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PostPosted: Fri Jan 21, 2022 11:26 pm 
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There’s no doubt now that Chia kills drives. Everyone from Ars to TecRep has pointed that out.
Enterprise SSDs in less than 90 days. Consumer disks in 20-30 days. Ouch.

Less than scientific; some time lapse videos on YT and DM show better lifespan for mechanical disks. Potentially a few years for expensive over the top hardened disks.
So that 5200RPM Seeker may be worth it at $100 per TB.

And setting a drive to read only also shows promise.

And we’ve now seen floppy disc RAIDs over a USB translator using MSD and custom controllers built on Pi etc super-micros and SBCs.
And they work.

So what’s next?

I wonder why nobody is discussing it others than to not boost pricing!

Whether you grew up with it or came of age, us 8-biters need only look to the past for inexpensive, mass storage.

Something else? TAPE!
No, not LTO. That’s $80-$100 for 10-28TB.
LTO’s file list system is too slow for chia.

I’m talking compact cassette and VHS! Hundreds of billions of them still exist. Millions are recycled or landfilled every year.
VHS Collector estimates about 75% have visual details damage.
My experience says It’s considerably higher, but the level of damage is so minor as to be non-noticeable to all but the highest level of analogue connoisseur.

But the vast majority of that “damage” is charge variance in the tape over time.

So… why not blank out tapes and use them as storage? Just like we used to. Be it CC or VHS?
Using LTFS v1 or HPTS, the mounting process tells you exactly how much empty storage there is and moving on to the next “block” is instantaneous.
Since both FSs use log after write retrieval is quite quick for winding tapes. They also use the equivalent of blank space end-of-track used for later tape song skips to make write block jumps.

Seriously, here’s an opportunity for reuse!

Something to ponder for the tinker types out there.

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PostPosted: Wed Jan 26, 2022 11:24 pm 

Joined: Thu Feb 04, 2021 2:53 am
Posts: 385
I farmed Chia on a DVD for a month, really was done as a joke rather than actual experimentation.

A VHS drive doesn't exist, but is there any reason VHS was never used as a computer data archival medium? Like in the 80s we stored data on compact cassettes if you can't afford a floppy drive, where an adapter converts the data to sound, and you connect a tape recorder.


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PostPosted: Thu Jan 27, 2022 2:12 am 
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Location: Low DOS
It’s a general public misconception that VHS wasn’t used as storage. I used it myself. Many moons ago.
Audio is audio.
My first attempt used a 3.5mm to mono on Beta Rec.
Byte and RT both had articles in the 80s that covered the code to modify dos and CPM drivers.

I have an LTO7 deck but prefer my VHS recorder. Chia is based on consistent reliable storage.

I can supply that with 6 SVHS players in redundant striped raid. Each using a single 900TX tape with Crome Iron Oxide tape.
Redundant Linear File System For Tape (RLFS4T).
And
Solid gold cable from McIntosh.
NOS SVHS tapes

I have minimal interest in Chia but it appears to me we have another reuse Case here.

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