[ARC Tech-109]

To offer some clarity here the Video-8 & Hi8 helical scan format was offered as a digital backup by Exabyte such as the EX-8200 and EX-8500 while HP, DEC, Silicon Graphics and SUN Microsystems embraced the DDS or Digital Data Storage format based on the established Digital Audio Tape format from the late-80 (some incorrectly assume DAT was derived from DDS). Both formats were SCSI only interface and for the most part have been replaced with optical formats however the third linear based format DLT seems to somehow survive today. There are some larger capacity Exabyte drives, Mammoth for example that were also used.

For a time Silicon Graphics offered a DDS backup drive with DAT audio firmware that would allow recording & playback in the native DAT format for use in their IRIX based MIPS workstations but they're far and few between. None of the formats are capable of direct digital video playback be it Digital-8 despite the ability to use a standard metal Hi8 tape nor can they read/play the Tascam DA88/98 type multi-track digital audio formats.
I left the IT world shortly after the Dot-Com bust so I don't know where things have gone or what tangents have evolved, there were a large number of these tape backup vaults in operation going thru miles of tape a minute but I don't know what ever happened to them. I still use the 4MM DDS format for both backup and Digital Audio Tape as the tapes are cheap and easy to find.