Well, a TZ30 is a little over an inch high, has a 'slidder bar' on the bottom below the tape slot for ejecting the tape. It has three lights and a push button on the side. The butten is to tell the system you're ready to kick the tape out and that it needs to let go of the leeder. The three lights are labeled: Write Protect Tape in Use Operate Lever I strongly suspect this is the drive you have. BTW, are you using tapes that say "CompacTape", also known as TK50's? Zane | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Adminstrator | | healyzh(a)aracnet.com (primary) | Linux Enthusiast | | healyzh(a)holonet.net (alternate) | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

<SARCASM> You'll be 'glad' to know the TZ30 is very informative at this point. </SARCASM> According to the manual you've got a drive problem. Question, do you still have the tape in the drive? If so can you eject it? If you try to eject it, and it doesn't want to come out of the drive don't force it. If you've got the tape out of the drive check the takeup leader that Tim mentioned yesterday. The most common problem I've seen with drives that use this style tape is sucking in the leader. The leader looks something like this: -----------------------\ |\ \----------| \ /----------| / -----------------------/ |/ Note this is a really horrible representation, but should give you the basic idea. For a better idea, I just scanned in a good leader, you can find it at the following URL ftp://zane.brouhaha.com/pub/ as TK50-Leader.gif. If you can't get the tape out of the drive, OR if you don't see the leader you need to pull the drive out of the system. Once you have the drive out, you'll need to either put the leader back in place, or carefully remove the tape. If you need to remove the tape, I can offer some more advice. Zane | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Adminstrator | | healyzh(a)aracnet.com (primary) | Linux Enthusiast | | healyzh(a)holonet.net (alternate) | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

Um, at this poing I'm forced to ask something that is probably quite stupid. You do realize that the little lever on the bottom is what actually kicks the tape out of the drive. The unload butten simple tells the drive you want to unload, and that it needs to let go of the tape. In any case your next step is to carefully remove the drive from the machine, even with the cover on top of the tape drive itself I believe you'll be able to see if the tape is wound around the takeup reel. If it is wound aroudn the takeup reel you're going to have "fun". Zane | Zane H. Healy | UNIX Systems Adminstrator | | healyzh(a)aracnet.com (primary) | Linux Enthusiast | | healyzh(a)holonet.net (alternate) | Classic Computer Collector | +----------------------------------+----------------------------+ | Empire of the Petal Throne and Traveller Role Playing, | | and Zane's Computer Museum. | | http://www.aracnet.com/~healyzh/ |

FWIW, I just did this with a TK50 for a guy who offered me the drive for free if I would return him the tape that was in it. I took off the gold cover and sure enough there was some tape wrapped around the takeup reel (not too much but probably about 10'). I operated the tape release (which on the TK50 was on the right hand side looking from the front) but pressing it back toward the back of the case. This allowed me to remove the cartridge and then to pull off the tape. After unwinding the tape I mistakenly disconnected the take up catcher from the spool (which then promptly detatched itself from the tape and fell on the table.) I reattached it to the spool. Rewinding the tape into the cartridge appears to be either impossible or extremely difficult without some sort of jig. In particular there are _two_ reel locks that have to be disengaged before the reel will turn in the cartridge. So I carefully disassembled the cartridge (four screws) and manually rewound the tape (as I said it wasn't all that long) and then after several attempts got the cartridge reassembled. The loop leader is still sticking out slightly. This drive had the mode of pressing the load button and it would flash and then stop flashing but nothing would happen. Some questions for TK50 folks... 1) Can you operate a TK50 when it is _only_ connected to power? 2) Which is load, button pressed or button out? 3) What are the status modes on the light? Thanks, --Chuck At 06:38 PM 7/12/99 +0100, you wrote:

----- Original Message ----- From: Zane H. Healy &lt;healyzh(a)aracnet.com&gt; To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers &lt;classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu&gt; Sent: Monday, July 12, 1999 1:13 PM Subject: Re: MicroVAX 3100 Problem if this happen, I simply hook up the tape in the machine, and then wind the tape in by hand. After the next start, the tape drive unload it byself ;-)) But, I have always an open TK50 drive only for this purpose ;-)) cheers, emanuel

If you don't care about the tape, then from the front of the drive look at the right hand side. There is a little motor with a corkscrew like mechanism on it. Press back against the spring with your finger and you should be able to operate the lever, then remove the tape cartridge and pull the tap out. You will have a pile of tape when you are done. --Chuck At 10:45 PM 7/17/99 +0100, you wrote:

| There is a piece of plastic, like thick tape, attached to the takeup spool which hooks into the leader, how should this be positioned in the drive so that it can load the tape correctly when I have put it back together again? | I know it is not good form to reply to one's own post but I have worked out how to thread this so that it picks up the leader. The drive now appears to be working again. Thanks to all who have helped during this minor crisis. Regards Pete

We (Santa Barbara Amateur Radio Club) got in some Sun and Apollo workstations, and of course, they are for sale. The following stuff is for sale: Apollo Workstation 700/RX Apollo Workstation 715/75 Workstation Solutions Exabyte EXB-8200ST SCSI Tape Backup Unit Sun Sparc Station 2 w/ 64 MB Ram, 213 MB or so HD Sun External SCSI Disk Drive Model EXP-2 These came from a local company that was consolidating and AFAIK, they all work just fine. I have not fired up the Apollos and a friend of mine (a sysadmin for a local ISP) took a look at the Suns and indicated the hardware was fine, but needed to have the OS loaded and the NVRAM replaced (it is password protected.) Open for reasonable offers and of course, shipping will be additional. Thanks.

The Sun Sparc Station has been sold.

On Sun, 18 Jul 1999, wanderer wrote: These would normally go to a Xylogics 472 tape controller. For a Sun4, that controller would be mounted in a Multibus<->VMEbus adapter frame. The Ciprico Tapemaster controller has also been used in a similar configuration, but they're much less common in the newer Sun4 systems. -Dave McGuire

----- Original Message ----- From: Marvin &lt;marvin(a)rain.org&gt; To: Discussion re-collecting of classic computers &lt;classiccmp(a)u.washington.edu&gt; Sent: Sunday, July 18, 1999 1:37 PM Subject: Re: Workstation Stuff Anybody knows, which processors they use ? (pointer to web pages ?) thanks, emanuel

The 715/75's HP-PA (HP Precision Architecture... 7200 II think that's the chip on that one). HP-UX is available for it. It's about Sparc20 or so performance... The 700/RX is an Xterminal. Bill --- bpechter@shell.monmouth.com|pechter@pechter.dyndns.org Three things never anger: First, the one who runs your DEC, The one who does Field Service and the one who signs your check.