Commodore 2031
Encyclopedia
The Commodore 2031 and Commodore 4031 were single unit 5¼" floppy disk
drives for Commodore International
computers. They used a similar steel case form to the Commodore 9060/9090 hard disk
drives, and used the IEEE-488
interface common to Commodore PET/CBM
computers. Essentially, both models were a single drive version of the Commodore 4040
.
The Commodore 2031LP was functionally the same as the 2031, but used the lower profile tan case of the Commodore 1541
floppy disk drive intended for home computer
use.
These drive models used a similar single density, single side floppy data storage format to that used by the Commodore 1541
drive, but with a slightly different data marker indicating which model originally formatted the disk. The low level disk format was similar enough to allow reading between models, but different enough that one series of drive models could not reliably write to disks formatted with one of the other model series.
Floppy disk
A floppy disk is a disk storage medium composed of a disk of thin and flexible magnetic storage medium, sealed in a rectangular plastic carrier lined with fabric that removes dust particles...
drives for Commodore International
Commodore International
Commodore is the commonly used name for Commodore Business Machines , the U.S.-based home computer manufacturer and electronics manufacturer headquartered in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which also housed Commodore's corporate parent company, Commodore International Limited...
computers. They used a similar steel case form to the Commodore 9060/9090 hard disk
Hard disk
A hard disk drive is a non-volatile, random access digital magnetic data storage device. It features rotating rigid platters on a motor-driven spindle within a protective enclosure. Data is magnetically read from and written to the platter by read/write heads that float on a film of air above the...
drives, and used the IEEE-488
IEEE-488
IEEE-488 is a short-range digital communications bus specification. It was created for use with automated test equipment in the late 1960s, and is still in use for that purpose. IEEE-488 was created as HP-IB , and is commonly called GPIB...
interface common to Commodore PET/CBM
Commodore PET
The Commodore PET was a home/personal computer produced from 1977 by Commodore International...
computers. Essentially, both models were a single drive version of the Commodore 4040
Commodore 4040
The Commodore 4040 and its sibling, the 2040 and the European marketed 3040, were dual unit 5¼" floppy disk drives for Commodore International computers...
.
The Commodore 2031LP was functionally the same as the 2031, but used the lower profile tan case of the Commodore 1541
Commodore 1541
The Commodore 1541 , made by Commodore International, was the best-known floppy disk drive for the Commodore 64 home computer. The 1541 was a single-sided 170 kilobyte drive for 5¼" disks...
floppy disk drive intended for home computer
Home computer
Home computers were a class of microcomputers entering the market in 1977, and becoming increasingly common during the 1980s. They were marketed to consumers as affordable and accessible computers that, for the first time, were intended for the use of a single nontechnical user...
use.
These drive models used a similar single density, single side floppy data storage format to that used by the Commodore 1541
Commodore 1541
The Commodore 1541 , made by Commodore International, was the best-known floppy disk drive for the Commodore 64 home computer. The 1541 was a single-sided 170 kilobyte drive for 5¼" disks...
drive, but with a slightly different data marker indicating which model originally formatted the disk. The low level disk format was similar enough to allow reading between models, but different enough that one series of drive models could not reliably write to disks formatted with one of the other model series.