have more than one "disk" worth of information on the USB device too (you use a small controller to select one of the folders on the USB stick to be the "disk".) Has anyone ever done anything like this on a real Amiga? With floppies possibly going the way of the dodo soon, this could be a very cool thing to have for my A600/1200.

29 April 2010, 04:17	#2
cosmicfrog The 1 who ribbits Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: leek, Staffs, UK Age: 45 Posts: 3,552	um I was getting all intrested and excited. Then I saw the Price $275.00 it says If you are not certain this device will work in your equipment, then just ask! So I suggest you email them found this Info in USBFloppySupplementGuide.pdf TheUSBstickshouldnotholdmorethan720kor1.44MBworthofdata,ortheUSBFloppywilladdthesefilesonafirst‐come,first‐servebasis.*Ifyoupurchasedtheoptionalfilechooser,youmaypickwhichfileshavepriority,oneatatime;howeveritissimplerfortheoperatortolimitthefiles. So not only do you have to buy the drive you got to buy the software if you want to use more that 1.44 meg on your lovely 2Gig SD card hehehehe __________________ When in dought RIBBIT .... If it dos`t work hit it with a hammer, if that dos`t work get a bigger hammer.......... Have U scen my sanity Pill`s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . // *This Years Software on Last Years Hardware \\//-- Amiga* --**

29 April 2010, 06:58	#4
alexh Thalion Webshrine Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Oxford Posts: 10,502	Sony maybe ending disk production but Verbatim Imation (3M), and Maxell have said that they have no plans to end production any time soon. There is the Standalone SD->FDD adapter http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=180489242672 I wonder if this would work? http://www.memorysuppliers.com/smart...LAID=327820619 __________________ Thalion Webshrine

29 April 2010, 07:12	#5
mfilos Paranoid Amigoid Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Athens/Greece Age: 34 Posts: 1,312	You can try this one that is almost the same, in 1/10 price http://cgi.ebay.com/3-5-1-44MB-USB-S...item35a8dc3050 __________________ Visit my Amiga blog here - A4000D: 060@50/604@180, 384MB,ACard+80GB HD,SCSI Multicard Reader,DVD-RW,Grex4000 (RTG/Sound/NIC),Indivision 4000,RTG/AGA AutoSwitch,Deneb,ZorRAM - A600: 030@30, 64MB, A604, 4GB CF, Indivision ECS, Subway

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Amiga USB HxC Floppy Drive Emulator	AlfaRomeo	Hardware mods	7	08 March 2010 13:57
Question concerning USB-Multicard Reader...	mfilos	Hardware mods	0	14 June 2008 21:24
Replace A1200 Floppy	jabsy	support.Hardware	13	06 May 2007 14:12
Replace broken internal floppy with external	brian	support.Hardware	0	08 July 2006 17:53
USB mem card reader	vertigo	support.Hardware	7	06 October 2003 21:05

29 April 2010, 04:32	#3
xaind Registered User Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Sydney / Australia Posts: 95	Ahh, sorry, I should have been clearer. The device I linked to will clearly not work with an Amiga. I was wondering if anyone had seen anything similar out there that might. Regarding the device linked: If I've understood correctly, you can have more than 1.44 meg of data on your USB stick, you just need to put the files into separate folders, each of which must contain less than 1.44 meg. You can then use the chooser device to tell the thing which folder it should use. The contents of that folder, and only that folder, then become the data that the PC "sees" on the floppy. You can thus use the chooser to "change disks" (i.e. change which folder it is using.) If someone were to make something like this for the amiga, it would need to understand the ADF file format, or something similar, so that it could use disk images for non-dos disks. So it would definitely need to be custom made for the Amiga.

29 April 2010, 18:29	#7
Akira Registered User Join Date: May 2001 Location: # Posts: 12,584	Use the HxC floppy emulator.

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)