Now that spring is upon us it is a good idea to pay closer attention to the weather since many of us in western Ohio and eastern Indiana remember all too well how storms, winds and tornados can develop rapidly and cause devastation, injury and death. Storms in the Ohio valley are not to be taken lightly.
While the various sirens and warnings are certainly valuable and important, their seemingly intermittent and arbitrary use has caused some of us to essentially ignore their wail and cry. Also, many of us live outside of earshot of these warnings.
I suggest that you consider getting an inexpensive “Weather Radio” for your house. These special radios can pick up broadcasts from the National Weather Service and let you know in advance with an audible alarm tone if dangerous conditions exist. They also have added the broadcast of information about other dangers such as chemical spills and even have added some AMBER alerts. The neat thing about these radios is that many of them can be programmed to give you only the information you want and need.
You can “tell” the radio where you live and thus only get warnings and information that relate to your area. This keeps the radio from sounding the alarm if the storm is in the general area but really posing no danger to you. While I am sure that we all wish our neighbors in Dayton no harm, we really don’t want to be rousted from our sleep at 3 AM with a message on the weather radio that a severe storm is headed for the Dayton Airport.
The radios can also be programmed to ignore certain conditions that are not relevant to you personally even if they are happening in your area. For example, I live on a hill and as such I really don’t need to know in the middle of the night that there might be a flash flood on the Whitewater River. I do want to know that a tornado has been spotted on
New Biddinger Road.
While not all radios can be programmed, most of units, beginning with the mid-priced models on up, have these features. They can be purchased at many locations. Radio Shack® has a Midland™ model for about 40 bucks that is very popular and has the programmable features. It even has a battery back up built in. You can also find hand-held models for camping, boating and hiking at Bass Pro Shops® and many of the leading electronic retailers.
Now, if all of this fails, you can use another method to predict when you need to take cover in the basement. I have been working on this theory for several years. I call it the “The TV Weather Man’s Clothes Hypothesis.” (Sorry, this does not seem to work if the TV weather reporter is a woman.) Here is how it goes. If you are watching any of our local TV stations and the Weather Man is talking about severe weather and he still is wearing his coat and tie and looks as dapper as ever, you can relax. If however the tie is a bit askew, pay a bit more attention. If the coat disappears, the top shirt button is undone and the tie seems even looser, pay closer attention. If you see him with his tie gone, shirt sleeves rolled up and hair tussled, go to the basement immediately. Check me on this next time we have storms in the area.
Seriously, the price of a weather radio is really a small one to pay to help make you and your family safe. Think seriously about getting one this weekend. It might save your life.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Monday, March 19, 2007
Back to the Future....
In this era of ever expanding complex technology it sometimes feels like the world is getting really mixed up big time. It was not too long ago that most phones had to be hard wired into the wall and most TV’s could get all the programming over the air. Today more and more of us are jettisoning our wired Ma Bell phones and using our wireless mobile phones almost exclusively. Many “twenty-somethings” are shocked to hear that a TV can actually work without being connected to the cable or satellite dish. It is in this vein that I share the following true story.
A colleague of mine told me that over the Super Bowl weekend she received a call from her brother in Connecticut. He had recently purchased a new HD TV set but he had yet to decide if he was going to sign up for a high definition service with his cable provider or go with one of the satellite services. Well to make a long story short, he was very disappointed because his procrastination had resulted in not being able to watch the Super Bowl in High Definition on his brand new HD set.
“Why don’t you just pick it up over the air from Channel 3, the CBS station in Hartford,” my colleague inquired of her brother. A long pause ensued.
“You mean that I can get High Definition programming over the air …Channel 3 broadcasts in HD?” he asked incredulously.”
As it turned out she walked him through the rather simple process of attaching a regular “rabbit ears” antenna to the new TV set and, voila, it worked. He was nothing short of amazed.
I don’t think that my colleague’s brother is the exception as evidenced by the sheer wonder found in the eyes of many when they see TV actually coming to their mobile phone, Palm Pilot™ or video iPod™ through the air. Marconi got a Nobel Prize for developing this process in 1909.
Who knows, over –the-air TV broadcasting may have a second life with HDTV.
A colleague of mine told me that over the Super Bowl weekend she received a call from her brother in Connecticut. He had recently purchased a new HD TV set but he had yet to decide if he was going to sign up for a high definition service with his cable provider or go with one of the satellite services. Well to make a long story short, he was very disappointed because his procrastination had resulted in not being able to watch the Super Bowl in High Definition on his brand new HD set.
“Why don’t you just pick it up over the air from Channel 3, the CBS station in Hartford,” my colleague inquired of her brother. A long pause ensued.
“You mean that I can get High Definition programming over the air …Channel 3 broadcasts in HD?” he asked incredulously.”
As it turned out she walked him through the rather simple process of attaching a regular “rabbit ears” antenna to the new TV set and, voila, it worked. He was nothing short of amazed.
I don’t think that my colleague’s brother is the exception as evidenced by the sheer wonder found in the eyes of many when they see TV actually coming to their mobile phone, Palm Pilot™ or video iPod™ through the air. Marconi got a Nobel Prize for developing this process in 1909.
Who knows, over –the-air TV broadcasting may have a second life with HDTV.
Monday, March 12, 2007
If a tree falls in the forest…
With all the “whiz-bang” high tech developments gaining attention in recent years, one seems to have escaped the notice of many. Perhaps it is because it is looked at as an old technology. Perhaps it is because the devices for using it are expensive and hard to find. Or perhaps it is a technology that just doesn’t offer enough new benefit. Perhaps it is because of all the above. The technology is HD Radio™.
HD Radio™ is the moniker used for the technology developed by iBiguity Corporation to digitally transmit audio and data on the current FM and AM radio bands. Right now most radio in the US is broadcast with regular analog transmission technology that has changed little since the first regular radio broadcasts began in the early 1900s. The FCC has adopted HD Radio™ as the standard for digital broadcasts in the United States. However, unlike digital TV, there is no FCC mandate and no deadline for stations to begin digital transmission.
There are three major improvements offered with HD Radio™. First, the quality of the audio is enhanced. While the quality is not that much better than good current FM broadcasts, e.g., WGUC/ 90.9, WARM 98, or WEBN 102.7, the audio quality (if not the content) on AM stations is greatly improved. In fact, you will be hard pressed to hear the difference in the quality of music played on AM or FM using HD radio™.
The second major benefit of HD Radio™ comes in its ability to offer multiple programs on a single channel. For example, if you tuned to WGUC 90.9 using an HD Radio you will find not only a commercial free classical music service but also be able to hear jazz programming 24 hours a day. Other local stations that are transmitting HD Radio have decided to use the second or third “channel” in a variety of ways.
HD Radio™ has a third feature that many will find useful. Some receivers will have small screens on which can be displayed information about the program being broadcast. This is somewhat akin to the on-screen TV guide on your cable. The display might be the name of the performer or catalog number of the musical recording being played.
There are cuurently 15 stations in the Cincinnati area broadcasting in HD Radio™ format. Unfortunately that is also about the same number of radios in the Cincinnati area that are able to receive the broadcasts. That is an exaggeration, but not by much.
Auto makers have been slow to provide HD Radios™ in the new models. It is easy to forget, but it was in large part the standard offering of AM/FM radios in cars that propelled FM broadcasting from the poor “step child” to the prominent and even dominant player in radio broadcasting. That has not happened for HD Radio™ as the car manufacturers have embraced the satellite radio pay services.
The radios are not cheap and up until now not easy to find. The large national electronic stores may have one or two models on the shelf for home and car. RadioShack® stores offer two models for home or office use but they are pricey in the $200 neighborhood. Like any other electronic device, as sales increase the price will go down. But that is yet to happen. Last week’s announcement by the retail behemoth Wal-Mart® might jump- start sales but even their announcement was cautious in predicting demand.
Frankly HD Radio™ is an enigma. It is a good service. It is free. It is available anywhere. It provides more listening options, e.g. a real jazz service in this market. But it just has not taken off. I have been watching it for years and really don’t have an opinion when or even if it will replace traditional analog radio. Perhaps it will require the FCC the do what it has done for TV, set a sunset date for analog radio transmission.
HD Radio™ is the moniker used for the technology developed by iBiguity Corporation to digitally transmit audio and data on the current FM and AM radio bands. Right now most radio in the US is broadcast with regular analog transmission technology that has changed little since the first regular radio broadcasts began in the early 1900s. The FCC has adopted HD Radio™ as the standard for digital broadcasts in the United States. However, unlike digital TV, there is no FCC mandate and no deadline for stations to begin digital transmission.
There are three major improvements offered with HD Radio™. First, the quality of the audio is enhanced. While the quality is not that much better than good current FM broadcasts, e.g., WGUC/ 90.9, WARM 98, or WEBN 102.7, the audio quality (if not the content) on AM stations is greatly improved. In fact, you will be hard pressed to hear the difference in the quality of music played on AM or FM using HD radio™.
The second major benefit of HD Radio™ comes in its ability to offer multiple programs on a single channel. For example, if you tuned to WGUC 90.9 using an HD Radio you will find not only a commercial free classical music service but also be able to hear jazz programming 24 hours a day. Other local stations that are transmitting HD Radio have decided to use the second or third “channel” in a variety of ways.
HD Radio™ has a third feature that many will find useful. Some receivers will have small screens on which can be displayed information about the program being broadcast. This is somewhat akin to the on-screen TV guide on your cable. The display might be the name of the performer or catalog number of the musical recording being played.
There are cuurently 15 stations in the Cincinnati area broadcasting in HD Radio™ format. Unfortunately that is also about the same number of radios in the Cincinnati area that are able to receive the broadcasts. That is an exaggeration, but not by much.
Auto makers have been slow to provide HD Radios™ in the new models. It is easy to forget, but it was in large part the standard offering of AM/FM radios in cars that propelled FM broadcasting from the poor “step child” to the prominent and even dominant player in radio broadcasting. That has not happened for HD Radio™ as the car manufacturers have embraced the satellite radio pay services.
The radios are not cheap and up until now not easy to find. The large national electronic stores may have one or two models on the shelf for home and car. RadioShack® stores offer two models for home or office use but they are pricey in the $200 neighborhood. Like any other electronic device, as sales increase the price will go down. But that is yet to happen. Last week’s announcement by the retail behemoth Wal-Mart® might jump- start sales but even their announcement was cautious in predicting demand.
Frankly HD Radio™ is an enigma. It is a good service. It is free. It is available anywhere. It provides more listening options, e.g. a real jazz service in this market. But it just has not taken off. I have been watching it for years and really don’t have an opinion when or even if it will replace traditional analog radio. Perhaps it will require the FCC the do what it has done for TV, set a sunset date for analog radio transmission.
Monday, March 5, 2007
No this is not another Y2K!
The upcoming change in the date for the beginning of Daylight Saving Time in the United States will cause some minor problems for many computers. If you are running Microsoft Windows™, our good friend Bill Gates has built in a little program that automatically changes your computer’s clock at the beginning and end of Daylight Saving time periods. Of course Bill could not know that in 2007 those dates would change expanding Daylight Saving Time by some four weeks. Not to worry. The sky will not fall on March 11th at 2 AM! Do not stock up on toilet paper and milk! Put away the extra flashlight batteries. Take a deep breath.
There are available on the Internet various “patches” to address this problem. A “patch” is a little program that fixes your computer’s operating system when something malfunctions, either because of a mistake in the program, or as in this case, changes in the dates. I wouldn’t bother with a patch. I have an easier way.
For those of you who use Microsoft Windows XP™, there is a simple fix that you can do in 30 seconds. When you have time on Sunday, March 11th just fire up your computer and RIGHT CLICK on the time display at the lower left corner of your screen. When the menu appears, LEFT CLICK on the “Adjust Date and Time” item. Another screen with a calendar and a place to set the “Time of Day” will appear. Go ahead and set the time ahead by 1 hour. At the top of the box you will find a TAB marked “TIME ZONE.” LEFT CLICK on that and you will see map of the world and below the map a little box that is most likely already checked with the words, “Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes.” By LEFT Clicking on that box you will disable Bill’s little handy dandy program so it will not add another hour in three weeks nor will it subtract an hour in November.
For those of you who use Windows 98™, you will find the little daylight saving box as soon as you click on the time in the lower right side of your screen. As for VISTA™, the process in similar to XP™ but you actually can have multiple Daylight Saving settings.
For Mac Users, there are patches available on the Internet and some Macs connected to the Internet will “Call Home” to Apple to get the correct time. Again, I would suggest that you manually go into your clock settings and set the time ahead by one hour. Don’t forget to un-check the box marked “Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes.” No big deal.
You are all set until Sunday November 4th when you will need to set the clock back an hour. See, no need for extra milk, toilet paper or extra blankets and flashlights! Isn’t technology wonderful!
PS. A few weeks ago we discussed DTV. For those who want more info on the Digital TV, the FCC has a neat web site: www.dtv.gov
There are available on the Internet various “patches” to address this problem. A “patch” is a little program that fixes your computer’s operating system when something malfunctions, either because of a mistake in the program, or as in this case, changes in the dates. I wouldn’t bother with a patch. I have an easier way.
For those of you who use Microsoft Windows XP™, there is a simple fix that you can do in 30 seconds. When you have time on Sunday, March 11th just fire up your computer and RIGHT CLICK on the time display at the lower left corner of your screen. When the menu appears, LEFT CLICK on the “Adjust Date and Time” item. Another screen with a calendar and a place to set the “Time of Day” will appear. Go ahead and set the time ahead by 1 hour. At the top of the box you will find a TAB marked “TIME ZONE.” LEFT CLICK on that and you will see map of the world and below the map a little box that is most likely already checked with the words, “Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes.” By LEFT Clicking on that box you will disable Bill’s little handy dandy program so it will not add another hour in three weeks nor will it subtract an hour in November.
For those of you who use Windows 98™, you will find the little daylight saving box as soon as you click on the time in the lower right side of your screen. As for VISTA™, the process in similar to XP™ but you actually can have multiple Daylight Saving settings.
For Mac Users, there are patches available on the Internet and some Macs connected to the Internet will “Call Home” to Apple to get the correct time. Again, I would suggest that you manually go into your clock settings and set the time ahead by one hour. Don’t forget to un-check the box marked “Automatically adjust clock for daylight saving changes.” No big deal.
You are all set until Sunday November 4th when you will need to set the clock back an hour. See, no need for extra milk, toilet paper or extra blankets and flashlights! Isn’t technology wonderful!
PS. A few weeks ago we discussed DTV. For those who want more info on the Digital TV, the FCC has a neat web site: www.dtv.gov
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