Making a pure IDE/ATAPI tape drive work in a USB drive enclosure. (0/1)

First of all, apologies for attaching a text file to this message, but
it's the only way I know how to send a text file without a news server
or news client attempting to reformat it.

This might also prove useful to someone, but I'm seeking comments.

I have attached the file `tape0.inf` to this post and also added the
following line to the `layout.inf` file, both normally located in
`C:\WINDOWS\inf` within Windows XP SP-1 ...

tape0.inf = 100,,2583,,,,,20,0,0

This I added directly under the line that reads ...

tape.inf = 100,,33238,,,,,20,0,0

Yes, I did erase the related `Layout.PNF` file. Windows XP seems to
re-create these and `tape0.inf` is exactly 2583 bytes in length.

I have obtained a Seagate ST38000A IDE/ATAPI tape drive and a Belkin
USB2 external drive enclosure.

I created a copy of `tape.inf` and seriously altered it to accomodate
this tape drive within the USB2 enclosure and so far is seems to work,
even though Seagate says that it will not work.

Has anyone done this before and in your opinion, would it be reliable?
To me the USB bridge is transparent as is the IDE connection, so
really Windows XP should just `see` the tape drive.

It's just that the USB2 external drive enclosure cost me 15 quid from
a car boot sale and the tape drive was given, and seems to work. The
reason for creating the `tape0.inf` is to allow Windows XP to actually
recognise the tape drive not as an IDE tape drive, but as a USB mass
storage device.

I want to be able to use the drive on the three computers I have.

Does anyone know how to alter the `tape0.inf` file so it can be used
by just telling the hardware wizard where it exists, for Windows XP to
suck the file into itself as opposed to copying the `tape0.inf` file
to Windows `inf` folder and directly tinkering with the `layout.inf`
file?