On Tue, Oct 07, 2003 at 03:44:22AM -0400, James K. Lowden wrote:
> Here's your personal copy.  IIRC, you don't see list-directed messages
> immediately, and it sounds like you're up late.  

(^&  Yeah, I'm up late.  And, yeah, I don't see the list messages
till sometime after they show up on the mail-index.

Thanks.


 [...]
> > (I have a real CD drive and a DVD drive, separate from the CD-RW.  Don't
> > ask. 
> 
> $ dmesg |grep cd
> cd0 at atapibus0 drive 1: <ATAPI CD-RW 16/12/40X, 97XX  V100C, V100C> type
 [...]
> cd6 at scsibus0 target 4 lun 0: <RICOH, MP6201S, 2.20> SCSI2 5/cdrom
> removable
> 
> Something like that, you mean?  ;-)

Nah, I stop at cd2.  (^&



> > Likewise, a music CD and old software CD do not appear to be recognized
> > by the CD-RW drive.
> > 
> > It looks like media can be ruled out.  The drive may be broken, dirty,
> > or (remotely possibly) unhappy sitting at cd2 rather than cd1 or cd0.
> 
> If it were mine, I'd discard the drive.  I'd recable it first, make it
> cd[01].  If that doesn't work, and you still can't mount a manufactured CD
> with it, get a new writer.  

That looks like what I need to do at this point.  But I'll try twiddling
the cable first, since it's cheaper and (strange to tell) the stores
aren't open at this hour.  (It's no happier at cd1.)

That the disk doesn't seem to recognize the media suggests to me a dead
drive or dirty lens...  Unfortunately, all that I can do to clean it
is open the drive and blow in it.  That hasn't fixed it despite repeated
attempts.  I haven't threatened its naughty-bits yet, though.

Since it *does* seem to (with some effort) recognize a blank CD-R
as valid, it may be that I can salvage it.  I'm hopeful.


> I don't think your media are stale.  CD players fail remarkably quickly
> (to this old fart, at any rate).  I don't know about dirt; I figure the
> laser gives out.  

I'd be happier about that explanation if I used it a lot.

Oh well...the consolation is that they are cheaper, now.  (^&  And
faster.


-- 
  "I probably don't know what I'm talking about."  http://www.olib.org/~rkr/