Generic Cassette interfaces (was: data cassette and robotic arms)

[Kelly Leavitt]

All this talk about computer cassette data got me reminiscing.


Back in the late 80's and early 90's I worked programming remote Campbell Scientific data loggers for an environmental engineering group. The device could store well head data for several days and monitor 8 wells from one data logger. Field techs (like me) would go around the active sites and download the data from the units onto cassette tapes using a device like this:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Campbell-Scientific-Inc-C20-Cassette-Interface-/391956667276?hash=item5b42701b8c


Here's some technical info on the device: https://s.campbellsci.com/documents/us/product-brochures/b_c20.pdf


When we got back, the data would be read from cassette into VisiCalc on the TRS-80 model IIs we used.

Later I wrote a program to read the data into Microsoft multiplan running under Tandy Xenix. We'd plug the interface into a terminal aux port, open it for reading, then convert it into a SYLK layout.


Were there other devices that did data transport like that.

Kelly