2026-08-31 11:50 UTC
I finally have some appreciation for machine-readable "tape labels," which were used on 9-track tape starting in 1965, and it's compatible successors, up to the present, after reading IBM OS Tape Labels, form GC28-6680-5, April 1973.
ANSI specified an equivalent, using ASCII rather than EBCDIC, in the X3.27-1978 standard.
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Replies (1)
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@brouhaha@mastodon.social 2026-08-31 11:53
Most systems I used either did not use tape labels, or could optionally use them with special utility software. In IBM operating systems, they were used by default, but could be disabled if desired.. Previously I'd seen some technical details about the format of labels, but didn't have a solid understanding of how they were used. Now I'm surprised that they were less common in non-IBM environments. 2/