Cassette formats (was: Prices to pay for old computers...)

From: Bill Yakowenko <yakowenk_at_cs.unc.edu>
Date: Sat May 23 16:06:56 1998

On Fri, 22 May 1998, Tony Duell wrote:
] According to the specs in the TechRef, any standard audio cassette
] recorder would work. There's even a link to set the PC's output voltage
] to suit either microphone or aux (line level) inputs.
]
] The pinout of the PC cassette connector is the same as that on a TRS-80,
] and the same cable works. My guess is this is not a coincidence - IBM
] probably intended PC owners to go to the local Tandy/Radio Shack and buy a
] cassette recorder and cable.

When you say TRS-80, does that by any chance include TRS-80 Color
Computers? Did they also adopt the tape format, in addition to the
connector pinout?

At one time or another, I was struck by the similarity of the CoCo's
cassette format and the now-ancient Kansas City Standard. Were they
actually identical? Did RS implement the KCS for the CoCo, or was it
just something kinda similar? And if TRS-80-->CoCo and CoCo-->KCS,
does that mean that maybe IBM just adopted KCS instead of making up
their own format? (A shocking idea, I admit...)

This is not entirely a moot point, because I have a CoCo handy, and
an old KCS tape that I got almost by accident. I've been tempted to
just slap it in and see if the CoCo can read it, but from previous
discussions on the life cycle of mag tapes, I gather I might get only
one chance to read the data. I don't want to waste that one chance
until I am sure I have something that can actually read KCS.

Eventually, I suppose I'll just write my own loader and be done with
it. But it would be awfully nice if it was already done for me.

        Cheers,
        Bill.
Received on Sat May 23 1998 - 16:06:56 BST