WITE 1.3 release notes

Introduction

This document contains the release notes for WITE revision 1.3 from Guzik Technical Enterprises. The highlights of revision 1.3 include:

New analog box control and fast optimization

New cartridge support

Support for new head amplifiers

Bugs fixed in WITE 1.3

Known bugs in WITE 1.3

All discussion of features and bugs in this document uses WITE version 1.261 as a baseline for comparison. For information about features and modifications prior to 1.261, please refer to the WITE user’s manual and to the release notes for previous revisions of WITE.

New features in WITE 1.3

New analog box control and fast optimization

The chip parameters optimization module for SSI4910/SSI4915 PRML read channels finds optimal chip settings based on chip Quality Monitor readings. The final value of Quality Monitor can be used as production result. Optimization modules for other PRML chips are shipped separately.

Hardware requirements for fast optimization:

• Analog box control board - Assembly rev. S or higher
• Error rate analyzer board - Assembly rev. K or higher
• RWA control board - Assembly rev. N or higher
• Adapter board for SSI chip - Fab 304100, assembly rev. H or higher

If you wish to use fast optimization but are unable to because your equipment is incompatible, please contact the Guzik sales department for information on upgrading your hardware.

Installation instructions:

1. Install this revision of WITE.
2. Start WITE, open the File | Select Modules menu, press the "Install" button and choose the CSSI.EXE file. "SSI chip optimization" should appear in the list of available modules.
3. Click on "SSI chip optimization" and then on the "Add ->" button to move the item to the list of selected modules.
4. Press "OK". Make sure that the "SSI chip optimization" item is now available under the "Test" menu.

Test features:

Number of parameters to optimize 5 (see the picture)

Optimization time 3 to 5 seconds

The test allows you to start optimization directly from the setup form by pressing the "Optimize" button. It also allows you to re-measure the current value of the quality monitor without modifying chip parameters by pressing the "Re-measure" button.

When started in this way, optimization will display the value of the quality monitor but will not produce results for grading. If the test is started by pressing the "Start" button or from a production sequence, then it reports final quality monitor value under the result name "OptQM" (see the picture below).

Enhanced head amplifier support

Support for all properties of head amplifier chips has been added in release 1.30 as well as the possibility to add support for new chips without re-installing WITE.

This addition caused changes in WITE menus and forms:

In the "Control" menu, a new option labeled "Head Amp…" has been added. This invokes a form to control all the head amplifier properties except Amplification Level, Shut Down Read Bias, Ignore Current Limits and Dual Stripe properties, which are still in the Configure | Preamp menu.

Buttons:

Values that match the database are displayed in black. Values differing from the database are displayed in blue.

New cartridge support

WITE 1.3 provides support for a new TSA-compatible cartridge that integrates the head and head amplifier and provides screw-adjustable Z-height. Additional information on this cartridge is available from the Guzik sales department.

Support for new head amplifiers

WITE 1.3 supports the following new head amplifiers: TLS24508, TLS24M508, 81M3010, M61845FP.

Other new features

It is now possible to enable and disable the monitor head serial number separately from the production head serial number in the output file, and to select the output file format for the monitor head.

Bugs fixed in WITE 1.3

If WITE was aborted under some error conditions, it sometimes left modules running. The PC would need to be rebooted before WITE could be successfully run again. WITE 1.3 correctly unloads modules to avoid this problem.

The TAA asymmetry test results were correct, but incorrectly displayed as measured in mA rather than mV. WITE 1.3 correctly labels these results.

The engineering scanning and defect erase tests sometimes failed to report errors. These tests now always report any errors they detect.

In the production result window, the scanning button was disabled after the scanning test had been run, and scanning results were not reported. In WITE 1.3, this button is enabled, and the results can be displayed and saved.

If "ASCII file output" was disabled, the production scanning result window displayed partial results. In WITE 1.3, the display is complete.

Under Windows 3.1 only, running WDCP from WITE triggered an error dialog saying "Cannot find DSPHOST.DLL." This message did not affect operation. WITE 1.3 does not display any error messages running WDCP.

During 312MP alignment, WDCP instructs the user to move the positioner to a particular hole number. This number was one greater than the correct number. The number is correct under WITE 1.3.

Several cosmetic improvements have been made to the spectrum analyzer plot.

After selecting a new PRML chip in the "chip selection" combo-box of the Control | Chip Adapter form, old values sometimes remained in drop-down list. WITE 1.3 always updates these values when a new chip is selected.

The new results of the track profile test introduced with WITE 1.26 could not be graded. WITE 1.3 makes these values available for grading with the names TPWrWidth, TPRdWidth and TPSDev.

The values for "Station ID" and "Part ID" were missing on the track profile plot. WITE 1.3 adds these values.

The default value of the track profile "freeze" option is now on.

After running a production sequence, the status bar correctly displayed the current head value, but the text box in the dashboard did not change. WITE 1.3 correctly shows the current value in the dashboard.

In previous revisions of WITE, the frequency test used a fixed HF/LF ratio for computing the result. In WITE 1.3, this ratio is selectable so user-specified patterns can be used more flexibly.

Manually switching zones could load an incorrect setup when setups in different zones had the same name. WITE 1.3 always loads the correct setup.

The Popcorn test did not work properly with head stacks, or with the "unload head" option enabled. The head would move to the unloaded position and not move back, so subsequent tests did not run properly. In WITE 1.3, the head is returned to the correct position after the Popcorn test is finished.

Pressing the zone change buttons on the dashboard while operations were pending could cause problems. These buttons are now disabled while other operations are in progress.

After running a production test, the dashboard would not reflect the currently selected head and setup. The current setup and head number is now displayed on the dashboard after testing is completed.

When changing system parameters such as the pattern file, open forms from the "Control" menu could lose their connection with WITE. WITE 1.3 closes these forms when the system parameters are changed.

During long measurements using the spectrum analyzer, results could show some occasional instability due to interruptions from the spectrum analyzer’s self-calibration. WITE 1.3 provides stable measurements using the spectrum analyzer.

Known bugs in WITE 1.3

Some bugs were found too late to be fixed for the 1.3 release and will be fixed in a later release. This section contains all known bugs that you are likely to encounter. A bug’s presence here means that we are aware of the problem and actively working to solve it. If you encounter a problem not on this list, please report it to Guzik customer support.

Buttons on some forms are enabled when other operations are still in progress. Pressing these buttons while an operation is pending can cause problems. To avoid these problems, always wait until previous operations are completed before starting new operations.

The "retest with next setup" option in the Production | Grd/Norm menu does not register results to the database after the first setup. It should not be used.

Some DOS applications interfere with communication with Guzik hardware and can result in unstable test results. Please exit all DOS applications before running WITE.