Moorpark, California-based Tandon Corp has unveiled its PacII computer, which incorporates the company’s portable hard drive technology. The launch comes in the wake of Tandon’s July introduction of Option – modular, front-loading central processors. Tandon claims that by shifting the modular emphasis to the hard drive, the PacII computer is the answer to data system portability, security and unlimited drive capacity. The PacII contains two modular hard drive receptacles that accommodate DataPacII hard drive units – specially fitted handsize packs kitted out with shock-mounting and a hard plastic case for portable use. The DataPacII contains all the computer’s data, storage and software func-tions. This, says Tandon, enables the user to transport an entire personalised program and file system from one personal computer terminal to another, to lock these functions away for security, or to create personalised personality pacs for different software and filing functions. The DataPacII can then be interchanged without jeopardising data integrity. This enables the immediate access of files stored on other DataPacIIs, says Tandon, unlike other removable or portable hard drive products. Accessing files on different DataPacIIs, the company explains, is like accessing files on different floppy disks. Pac technology is also suitable for multimedia applications, since the unlimited drive capacity can cope with the vast storage demands of multimedia files. A multimedia library of DataPacIIs can be created by each DataPacII containing its own specific type of files such as sound and animation. Along with the PacII computer, the PacII system includes two options – InPacII and a SidePacII – to accommodate other Tandon and non-Tandon hardware. With InPac, the hard drive receptacle of Option and other IBM-compatible hardware can be adapted internally to accommodate the DataPacII. For Apple Computer Inc Macintoshes, MS-DOS micros and workstations, Tandon offers a stand-alone DataPacII hard drive.
