We've stored information on magnetic tape for decades, and we still do in certain environments. But beyond the huge technical advances, the truth is that a computer doesn't care much about the medium itself, as long as the ones and zeros can be read steadily and without errors. Enthusiast Jozef Bogin shared an excellent example by using the cassette interface on an old IBM 5150 to load a modified FreeDOS kernel… with a vinyl record.
The audio cassette was slow but inexpensive, and for many years it was the only viable storage medium for home computers. In fact, users eagerly awaited certain radio broadcasts that shared games and programs live, and all you needed on the other end was a recorder. Some computers of the era had a built-in datasette (or equivalent), while others offered an interface to connect different devices. The IBM 5150, better known as the 'IBM PC', was one of them.
Today, the IBM 5150 cassette interface is nothing more than a relic of old times (IBM removed it in the next model), but with a bit of code and a lot of creativity, anyone can experiment with it. Engineer Jozef Bogin is something of an expert on this subject, and if we explore his YouTube channel we'll discover projects in which the IBM 5150 boots from a tape reel, and a conventional audio system. What's next on the list? Nothing less than a vinyl record.
(Editor's note: If you use headphones, definitely lower the volume)
DOS… on vinyl
Jozef explains on his personal page that the record contains a special version of the FreeDOS kernel, a micro variant of COMMAND.COM (miniCOMMAND 7.10), and a modified copy of Microsoft Interlink to transfer files using the parallel port. All of this takes up a total of 64 kilobytes, which equals 6 minutes and 10 seconds of playback on a 45 RPM vinyl record. Jozef created custom software for the occasion: his program 5150CAXX enables access to the cassette interface from DOS (in the original configuration, it only worked with BASIC), and the operating system image was converted to a WAV file, which was then 'cut' onto the vinyl record. The bootloader is also his creation.
https://old.neoteo.com/usando-un-ordenador-ibm-at-de-29-anos-por-primera-vez/Would you be willing to wait more than six minutes for an operating system to finish loading? In the early '80s, delays could be much longer with some games, and we didn't really have an alternative. As for Jozef's experiment, we can only say it's strange, it's absurd, and we love it.
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