Abstract: A recording and/or reproducing device (1) includes at least one tape guide (10) having a guide wall (13) and guide flanges (14, 15) projecting beyond the guide wall (13). The guide wall and guide flanges are coated with a coating (21) of zirconium nitride or titanium nitride. This results in the tape guide having a high wear resistance and a high resistance to the deposition of material abraded from the tape.

Abstract: A method for compressing digital data from an original bit stream into a coded bit stream useful for facsimile data transmission and digitized document image storage. The method comprises the steps of dividing the original bit stream into a plurality of data blocks and then comparing each of the data blocks with a reference block having a predetermined bit pattern. A coded bit stream is formed that comprises data blocks, compressed blocks and index blocks according to the following procedure. When a data block in the original bit stream is a mismatch with the reference block, the data block is included as is, without modification, in the coded bit stream along with an index bit indicating a mismatch in the index block. When a data block in the original bit stream is matched to the reference block, then compressed block is included in the coded bit stream along with an index bit in the index block indicating that the data block is matched.

Abstract: Data storage apparatus is known in which data is stored on a tape medium in at least two different longitudinally spaced sections (Partitions I and 0) with data recordal in each section being effected in accordance with a predetermined format. This format will generally be of the type in which tape-usage information is recorded in a system log (82) located upstream of the main data area (37). It is also known to record tape usage information relating to each tape section (Partition 1,0) in the system log (82) of that section. The present apparatus provides not only for the recording of usage information from which section-specific information can be derived, but also for the recording of aggregated tape usage information. This latter information is stored in the system log (82) of the first tape section (Partition 1) so as to be readily accessible upon tape loading.