This was a rough year for losing people from David Bowie to Dr. Bombay (from “Bewitched”). Without any fanfare, we also said goodbye to the dear old MS-DOS command prompt.
TV Changes
Just as radio is “evolving”*, our brother/sister television has continued to change. CBS is pushing the new “Star Trek” TV series straight to “Pay-Per-View Web.” In other words, you must pay and subscribe to watch (and I suspect that won’t mean they also won’t push commercials). On the flip side is the ability to watch shows via Yahoo (complete with our familiar “commercial interruption”). If you haven’t started streaming TV shows, here’s a link to a free and safe way to do so. (*Note: Understandably “evolve” may be a word some choose to NOT use.)
You Ever Wonder …?
Andy Rooney, with his squeaky voice, often started an interesting topic with “you ever wonder?” To borrow from him — You ever wonder how those stadium flying cameras work? Recently on an NFL game, the first possible “camera interference” was claimed when a pass MIGHT have been diverted by one of these wires. Made me wonder how they work. Here’s the answer.
Coolest Web Streaming Web Site
I recently stumbled across the coolest interactive web streaming website … evuh! With Radio Garden basically you can listen-in anywhere in the world by shifting around on a globe of the Earth. I understand Radio World will have more about this coming up in a future edition of the print version. I’ll be curious to find out the details of this super-cool website.
No Alexander Graham Bell
Most of us working in radio, certainly in engineering, know the story of Edwin “The Father of FM Radio” Armstrong and his huge contribution to super-heterodyne radio. How many of us recognize the name Innocenzo Manzetti? He is often ignored for his contribution to the invention of the telephone. If you’re unfamiliar with the story, here’s a start through Wikipedia. It may inspire you to dig further into learning about this brilliant inventor.
The “Inside Scoop”
As a former DINFOS (Defense Information broadcast School) grad, I’m aware of resources devoted to broadcasters within AFRTS (American Forces Radio & TV Service). Here is a fascinating look inside the news content available within the U.S. military’s broadcast system … Defense Video Imagery Distribution System.
And finally …
Just for the fun of it … Here’s a link to a behind-the-scenes look at “Leave It to Beaver.”
If you stumble across a good or unusual web site that might be of interest, please don’t hesitate to send me the link and any info you might have about it. My email address is [email protected].
