• Contents for this Newsletter

About This Newsletter
Meeting Announcement
Upcoming Meeting Schedule
Meeting Minutes
Dumpster Diving Party
Amateur Radio News
5th FCC Localism Meeting Held
From The Chair
Laundry To Go
SBE National Releases Statement Opposing Live Code Testing Of EAS
WisconsiEye Launched
SBE Notes & Reminders
Chapter Sustaining Members
Return to 2007 Newsletter Archives

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The Chapter 24 Newsletter is published monthly by Chapter 24 of the Society of Broadcast Engineers; Madison, Wisconsin. Original hard copy edited by John Salzwedel on InDesign CS. Submissions of interest to the broadcast technical community are welcome. You can make your submissions by e-mail to:

© 2007 by SBE Chapter 24. Views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the Society, its officers, or its members. SBE Chapter 24 regrets, but is not liable for, any omissions or errors. The Chapter 24 Newsletter is published twelve times per year. Other SBE Chapters are permitted to use excerpts if attributed to the original author, sources, and SBE Chapter 24.

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Steve Strassberg of Strassberg Associates, the distributor and spokesman for the Linear Acoustic company, will present an informative program on DTV audio. It has been over ten years since the ATSC officially published the standards describing the audio system for digital television. With the end of analog over the air rapidly approaching, how is the audio today? Many would agree that it is far less consistent and far more prone to level and image shifts than ever before. Seemingly every network handles the audio side of DTV in a different manner, and the results audibly amplify these differences. Consumers are now presented with a large number of audio sources, none of which seem to be consistent either within the source or between sources. So what is broken? Is it emission, distribution, contribution, production, or a fatal combination of several areas? Metadata was designed to prevent this mess, but is it being effectively used? Perhaps it is being abused or ignored? What is the solution? Join us for an engaging discussion of the standards, tools and techniques that are being refined to solve some of these issues and what can be done about the remaining problems.

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Chapter 24 of the Society of Broadcast Engineers meet on June 17, 2007 at Badger Prairie County Park in Verona for its annual picnic. There were 10 members present of which 8 were certified. There were also two guests present.

Steve Paugh conducted the grilling duties starting at 5:30. There was a short meeting after dinner. Outgoing chair Clif Groth opened the meeting. Clif reported that the chapter had received its annual dues rebate from the national office of the SBE. Election Chair Steve Paugh announced the new slate of officers for the next year: Dennis Baldridge, Chair; Clif Groth, Vice Chair; Tom Smith, Secretary; and Leslie Franzen, Treasurer. Clif commented on his year as Chair and thank everyone for their help.

Treasurer Leslie Franzen noted he was working on the annual report, Program Chair Steve Paugh gave an update on the upcoming meetings, Certification Chair Jim Hermanson gave an update on upcoming exam dates and Frequency Coordinator Tom Smith noted that WSUM would be moving its STL in the near future due to construction of the new University Square high rise blocking its signal.

Kevin Ruppert and Kevin Peckham supplied the music for the evening and after the meeting played old radio jingles and air checks which lead to a lively discussion of radio past.

Thanks to Steve Paugh for his organization of the picnic and his grilling skills and to the Two Kevins for their entertainment for the evening.

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WISC-TV is cleaning out its storage building. In an effort to keep excess material out of the landfill, WISC is inviting you to attend a dumpster diving party on Saturday, July 21 from 1 to 4 p.m. All items are free, as is and must be removed by the end of the day. Manuals and extender cards will be available for most items.

You’ll find an eclectic assortment of audio, video, computer and RF gear, along with racks and various cable scrap. The collected material will be on display inside the Old Transmitter Building at the south edge of the front parking lot, rain or shine.

Contact Steve Paugh at WISC-TV, 608-277-5139, or spaugh@wisctv.com for more information.

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Environment Center (SEC) released their monthly forecasts of sunspot number and 10.7 cm radio flux. The SEC forecasts that the smoothed sunspot number reached its low value of 11.7 in March 2007, and predicts that the solar flux will reach its low of 75.4 this month. This is the fourth month in a row that the SEC predicts the solar flux will bottom out in July.

Based on the SEC predictions, this is probably at the bottom of Cycle 23 and extremely close to the beginning of Cycle 24. Two events will mark the beginning of the next sunspot cycle: The observation of the first opposite magnetic polarity sunspots compared to Cycle 23 sunspot polarity, and the observation high solar latitude sunspots — the Cycle 23 sunspots are now very near the solar equator.

Although sunspots have been observed since Galileo’s time, in 1848 a Swiss astronomer named Rudolf Wolf came up with a method of counting sunspots which is still in use today. Wolf dubbed the 11-year solar cycle period of 1755-1766 as "Cycle 1."

Wisconsin kid makes good: Jackson Tenor, KC9KVU, age 8, recently passed his General license exam and almost passed the Extra! He is a member of the Green Bay Mike and Key Club and will be in the 3rd grade at Holy Apostles Catholic School in Green Bay. His proud father is Joe, N9UPU.

The American Radio Relay League has sent out more than 100 letters to repeater owners/trustees who have repeaters affected by the "Pave Paws" radars (PPR). Citing an increasing number of interference complaints, the US Air Force has asked the FCC to order dozens of repeater systems to either mitigate interference to the Pave Paws radars or shut down. The ARRL is working with the US Department of Defense (DoD) to develop a plan to mitigate alleged interference from 70 cm ham radio repeaters to this military radar system on both coasts.

According to the DoD, the in-band interference from Amateur Radio fixed FM voice repeaters has increased to an unacceptable level. Pave Paws radars are used for national security functions, including early detection of water-launched missiles. They are critical to national defense and are in use 24 hours per day, seven days per week. The situation affects 15 repeaters within 100 miles of Otis Air Force Base on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and more than 100 repeaters within 140 miles of Beale Air Force Base near Sacramento, California.

ARRL Regulatory Information Specialist Dan Henderson, N1ND, stresses that the Defense Department acknowledges Amateur Radio’s value in disasters and emergencies and is being extremely cooperative — and a wholesale shutdown of US 70 cm Amateur Radio activity is not on the table. The Amateur Radio Service is a secondary user in the 420-450 MHz band, both by the Table of Frequency Allocations and the FCC Part 97 regulations. As such, Amateur Radio licensees, jointly and individually, bear the responsibility of mitigating or eliminating any harmful interference to the primary user, which in this case is the Government Radiolocation Service that includes the DoD Pave Paws systems.

The League has been in contact with representatives of the FCC. They have the ultimate responsibility for enforcing any mitigation plan, up to and including ordering specific repeaters to shut down operations. The FCC is aware of the complex nature of this problem and the mitigation strategy being proposed by the DoD.

—Excerpts from the American Radio Relay League’s Web site at arrl.org and ARRL Wisconsin Section Manager Don Michalski, W9IXG.

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On June 26, the FCC held the fifth meeting of a planned six on broadcast localism and ownership. The meeting was held in Portland, Maine. The meeting was announced on June 21 as an open meeting of the Commission with a rulemaking on cable boxes on the agenda. That was later dropped. The agenda was published on June 25 with the meeting scheduled to go from 4 to 11 p.m. at the Portland High School. The public hearing followed the same schedule as past hearings with a half hour of opening comments by the Commissioners, which are posted on the FCC Web site, followed by a panel of representatives of newspaper and broadcast stations and some academics and public interest groups. These panels were given an hour to speak followed be two hours of comments from the public. After a half-hour break, a second panel spoke followed by two more hours of public comments.

According to the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, several hundred people showed up with about 150 speaking. Speakers included people from the media commenting on their public service to the community to those who were dissatisfied with news coverage and calling for more regulation. A local Congressman appeared via videotape and commented on the reduction of election coverage as did a representative of Common Cause.

These hearings have become pretty predictable in their comments, but they do show a difference in perception between what many broadcasters see in what they are providing the public and what the public sees or hears. This difference in perception may provide an insight to one of the reasons for declining audiences and the movement to the Internet and other media for information and entertainment.

—From FCC Releases (www.fcc.gov) and the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram (www.pressherald.mainetoday.com)

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Our local SBE Chapter 24 ranks among the top chapters in the nation. Many of our members are nationally known, holding key positions in the industry. Still others are actively involved in the installation of digital equipment, ushering our state into this new era of broadcasting. Repeatedly, the program committee of SBE Chapter 24 has planned programs which are of interest to our members. When someone becomes involved in our local SBE chapter, they are positioning themselves for professional growth and development.

Chapter participation produces professional development. My goal is to inspire our members to increased involvement in our local chapter. The Society of Broadcast Engineers is the only organization devoted to the advancement of all levels and types of broadcast engineering. Consequently, active members gain a broad perspective as well as information specific to today’s engineering challenges.

We are grateful to Clif Groth, our former chair, for his fine leadership this past year. Clif, along with the officers and committee members, has continued this pattern of excellence in our local SBE chapter. During my term as chair, I will endeavor to maintain this established standard of excellence.

I would invite your ideas and input on how we can make our local SBE chapter even stronger.

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Whether your summer vacation heading out on a long-deserved vacation or getting ready to hit the road for a business convention, the Coin Laundry Association offers the following tips for packing light:

• Coordinate your outfits around one single color theme so you can mix and match your clothes.
• Check the weather and pack only the most appropriate items.
• Pack one solid color sweater that matches just about any outfit and keeps you warm.
• Layer, layer, layer. This not only prepares you for daily temperature changes, but also allows you to leave your coat at home.
• Call ahead to your hotel to see if they include items in your room, such as robes, hairdryers, shampoo, conditioner, soap, etc.
• Don’t waste space; take miniaturized toiletries and pack socks and underwear inside your shoes.

Locate a laundromat where you can wash your clothes. By making a quick stop at the laundry while on vacation, you can plan for a two-week adventure and pack for one. Today’s progressive coin laundries feature several amenities, such as highdefinition televisions, Internet access, child-friendly playrooms, cafes and video games that allow you to relax and even multi-task. To find a self-service coin laundry, visit the Coin Laundry Association’s laundry locator at www.coinlaundry.org.

Save time when you get home by using a drop-off laundry service. This service allows customers to drop the laundry off and pick it up all washed, dried and folded. For a small additional fee, some coin laundries even offer a delivery service.

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The Society of Broadcast Engineers (SBE) announced its opposition to the use of real or live NWRSAME codes for system tests of the public warning system by National Weather Service (NWS)/NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) and some local authorities.

Alerts from the NWS, some local authorities and the Emergency Alert System (EAS) using real emergency event codes, when no actual emergency exists, have recently been used in some communities to test consumer receivers. The NWS is recommending the practice be expanded nationwide. While stated NWS policy establishes that approval for NWS live code testing is up to the state and local EAS committees, some committees are not being consulted or do not understand that they may decline the request. Local emergency officials also may not fully understand the implications of the request and may participate without realizing the serious negative results. The SBE asserts that these cry-wolf alerts will potentially cause public alarm, weaken confidence in the EAS for real alerts and discourage broadcaster’s involvement with volunteer EAS programs.

Broadcasters and cable systems decode the EAS data and send the information directly to scrolling messages on TV screens and radios. One result of live -code tests would be that TV’s viewed by the deaf and hard of hearing, and TVs in public places would not show any indication that the message is not a real alert. In addition, those receiving emergency messages through the Internet, PDAs, cell phones, programmable road signs, highway advisory radio, lottery terminals and shopping center marquee signs will not know the message was simply a test. The SBE says the negative effect of live -code testing outweighs the benefits of testing the public’s weather alert radios.

SBE President Chriss Scherer, CPBE CBNT, said, "There is a national effort to update EAS and NWR data standards with a technology called Common Alerting Protocol (CAP). CAP will allow a visual scroll of the same information as in the audio message, and the SBE suggests that such a technology — when in common use — will be better suited to live-code tests."

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WisconsinEye began live broadcast coverage of the State Legislature on Tuesday, July 10 on the Charter Communications and Time Warner digital cable systems serving Wisconsin.

"We’re very happy this historic day has finally arrived and WisconsinEye’s gavel-to-gavel coverage of state government will be available to Charter Communications and Time Warner Cable digital subscribers," WisconsinEye President Chris Long said. The new statewide public affairs network began broadcasting on the Internet at www.wiseye.org in May.

The WisconsinEye 24/7 cable channel is available to Time Warner Cable Wisconsin digital subscribers on Channel 163 and to Charter digital customers in southern Wisconsin, including Madison, Janesville and Beloit, on Channel 200. Charter plans to expand the distribution of the service into additional Charter markets within the next few months. Together, Charter and Time Warner Cable serve about 75 percent of Wisconsin cable customers. Approximately half of each company’s customers are digital subscribers.

"We believe the programming on Wisconsin Eye will be quite unique," commented Lisa Washa, Charter’s Vice-President of Operations in Wisconsin. "It will most definitely enhance the already strong value of our service."

WisconsinEye is a private, not-for-profit statewide public affairs network whose mission is to provide independent, nonpartisan coverage of civic and community life in Wisconsin, beginning with gavel-to-gavel coverage of the actions of state government in Madison. A complete archive of the network’s legislative coverage is available at www.wiseye.org.

The network’s state-of-the-art digital broadcast production facilities include 70 camera positions in the State Capitol building, including the Executive branch and State Supreme Court, and a network operations center at 122 West Washington Ave. bipartisan and nonpartisan donor community of individuals, foundations, organizations, and corporations is funding the network’s launch.

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HamNet meets the second Sunday of each month at 0000 GMT on 14.205 MHz. Hal Hostetler WA7BGX is the Control Station. Any amateur operator is welcome and encouraged to participate.

The SBE National Certification Committee has announced exam session dates. Check the list below for the exam period that is best for you. For more information about SBE Certification, see your Chapter Certification Chair or contact Megan Clappe, Certification Director at the SBE National Office at (317) 846-9000, or mclappe@sbe.org .

SBE chapters and members may use the SBE logo on business cards, letterhead and chapter newsletters. When referring to a chapter, it must be used with that chapter’s name or number adjacent to the logo. Members must put "Member of" or "Certified by" adjacent to the logo.

The proper logo must be used in any case. The correct logo can be obtained only through the SBE National Office. Send an e-mail with your request to Angel Bates at abates@sbe.org.

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