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Pro tip: I switched from just watching old tapes to actually logging what's on them
For years, I'd just pop a VHS from a thrift store into my player and watch it straight through. Last month, I found a box of 12 tapes labeled 'Family 1998-1999' at a garage sale in Spokane. I started a simple spreadsheet to note timestamps and content. Now, when I find a 30-second clip of a weird local commercial at the 47-minute mark, I can actually find it again! It saves so much time when I want to show someone a specific part. Has anyone else set up a system like this for their finds?
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val2232mo ago
My spreadsheet has a column for tape brand now. It helps me spot patterns in which ones hold up better over time. That garage sale find sounds like a real treasure trove.
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jamiesingh22d ago
val223, I actually read somewhere recently that some of the old tape brands from the 80s and 90s hold up way better than the new stuff because they used thicker coatings or something like that. It's like old media just had more care put into it. I've been a total nerd about this lately because I found a box of my dad's old cassettes and half of them play fine on my deck but the same type of tape I bought last year from a store is already getting that sticky shed syndrome. I think it's cool you're tracking brands because that garage sale stuff could be a goldmine if you find the right ones from that era.
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