Would appreciate specific guidance to a tape-backup vendor for V/AT-2.4

[Steve Rudek]

I've decided it would be wise for me to borrow the money, if necessary, to
get a tape backup unit.  In an earlier posting I asked for advice on 
a satisfactory tape backup solution for V/AT 2.4.  A number of people
suggested that "Archive" tape units are a good value.  A suggestion was made
that I should go for a "QIC-02/QIC-36 controller based unix" from Wangtek,
Everex or Archive.  Another person suggested that a "60 MB 1/4" QIC 24
version is best".  I don't know the first thing about tape backup units and
that ignorance has been at least as big a factor as cost in keeping me from
getting tape backup before now.  I don't know what all these "QIC" numbers
mean and I don't know the tradeoffs involved.  I've asked a local hardware
guy about tape units and he's said that for MS-DOS there are two basic
categories of tape units: those which use the existing harddisk/floppy
controller and are cheap (starting around $325) and those with their own
controllers which are faster and considerably more expensive.  He doesn't
know enough to really advise me about Microport, though.

Would anyone be willing to lead this horse to water?  I would like to spend
not more than $500 unless I'm really buying a dead-end solution (hopefully
I'll move to 386 Xenix in another year or so) by restricting the price in
that way.  At this point I'm thinking that almost any tape backup is more
sensible than no tape backup--I've already done too many restorations from
floppy.  If someone could actually point me to a vendor who has a reasonable
price and can give me a "plug and play" solution, that might be best of
all.  Thank you.  Hopefully, I'll eventually be sufficiently unix
knowledgeable that I can begin to give more good advice than I get but
I'm not there yet.
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Steve Rudek  {ucbvax!ucdavis!csusac OR ames!pacbell!sactoh0} !tree!stever