Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!usc!snorkelwacker!spdcc!esegue!johnl
From: johnl@esegue.segue.boston.ma.us (John R. Levine)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.i386
Subject: What tape drive should I buy?
Message-ID: <1990Jul17.221141.5971@esegue.segue.boston.ma.us>
Date: 17 Jul 90 22:11:41 GMT
Reply-To: johnl@esegue.segue.boston.ma.us (John R. Levine)
Distribution: na
Organization: Segue Software, Cambridge MA
Lines: 24

I would like to buy a 1/4" tape drive that reads and writes 120 or 150 MB
tapes and really works on my Intel 302 running ISC Unix.  Currently I have
an Archive VP150 which has never worked, despite a fair amount of effort
both on my part and some of Archive's support people, and a complete
equipment swap.  (Hardware manuals and source to the driver didn't help
much either, the drive does things that it looks like should never happen.)
It is flaky with the driver that Archive sends out, and doesn't work at all
with the one that comes with ISC 2.2.

Anyway, I'm tired of waiting for their support people to call back, and
solicit other people's experience.  Exchanging QIC tapes is important, I'm
not really in the market for a DAT or other more modern drive.

Desiderata:

	- reliability running under Unix
	- read and write 150 MB or at least 120 MB tapes.
	- internal preferred to external, I have room and plenty of power

TIA,
-- 
John R. Levine, Segue Software, POB 349, Cambridge MA 02238, +1 617 864 9650
johnl@esegue.segue.boston.ma.us, {ima|lotus|spdcc}!esegue!johnl
Marlon Brando and Doris Day were born on the same day.