CP/M

At 18:29 18-06-98 +0100, Tony Duell proclaimed: I beg to differ. Tell that to my many 9-track tapes which are all original DEC distribution media. At least half of them are ten years old, and (I'm pleased to say) showing no signs of deterioration whatsoever. I was able to, a couple of years ago, successfully read a 9-track tape I recorded on a PDP-11/70 that was at least fifteen years old (the tape, not the PDP). No errors at all. I also have a number of QICs (Quarter-Inch Cartridges) that seem to be just as stable now as when they rolled off the assembly line at least 12 years ago. Where did you get the idea that tape is so fragile? I'd wager the ones you encountered were either of very poor quality or were stored under adverse conditions (high heat, high humidity, etc). -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Bruce Lane, Sysop, The Dragon's Cave BBS (Fidonet 1:343/272) (Hamateur: WD6EOS) (E-mail: kyrrin(a)jps.net) "Our science can only describe an object, event, or living thing in our own human terms. It cannot, in any way, define any of them..."