Scratch tape
In data processing, a scratch tape is a magnetic tape that is used for temporary storage and can be reused or erased after the completion of a job or processing run. During the early years of computing, when magnetic tape was the primary form of mass storage, many programs, notably sorting routines, required such temporary storage.
See also
Scratch space – contemporary equivalent
Merge sorting tape drives – paradigm application
Scratch monkey – use in computer proverb
References