Chuck writes:
I'd probably start with the US Commerce
Department. In their industrial
report summaries, the product code is "36950 11"
e.g.:
https://tinyurl.com/y8ks3mdd for 1987-88
Wow, Chuck, that is fascinating info that I had no idea was so easily accessed. Thank you!
It looks like the tape production in the 80's was 30M to 40M reels per year so my
guess at 100M was high but not too far off.
I super like some of the product codes just on those pages. E.g. 35711 22 is Analog
Computers, and 35751 75 is Teleprinters under 20 characters per second (e.g. Model
33's which saw a steep decline through the 1980's. I'm guessing they
would've peaked in the early 70's.).
Tim N3QE