We looked at a couple of different libraries.  The SpectraLogic libraries have 
some great features if you absolutely must have the library up and running: 
most of the components are field swappable and their support contract lets you 
stock the parts on-site.  If one goes bad you swap it out and they cross ship 
the replacement.  We didn't need that and chose a Qualstar; rock solid 
reliability without all the bells and whistles.

We tried to decide between LTO and AIT and went with AIT.  I like the idea of 
the tape not being sawed back and forth across the head the way DLT and LTO do 
it and the tape staying (mostly) inside the cartridge instead of having to be 
fished out of the cartridge into the drive.  The smaller form factor was a 
consideration, too but the SAIT may not have that big of an advantage over LTO.

Cambridge Computer (the reseller I've used for a couple of years) has a white 
paper comparing LTO and AIT on their web site 
http://www.cambridgecomputer.com/white_papers.cfm.  You have to give them some 
contact information to get the white paper.  I can probably get Joe (the sales 
rep I've stuck with since before he joined Cambridge) to send you a copy of the 
white paper but the last time he sent it to someone asking about LTO and AIT on 
the list he got scorched in a little flame war.

If you're trying to avoid upgrading your license from 64 slots I think the 
Qualstar can be made to report that it only has 64 slots by defining a couple 
of them as I/O slots.  The others can probably do the same but it's kind of a 
waste of capacity to buy a 100 slot library and only use 64 of them.


> Charles Weber wrote:
>
>It's time for me to buy a new library primarily for off site and clones.
>I started in the 60 slot LTO2 range 2 months ago, but a recent instrument
>acquisition forced me to to double my required size.
>
>I'm looking at
>StorageTek L180 with LTO2
>Qualstar 5466 with SAIT (66 SAIT slots)
>Adic Scalar 100 (too small)
>            1000 (Physically size might be an issue)
>Overland Neo
>
>Any comments are welcome.
>
>With SAIT I get very good slot to size ratio, since it is a 500GB native tape.
>But SAIT is newer and much less used than LTO2.
>The size I need with LTO2 will require at least 120 slots, a larger physical 
>area
>and a new legato library license.
>
>ADIC and StorageTek have received nice mentions on the legato list. I have 
>seen a number
>of people happily using the L180 on the list.
>Ditto for Spectralogic and Qualstar, but perhaps not as many mentions. 
>Spectralogic
>just introduced their SAIT LIbrary I believe.


---
Jim McAlarney                                         Huber Engineered Materials
phone:  404-949-5505                              4401 Northside Parkway
fax:       404-949-1305                              Suite 600
jmcalarney AT huber DOT com                            Atlanta, GA  30327

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