[WXBH-Discuss] Studio to Antenna Communication

[John Hicks]

Cory R wrote:
> Hi everyone,
> 
> I'd like to say hi one more time.  I met some of you last tuesday.  I left
> saying I'd get to work on some things well, I did exactly just that.
> 
> The connectivity/heartbeat script is working with a few small kinks I need
> to work out.  I'm not too sure who to send this too so I'll send it to
> everyone on the discussion.  I need to find a substitute for playing back
> the stream to the broadcasting equipment on the other end, currently the
> script is using xmms-curses to play back mp3 files/streams.
> 
> I've also done a bit of technical planning (although I'm not sure who I 
> need
> to submit this to or talk to about it) for two different types of
> communications between the studio and the antenna location. One type would
> be point to point communications, if we had line of site to our 
> broadcasting
> equipment.  A small chart of how the system would work can be found at:
> http://lucsociety.org/~cory/wxbh_ptp .  Another form would be over either
> DSL, equalized phone lines, or a dedicated line.  Each solution has
> different positives and negatives effecting each.  DSL would end up being
> the cheapest route to take but it has no gauranteed uptime.  Equalized 
> phone
> lines might be an ok way to go but it'll end up being more expensive than a
> DSL line (from what I've looked into) and wouldn't sound too great.  A
> dedicated line such as a t1 would be an idea solution for this but, it's
> price will end up being anywhere from $350-$600/mo and would experience no
> downtime at all short of equipment failure.
> 
> Hope this helps and sorry if I've emailed this to the wrong list.

Hi Cory!

First off: Congrats on first post!!

Thanks for the quick work. We all need to follow your example.

Regarding who to send stuff like this:

It's fine to post it to the list. We are in the process of forming a 
technical committee (and I'm sure you're going to be on it). As we get 
more organized we may have multiple lists or set up a system to allow 
posting data on the website. In the meantime, post away to this list.

Regarding your script:

I'm not sure if you meant to post your script here. (It didn't make it.) 
The list system is currently set to strip attachments. You can post it 
here as straight text.

You can educate me (and others) a bit on just what a 
"connectivity/heartbeat" script is. I know a few of us may have been 
involved in the earlier Shoutcast streaming that BrickHouse did. But 
most of us are new and could use a primer.

Regarding the point-to-point configuration:

It's important to be aware of all the possibilities and have a good idea 
of their relative cost. Until we have a budget (and know our antenna 
location), we won't be able to make a decision on that.

Thanks again,

John

John