1/4" tape drive

[Ken Sibley]

> 
> 
> GRASS Users,
> 
>      I am in need of some assistance in finding a 1/4 inch tape drive for a
> DOS machine. The 1/4" tape IS NOT the small mini data cartridge, but the full
> sized 150MB tape drive (similar to a VCR tape). I realize that I may have to
> have a SCSI interface, but would like to see if there was a system that did
> not require one.
>
I have seen or used two seperate 150mb 1/4" tape drives on PC's before:
1)Archive Viper VP150e tape drive with VP402 host controller (I beleive 
  it is SCSI).  This configuration was used in AT&T Unix 3.2.x with
  third party drivers.  I would assume there is a DOS driver for it
  from the manufacturer also as there is a much bigger market there.
2)I currently use a Sun 150mb 1/4" tape drive (SCSI of course) with
  an Adaptec 1542b SCSI controller.  I use the tape drive on the Sun,
  on my 386/33 in AT&T Unix and in DOS.  In DOS I use PC Tools 8.0
  as I only use the drive for backups.  I think the actual unit inside
  of the Sun tape box is actually a Viper VP150 drive.  

I think your biggest problem will be to find a way to read the tape.
DOS utilities are not standard and you will have to use whatever method
to read the tape in DOS that was used to write the tape.  We have had
no luck taking tapes from our Suns to the DOS side of the PC even
though it is the same drive.  We also have not been able to go from the
UNIX side of the PC to the DOS side.  We can go SUN to UNIX PC.

Good Luck,
Ken Sibley
USDA-SCS		   "Hell, if you understand everything I say,
ksibley at ncg.scs.ag.gov      You'd be me!"  - Miles Davis