Magnetic tape is a long and narrow strip of plastic that thin magnetic material is coated on.

Nearly all recording tape is of this type, whether used for recording audio or video or
computer data storage.
Magnetic tape recording uses magnetic tape which moves on a recording head. Electrical
signals are fed to the recording head, inducing a pattern of magnetization similar to the
signal. A playback head can then pick up the changes in magnetic field from the tape and
convert it into an electrical signal.
Devices that record and playback audio and video using magnetic tape are generally called
tape recorders and videotape recorders respectively. A device that stores computer data on
magnetic tape can be called a tape drive, a tape unit, or a streamer. Autoloaders and tape
libraries are frequently used to automate cartridge handling.

History
Magnetic tape was first invented for recording sound by Fritz Pfleumer in 1928 in Germany.
Pfleumer's invention used an iron oxide(Fe2O3) powder coating on a long strip of paper.
Magnetic tape has been used for data storage for over 50 years. In this time, many advances
in tape have been made. Modern magnetic tape is most commonly packaged in cartridges and
cassettes.
Today, many other technologies like CD or DVD are replacing magnetic tape. However,
innovation in the technology continues and tape is still widely used.

Strength and Weakness

When storing large amounts of data, tape can be cheaper than disk or other data storage
options. Tape storage has always been used with large computer systems. Modern usage is a
high capacity medium for backups and archives. As of 2008, the highest capacity tape
cartridge (Sun StorageTek T10000B) can store 1 TB of data without using compression.
But, magnetic tape has quite a long wait time for random accesses since the deck must wind
the tape to move from one data to another. (Magnetic tape data storage uses Sequential access
method.)
Short for Integrated Drive Electronics or IBM Disc Electronics, IDE is more
commonly known as ATA or Parallel ATA (PATA). It is a standard interface for
IBM compatible hard drives and CD or DVD drives. IDE is different than SCSI and
Enhanced Small Device Interface (ESDI) because its controllers are on each
drive, meaning the drive can connect directly to the motherboard or controller.
IDE and its updated successor, Enhanced IDE (EIDE), are common drive

interfaces found in IBM compatible computers. Below is a picture of the IDE

connector on the back of a hard drive, a picture of what an IDE cable looks like,
and the IDE channels it connects to on the motherboard.