» Technology

From D.C. to Illinois using Dropbox

Steve — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 16:00:01 +0000

New York Times columnist David Pogue does a bang-up job of sharing the awesomeness of Dropbox. He goes into great detail about how Dropbox has helped him write his latest book. It’s worth a read because I know from personal experience it can change the way a busy radio personality works.

If you don’t have time to read all of David’s review, here are two quick reasons to download the Dropbox program: 1) It’s free; 2) It’s magic.

I use Dropbox dozens of times a day, usually without even thinking about it. For example, every issue of our premium show prep service, InterPrep/PRO, is saved to Dropbox. Every time an edit is made the latest version is saved in my computer’s Dropbox folder, then to the Dropbox server, and then to a notebook PC in my office — all within seconds. (The notebook also runs the Dropbox program.)

Using Dropbox as a documents folder is smart for many reasons, the two biggest for me being instant off-site backup and the ability to grab my notebook computer and head to a coffee shop without having to copy files to a USB key.

But Dropbox really shines for “live” remote broadcasting. Recently I had the opportunity to fly to Washington D.C. with 75 World War II veterans on an Honor Flight. (You can learn more about Honor Flight here.) I was part of a two-person team recording hourly updates that were sent back to radio studios in Champaign, Illinois. Using iPod Touches, the iTalk recording app and a 3G mobile Internet device it was super simple to do interviews and ship them, via Dropbox, back to our producer in Champaign. After recording each segment iTalk lets you ‘share’ your audio using Dropbox. We shared our files to a Dropbox folder that our producer 715 miles away had access to. Over the course of 8 hours we sent 16 high-quality audio reports without a single problem.

As I said, day in and day out I use Dropbox dozens of times, often for my morning show. A copy of the program is on a main studio computer, which means I can ‘drop’ audio files and show prep into a shared folder on my home computer. When I arrive at the studio in the morning I know the files are waiting for me.

I don’t just recommend Dropbox, I urge you to use it as a super-simple backup solution and a wonderful radio tool.

Turn Your iPad Into 1980s Radio-Cassette

Steve — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 13:44:02 +0000

Want to check up on the competition? Hear what your favorite morning show across the country is doing? Stereolizer turns your iPad into a 1980s stereo, complete with twitching VU-needles, a big volume knob and a tape deck, so you can pirate your music the old-fashioned way. Stereolizer tunes into internet radio stations searchable by name or country. You can also spin the dial to find radio streams, and you get authentic-sounding fake radio interference, just as you would with a real radio. Press Record on the tape deck to capture audio for later, and then write on the tape to remember what you recorded. Stereolizer page.

via Wired

Thief makes off with station’s music library

Steve — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:18:17 +0000

Since your station’s likely playing everything from music to commercials off of computer, there’s never a bad time to ask your engineer if everything’s backed up.

The theft of an estimated $10,000 in equipment included the hard drive that contained all the Perry Broadcasting station’s music, says KSWO. KJMZ jock Joe Biggs says “I actually had to hook up my laptop and played some music off of there.” GM Joy Chapman says it’s been a trying year, starting off with the loss of the tower during an ice storm. The burglary at the East Lee Boulevard studios happened early Friday morning, and the culprits made away with computers, monitors, TVs, webcams and two transmitter tubes – tubes the station was using to get back up to full power. The police are offering a cash reward through the “Crimestoppers” program. More at Radio-Info.

Love me some Dropbox

Steve — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 01:05:14 +0000

Got more than one computer? Need to keep some key show prep files or audio in sync? Want to move things between your home and station computer with ease? Get Dropbox. It’s free (up to 2GB) and the program works like a dream. Get Dropbox. (After you set up Dropbox, check out these hacks.)

The Radio Bookmark

Steve — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 18:23:35 +0000

Radio Bookmark is a key chain device that lets the user tag radio shows or stories so they can catch them later in their entirety on the Internet. The gadget, from Sky Blue Technologies, can’t be bought. It’s a gift offered by at least 50 public radio stations to members who contribute at a certain level — typically about $120 a year. Sky Blue founder Chris Baker says there’s no plan to adapt the technology to commercial radio.

Pros and cons of common digital audio formats

Steve — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 10:30:59 +0000

Here’s a good article on the pros and cons of the most common digital audio formats.

The good and bad — but mostly good — of the PPM

Steve — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:39:31 +0000

With the Portable People Meter, radio is learning a few things about its listeners, listening habits and format preferences.

Digital voice recorders make it easy to get audio

Steve — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 22:20:10 +0000

If you’re not using the newest generation of digital voice recorders, you’re working harder than you should. Olympus makes some great little models that start under $100.

I’m currently using the Olympus WS-100 digital voice recorder. The quality of the files isn’t FM, but it’s good enough for short listener sound bites. The best feature: it slides apart to reveal a USB plug that you can pop directly into any computer for quick file transfer. (Each file is saved as a .WMA which can then be converted to .MP3.)

The Olympus DS-2 costs a little more and requires a USB adapter cord for transferring files (included), but the sound quality is better than the WS-100′s.

I’d love to hear what you use for recording sound bites. Leave a comment below.

The story of “Stratovision” for FM radio

Steve — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 23:24:48 +0000

In the late 1940s, Stratovision was hailed as a way to bring TV and FM radio to a wider audience. It worked, but the plan fizzled out. Read the story of Stratovision.

Sticking to the core product

Steve — Wed, 09 May 2007 20:15:44 +0000

I’m a geek. I love computers, the Internet, Podcasting, etc. But more and more I think radio stations need to stay focused on keeping it simple… doing what we do best. Audio and video on the station website is great, but the time vs. benefit may be quite large. You can spend hours a day adding nifty content to your site, creating web features, etc., but ultimately you’re better off spending most of that time focusing on your core product.

I’m not alone in this thought. Consultant Joel Raab reminds us:

Podcasts, uploading pictures and video. We’re all moving in that direction if we’re not there already. Do not assume however that your listeners understand your hot new contest which requires uploading or other technical skills. Bottom line is that we have to bring much of our audience along with us. Like too much unfamiliar music, too many unfamiliar technical requirements can doom your station’s promotion or message. Relevancy is key. We must balance the need to sound connected to today’s technology while helping the audience understand how to use it. Let’s not get too hip for the room.

And recently I saw this story:

A new survey is out about the technology people have, how they use it, and what they think about it. The study (by the Pew Internet and American Life Project) found that adult Americans are broadly divided into three groups: 31 percent are elite technology users, 20 percent are moderate users and the remainder have little or no usage of the Internet or cell phones.