Floppy drive not working

[a dude]

I installed two different new floppy drives in my computer (Windows XP)
and neither reads disks. The light does go on showing it works (but not
constantly though, just when I click on Drive A, and Windows XP shows it
in the Device Manager, and shows no problems.(but doesn't stay on),

BUT it shows "Please insert disk into drive A:" even when there is a disk
in there, and won't read any disks.

HOWEVER, I put in an old floppy drive from an old computer, and it works
fine.

So what could be causing this weird behavior? I've ruled out the ribbon
cable being backwards, and it's unlikely the two new drives are defective.

Could it be a floppy drive driver problem or controller driver problem?

Any help is appreciated, thanks!

A dude

 

[no one]

I installed two different new floppy drives in my computer (Windows XP)
and neither reads disks. The light does go on showing it works (but not
constantly though, just when I click on Drive A, and Windows XP shows it
in the Device Manager, and shows no problems.(but doesn't stay on),

BUT it shows "Please insert disk into drive A:" even when there is a disk
in there, and won't read any disks.

HOWEVER, I put in an old floppy drive from an old computer, and it works
fine.

So what could be causing this weird behavior? I've ruled out the ribbon
cable being backwards, and it's unlikely the two new drives are defective.

Could it be a floppy drive driver problem or controller driver problem?

Any help is appreciated, thanks!

Does your new floppy have JUMPERs on it!?

 

[MGGP]

The floppy light should not stay on steadily, all the
time. It should only be on, in general, when
reading/writing a diskette or when you instruct Windows to
query the drive. The drive will also be queried prior to
Windows boot-up by the BIOS to verify that it's there,
assuming it's configured in the BIOS. It may also be
queried by your anti-virus program at Windows Shutdown.
At other times the LED on the floppy drive should be off.

You should try several diskettes in the drives that you
are having trouble with to verify that the drives are the
problem, not the diskettes. It's preferrable to test the
drive with diskettes that have been shipped with a product
rather that diskettes that you have purchased. It's just
a more reliable test.

Cables can be put in backwards in two different ways. End-
to-end backwards and side-to-side backwards. Be sure you
have the cables oriented correctly.

If the older drive works OK it's unlikely that you have a
driver problem.

Are the two new floppy drives the same brand, purchased at
the same time ? That could be a clue.

Do the two new floppy drives work OK on a different
computer ? That could be a clue.

Good Luck !

 

[a dude]

The floppy light should not stay on steadily, all the
time. It should only be on, in general, when
reading/writing a diskette or when you instruct Windows to
query the drive. The drive will also be queried prior to
Windows boot-up by the BIOS to verify that it's there,
assuming it's configured in the BIOS. It may also be
queried by your anti-virus program at Windows Shutdown.
At other times the LED on the floppy drive should be off.

You should try several diskettes in the drives that you
are having trouble with to verify that the drives are the
problem, not the diskettes. It's preferrable to test the
drive with diskettes that have been shipped with a product
rather that diskettes that you have purchased. It's just
a more reliable test.

Cables can be put in backwards in two different ways. End-
to-end backwards and side-to-side backwards. Be sure you
have the cables oriented correctly.

If the older drive works OK it's unlikely that you have a
driver problem.

Are the two new floppy drives the same brand, purchased at
the same time ? That could be a clue.

Do the two new floppy drives work OK on a different
computer ? That could be a clue.

Good Luck !

Thanks for your response! They were two different floppy drives bought
at different stores months apart, and are made by different
manufacturers. I'm wondering if the two floppy drives that didn't work
are both 3mode floppy drives which I found XP does not support, and maybe
my old drive is just the single 1.44MB mode. My drive I have now doesn't
have any documentation, and the other I returned so I don't know if it
was 3mode or not.

But I tried downloading VIA drivers for that but it didn't work. The
light comes on normally, only when I click on the "A:" drive in Windows,
but then it shows "Please insert disk in drive A:" whether there's a disk
in there or not.

I made sure the cable is on right, twisty end at floppy, other end on
mobo, and even reversed the cable which only made the light stay on
constantly.

Sigh, I guess I'll have to get my hands on a regular single mode 1.44MB
floppy drive and see if that works.

 

[a dude]

Does your new floppy have JUMPERs on it!?

Thanks for the help! I thought of that but couldn't find any jumpers on
it.