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An old (1989) PST-250F external QIC tape drive by Valitek inc, USA and 250 Mb QIC tape cartridges by Wangtec
With a 256-channels, printing occurred by hammering a digit or letter (embossed on a high speed spinning metal ribbon), through an ink ribbon, onto the paper being fed through. Sometimes the sprocket holes on the paper would tear, or the operator misaligned the paper when loading a fresh box, and the paper would jam, resulting in several or more pages of data being stamped onto one more or less very inky smudging diagonal line.
The ink ribbon is visible at left centre. Just barely visible is the tube for the built-in vacuum cleaner, which was used to suck up all the paper dust that would accumulate in the various nooks and crannies. The metal ribbon (nowadays called the "character set") was removable and had to be regularly cleaned to maintain print quality (e.g., the centre of the letters A and B and similar, would gradually fill up with ink ribbon fibres and paper fibres, resulting in a blurry letterpress). The ink was replaced by taking out the used ink ribbon and putting in a brand new one - it rolled and spooled slowly like a wide scroll, back and forth several times during operation, and would last maybe a week or so, depending on the print volumes.
c1988
Commodore 64 with a tapedrive.
AI:
This image features a Commodore 64C computer along with a Commodore Datasette (1530 C2N) tape drive. Here’s a detailed breakdown:
Commodore 64C (C64C) Details:
Model: Commodore 64C (a late revision of the original Commodore 64).
Era: Released in 1986, it was a more compact and lighter version of the original 1982 Commodore 64.
Design Changes:
Beige-colored case (instead of the original brown).
Lower-profile keyboard with a slightly different key layout.
Internally, it still has the same MOS 6510 processor and SID sound chip as the original.
Popular Uses:
One of the best-selling home computers of all time.
Used for gaming, programming (BASIC), and productivity software.
Compatible with floppy disks, cartridges, and cassette tapes (like the one shown in the image).
Commodore 1530 Datasette (C2N) Tape Drive:
The white device with a cassette inside is a Commodore Datasette.
Purpose:
Used to load and save software via cassette tapes.
Much slower than floppy disks, but more affordable at the time.
Functionality:
The buttons include Play, Rewind, Fast Forward, Stop, and Record.
The LED light indicates activity when loading or saving data.
Connected to the Commodore 64 via a dedicated cable and port.
Other Details in the Image:
White keyboard (top right):
Likely a modern PC keyboard, suggesting this setup is in a mixed retro-modern environment.
Black floppy disks (to the right of the Commodore 64C):
Could be 5.25-inch floppy disks, possibly for a Commodore 1541 disk drive.
Various cables under the desk:
Power cables and other peripherals, possibly for modern and retro computers.
Stacked items and chair (bottom left):
The Datasette is resting on a chair, rather than being connected to the computer.
Historical & Nostalgia Factor:
The Commodore 64 was a revolutionary computer, with a huge library of games and software.
Many classic games were distributed on cassette tapes in Europe, especially in the UK and Scandinavia.
Loading a game from cassette could take several minutes, requiring patience.
The SID sound chip made the Commodore 64 legendary for chiptune music.
Final Thoughts:
This Commodore 64C setup is a great piece of retro computing history! If you still use it, you could try loading old cassette games, writing BASIC programs, or even connecting it to modern devices with adapters.
A model IBM 3420 tape drive unit (this one is good old workhorse 47E) with the window down and open in readiness for loading a magnetic tape onto the right-hand spindle. With the window closed, vacuum pressure would start up (green button), and the leader tape would be drawn through the read-write head assembly, down and up the guide channels on the front, and then onto the takeup spool on the left-hand side. After the calling program had completed reading or writing the tape, the unit would automatically rewind the tape, and open up the window again with a satisfying pop and sigh as the vacuum dissipated.
c1988
A 3420 model tape drive opened up, ready to clean the read-write heads, and the curved tape guides. Xylene was the cleaning fluid, applied with a filter tip for the delicate parts, and a brush-cloth for the smooth areas. During operation, magetic iron oxide dust would build up in the mechanism, so regular cleaning (once per shift) was scheduled. The outside of the Z shape marks the top of the left and right vacuum guides, where the vacuum would draw the tape down as the spools revved at a varying high speed. Using air pressure and a little hole, the vacuum guides automatically adjusted the speed of the tape to keep it constant as it whizzed past the read-write heads.
c1988
This is a DIY flash drive enclosure that pretends to be a tape drive built inside a VHS tape enclosure. There is a flash drive inside so it actually works, and when the computer accesses the flash, it initiates a bells and whistles show as if the tape was actually functional. This schematic doesn't have parts values and is probably too small to be useful. If a single person comments asking for details then I'll convert it to an instructable. Ciao.
Just 'round the corner from work is a company that sells data storage. I used to do business with them over a decade ago. They clearly have a sense of humour, right down to the North Shore City logos on the signs.
This one has just run out of the standard`14-inch lined and hole-punched paper. Paper and ribbon-ink rolls were regular stationery order items.
All the cables are in the gap underneath the raised flooring.
c1988
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Messages received during the installation of Microsoft HMC 4.5 hosting solution on VMWare servers.
Some of these are error messages and some may be of completed tasks during deployment of Microsoft HMC 4.5.