Re: [AV Media Matters] Microcassette

[m.biel@morehead-st.edu]

The Olympus web site crowed:
>>Olympus' invention of the Microcassette

midshires@cix.co.uk wrote:
>"Invention" sounds a bit steep to me, when it's not much different from a
>mini-cassette, which in turn derives from the Philips compact cassette
>[which in turn was not much different from the old quarter-inch Garrard
>cassette!].

Now, what pray tell is a Garrard cassette?  Would it happen to be
the quarter inch tape cartridge designed and introduced by RCA in
the U.S. in 1958, and perhaps was also marketed in England by
Garrard?  I hadn't know that Garrard was into tape recorders at
all.  And if we are doing a genealogy, don't forget the Revere/3M
cartridge which used .150 inch tape at 1 7/8 ips.  Combine that with
the RCA cartridge and you have the Philips Compact Cassette.

>In fact the sole difference I can see between the mini-cassette and the
>micro-cassette is the size and the fact that most (all) micro-cassettes
are
>edge-wheel driven.
>Or am I being unfair?    Andy Emmerson.

Perhaps, and inaccurate.  My data shows that the MicroCassette is
capstan driven at 2.4 cm/s standard speed and 1.2 cm/s slow speed,
while the Minisette (note trademark spelling) is the rim drive
item.  As I and several others mentioned, these are different and
incompatable from each other.

As for the unfair part, these are all radically different designs
although they are all derivative.  "Designed" might be a better word
than "invented", but we do give invention credit for each different
format of videotape and videocassettes, don't we?   And Peter
Goldmark always crowed about his inventing the LP--which we all know
is a crock, of course.  I guess these companies figure that if they
can get a patent on the thing it is an "invention" even if it is
only a design patent.

Mike Biel  m.biel@morehead-st.edu