We just purchase a Magstar (in October).  I have never use the DLT so I can't compare but below are some answer concerning the Magstar.

Tapes cost:     $65ea
Cleaning tapes  $99ea.  good for 100 uses.

It was fairly easy to setup with ADSM (our server is on AIX.)  I had a drive break during shipment that caused a problem but once it was replaced I have not had any problems.  We are still test but retrieval time has been great.  If you do chose the Magstar, there is a Red book that is a must - Magstar MP 3575 Tape Library Dataserver: Muliplatform Implementation.  It saved me a lot of time for little cost.

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From:   Fred J Stellabotte[SMTP:stellabotte AT hazeltine DOT com]
Reply To:       stellabotte AT hazeltine DOT com
Sent:   Wednesday, November 11, 1998 9:59 AM
To:     ADSM-L AT VM.MARIST DOT EDU
Subject:        Should I buy Magstar or DLT ..??

<<File: stellabotte.vcf>>
Hi All ...

We are in the final stages of purchasing ADSM ... we were planning to
use DLT (StorageTek 9714), but IBM and one of their vendors is making it
very attractive($$$)  to use IBM's Magstar ...

It seems that if I use the StorageTEK 9714 Library with (60 Tapes) I must
purchase
the "Extended Device Support". But If I use IBM's Magstar Library with the same
capacity (but 240 tapes) I don't have to purchase the Extended Device support
...

With the quotes I am working with the Magstar Unit is more expensive but the
total
quote comes out less because of the Extended device support.

Are there any real benefits to using Magstar ..???

What is the average cost of the Magstar Tape vs the DLT tape ..???

Is having a smaller tape a plus with ADSM ...?

Is Magstart really faster in recovery as the Vendor Claims ..???

Will IBM Abandon the technology ..???

Thanks so much .....

-Fred




____________________________________________________________
>| ==  Fred J. Stellabotte
stellabotte AT hazeltine DOT com
>| ==  Manager Technical Support
>| == _______________________________________________________
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(516)262-8308
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