Disklavier

hello

I've just joined the group -- my used 1994 MX88 upright arrived a couple of
nights ago.  I bought it via eBay for $3999 from a dealer in Dayton, Ohio
(I'll post this on the database soon).  Not the brightest way ot buy a
piano, but it seems to be in fine condition -- all the notes play, the tone
is quite good and even the tuning is surprisingly good considering that it
came 1000 miles on a truck. It came with a few PianoSoft disks, and they
play without problems.  The volume control works well. I've been able to
play midi files directly from my iBook laptop using a MicroLogic Av
sequencer.  So I'm quite happy with the purchase so far.

The manual that came with it is for a later model.  I've ordered the right
one (same as for MX80) from Yamaha, but if anyone is familiar with this age
group of disklaviers, would you mind answering a few questions while i wait
for the manual?  Or can you steer me towards FAQs -- the Yamaha site didn't
seem to be of much use.

The control unit is a DKC5R.  There is no "function" button, so how do I
initiate formatting a floppy disk?  I use a Mac, and if I put one of them
in the drive, it reads "unformatted disk"  -- perhaps a PC format disk will
work as is?
A floppy of Christmas songs was in the drive when it arrived.  I opened it
on my computer via PC Exchange, and it contained standard PC midi files.
As an experiment, I tried putting some of my midi files on that disk, but
the disklavier refused them, saying "convert disk."  How is that done?
When I put the PC files back on the disk, the same "convert" message came
up.

What is the best midi file type for disklavier, type 0 or 1?  Is there a
conversion utility for Macs to convert midi to E Seq?

I'm a paraplegic -- I've only played digital pianos up 'til now, since I
can control the sustain pedal on them using a mercury tilt switch on a
headband. I'm hoping to jack into the pedal solenoid circuit on the
disklavier to use the same head/pedalling technique.  I'll have it done by
a technician, but the first one I talked to wasn't sure how to do it.  Are
there any techie types out there who could make some suggestions about how
to proceed?

Thanks for any help.

Winfield Clark

New Boston, NH