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From: neff@pitstop.West.Sun.COM (Mike Neff)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.dec
Subject: Re: dec3100 tape drive
Keywords: dec3100 system , compatible tape drive
Message-ID: <718@pitstop.West.Sun.COM>
Date: 22 Jul 89 21:35:53 GMT
References: <1934@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU> <2836@helios.ee.lbl.gov>
Reply-To: neff@pitstop.UUCP (Mike Neff)
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc., Mountain View, CA.
Lines: 58

In article <2836@helios.ee.lbl.gov> envbvs@epb2.lbl.gov (Brian V. Smith) writes:
>In article <1934@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU>, msc_wdqn@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU (Daniel Q. Naiman) writes:
>> 
>> I am considering purchasing a dec3100 and the TK50 that dec sells, even with  
>> the academic discount at $2658 seems a bit steep. Sun's tape drive is 
>> only around $1168 for me. This state of affairs seems a bit odd.
>> 
>> Does anyone know what less expensive options I have?  
>> I am somewhat new at this sort of thing. Are there inexpensive and 
>> reliable tape drives  that I can use to load the same distribution tapes?
>> What is really going on here?
>> 
>> Please post message, call or send mail.
>> 
> 
>In the first place, the Sun tape drive (if you are talking about the
>1/4 inch cartridge system) only holds about 60 megabytes and, the biggest
>pain: YOU CANNOT >>>ADD<<< TO A 'TAR' FILE.  You have to create a whole new
>tar file from scratch ('tar c') because it can't extend a file.
>
>It is true that the DEC TK50 drive is overpriced (everything sold on the
>component level by DEC is overpriced), but you do get 
>95 megabytes on a cartridge and it is faster (true, not much) than
>the Sun drive.
>

What Brian said was true a few months ago, but not any more.

The newer Sun tape drives that go with the SPARCstation 1 and the other
new Sun products are not Qic24 60MB tape drives but Qic150 150MB tape drives
( However you can still use the old shoeboxes with the newer machines if
so desired ).  The list price for the Qic150 drive is $1,600.  I suspect
that with his discount, Dan was being offered one of the new drives.
The speed is roughly the same as the older drive ( 90 ips ) and the newer
drive offers higher density ( 10,000 bpi as opposed to 8,000 bpi ).
Rewind time is also roughly the same ( 1.5 min. ).

Not being able to add to a tar file can be overcome to some degree by
winding past the end-of-tape mark of the existing image and creating a
new tar image.

Mike Neff
mneff@sun.com

>_____________________________________
>Brian V. Smith    (bvsmith@lbl.gov)
>Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory
>We don't need no signatures!

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