[vcf-midatlantic] More about the STK library

Dave McGuire mcguire at neurotica.com
Tue Mar 8 10:31:04 EST 2016


On 03/07/2016 01:35 PM, Matt Patoray via vcf-midatlantic wrote:
>>   One thing I had thought to do with that tape juke is to use a sheet
>> metal nibbler to cut a "window" in the main door, put some lucite/plexi
>> in there with a rubber surround to make it look good, then write some
>> code to move the tape picker around inserting/rearranging tapes.  I hate
>> modifying hardware, and normally I'd never consider such a thing, but as
>> you observed, the thing just isn't old enough to be "vintage" to anyone
>> but the most clueless PC person, and they're not terribly rare either.
>> But most people are never in an environment where such things are in
>> use, so it'd be a new experience to see one batting its positioner around.
> 
> Simmilar to the StorageTek tape juke is the Sony BetaCart and its
> variations, but insted of DLT tapes it contained some form of videotape
> cassette either BetaCam 1/2" variants or D-2 3/4" tapes.
> The system was introduced in 1985 and allowwd a TV station to air many
> different videotapes automatically, the minimum system consisted of
> 1(expandable to 4) BetaCam VCR modified to take tapes in from the side, a
> cart robot that could hold 30 tapes, an AV matrix switcher and a custom
> control computer with bar code printing and reading cability.

  Oh yes.  I'd love to find one of those systems intact.  A fantastic
example of early-ish computer control in a non-computer-related tech
industry.  The broadcast industry seems to have been a fairly early
adopter of computerization in process control (rather than just "human"
tasks") areas.

             -Dave

-- 
Dave McGuire, AK4HZ
New Kensington, PA



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