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The Amazing Disk II Controller Card | Big Mess o' Wires

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In the world of Apple II disks, there are two major types of disk controller cards: the original Disk II controller (and clones), and everything else. Both have their place. The “everything else” category includes the Apple 3.5 disk controller card, Liron card, SCSI cards, IDE cards, and more. These cards provide a standard API for software to read/write blocks, get drive status, and format the disk, all without requiring the software to know anything about how the disk actually works. These cards have built-in smarts to handle the low-level details. In contrast the original Disk II controller card is dumb as dirt, and forces the software to handle virtually all of the low-level details. And yet it’s an amazing piece of technology for its time. The first Apple II models had no built-in floppy disk support. The Disk II controller was cleverly designed to add that missing support at a very low cost, and was a major reason why Apple II computers became so popular. This disk controller was

In the world of Apple II disks, there are two major types of disk controller cards: the original Disk II controller (and clones), and everything else. Both have their place. The “everything else” category includes the Apple 3.5 disk controller card, Liron card, SCSI cards, IDE cards, and more. These cards provide a standard API for software to read/write blocks, get drive status, and format the disk, all without requiring the software to know anything about how the disk actually works. These cards have built-in smarts to handle the low-level details. In contrast the original Disk II…

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