Which came first?

We are moving away from specifically related computer products for today, but this is a fun one. You are looking at something that everyone has come in contact with at some point. It is ubiquitous. So much so, that I am not even going to offer a hint. Scroll to see what this is.

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That is the business end of duck tape. If you look closely, you can actually see the bits of sticky adhesive. Duck tape has an interesting history. And yes, I am using ‘duck tape’. You will often run into people that insist that no, it is ‘duct tape’. They’re not completely wrong, although they are often completely annoying, like those that insist on calling soccer football…

You can call this duct tape, but the original, and I would argue the correct, name, is duck tape. The tape came about originally without any adhesive and was essentially strips of plain duck cloth used for things like making shoes stronger or protecting steel cables and electrical conductors from corrosion and wear.

What we know of as duck tape today came about during World War II. Johnson & Johnson was tapped to create an adhesive for sealing cases of ammunition to protect them from moisture. It was again made using thin cotton duck cloth coated in waterproof polyehylene with rubber based adhesive.

The duct tape name comes into play after the war in the 1950s. After the success of the tape in all manner of uses in the war, it became a commercial success. Construction projects started using the tape to wrap air ducts, and duct tape was born.

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