All posts by Rog
Below are all of Rog's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
MikeB: With respect there are folks with very poor broadband , folks without Internet and even without telephone (line or cable) whilst one thing were broadband IS good enough you do usually get a far better 'stream' and DAB radios have a lousy way of loosing the signal . The politicians want folks to buy DAB sets so the government can make a mint flogging off radio spectrum space. Europe has now (mostly) changed , if they had digital at all, to DAB+ (a proved better system) and the two systems are incompatible so avoid crapy DAB .
Yes, if you must have Radio4extra or Radio6 get it either on your lap-top, ipad, etc or buy an Internet Radio which might cost you - but is a better future proof deal , however if you like Radio 4 and the most popular Radio 2 keep your LW/MW/VHF(FM) radio/wireless and don't be conned . The UK has had digital since 1995 and the take-up has been a failure with barely 29.5% listening 'on all digital platforms' only 18% listening on DAB sets after 18 years ! however its explained away it ain't success.
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My God! in 1992 The salaries at the BBC particularly of those behind this long winded 'book' - document seems inadequate - must have been far and above those ordinary senior executives in minor industries like banking simply to suggest that subscription TV (and radio?) were , on top of an ever increasing compulsory licence , a really splendid idea ..... The complicating changes involved at the introduction of terrestrial digital TV which only seems to have marginally increased our real 'choice' and added sellervision which was always a satellite pain but was simply not expected on normal TV, takes up channels which could and should be used for proper entertainment and information/education has actually limited our 'choice', when you consider whilst US and other countries have to suffer ever increasing advertising (like us) at least they don't pay the government/BBC £144 a year to simply own a TV then see in the news the obscene salaries BBC 'bosses' who decide our 'choices' for us .
DAB has been a singular failure and though whiz-kids say "what's a radio valve Dad?" they also frown when the Radio Crapo they are listening to goes off spluttering as they carry the ugly 'brick' into another room . Ok Luxy faded - but it did come hundreds of miles and was refused transmitters by the same type of folk advocating a system (DAB) where over 35 miles is called 'dx' these day if you hear anything at all that is.
Our fathers and granddads could hear stations from all over Europe and USA and Australia (on short-wave) until as recent as the 1960's on the old quaint 'valve' radios - whereas a 'brick' goes deaf.
So thanks 'Auntie' BBC for giving us the 'progress' of digital - now take you're mug of Ovaltine and bu**er off back to bed to count the £M s wasted on, DAB, moving to Salford, remodelling local radio back to semi-regional, putting two extra TV stations on starting at 7pm each day with 75% unwatchable programme content when they have a vast vault of splendid 1970's to 1990's programmes (dramas,shows,documentaries etc) gathering dust. Where on earth do they get the folk who man (dare I say that? - person) the BBC so called Trust do they know anything about broadcasting to the people of the UK? I don't think so - do you?
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DAB and DAB+ has been and unless the BBC and other broadcasters 'get real' will be an unnecessary 'white elephant' not only in UK but other countries. The UK stumbled into DAB after the government (well certain Ministers of the old Labour mob and profit seekers of this present co-illusion) and hung onto it looking back in the distance that isolation (using a different standard/system to every other country) might help British industry but failing to realise all these DAB 'Bricks' and DAB+ chunks are made in China or far East. The days when Ecko, Pye, Decca, etc had 405 line 14" b/w TVs pouring out of factories mainly in the south-east of England are long passed.
So why insist on pushing an out-dated and unpopular DAB why not the 'improved' DAB+ which Pure is claiming DAB sets can be converted to DAB+ (they don't say it's almost a re-build, or the price). But then with DAB+ think of the cost in changing the already little used (by listeners) transmitters the problems with muxs the difficulties of (unlikely) slotting DAB+ between FM stations which might seem possible but remember that the empty channel in your area may be fully taken even 15 miles away - imagine the problems.
My solution; pack up all the DAB and DAB+ working, pay off the technos. Leave FM/VHF as it is (signs are in a few years both BBC and the commercials will be struggling to keep existing stations on air anyway) re-visit the Medium Wave situation and scrap the subsidised Asian language stations but retransmit such as AIR (if allowed) in the UK on Short Wave.
Allow more ERP for local AM stations on MW (as in France) retransmit RTE Radio1 and RTE Radio 2 on Medium Wave in UK (if allowed)
That way Britain's radio becomes livelier and what our broadcasters cant provide we make sure is available through good re-transmissions which benefit such as India and Eire by increased coverage.
DAB has very obviously failed - end it and save the money, there is absolutely no need for the waste. VHF/FM, S.W. M.W and Long Wave are still and will remain the peoples real choice lets not be told blacks white cause highly paid wiz kids with greased palms say so.
'Nation Shall Speak Peace Unto Nation' it says over the entrance to Broadcasting House - but it can't do that with DAB (or DAB+) we are told by our Dave we should be not insular but more International but DAB is insular - scrap it.
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Personally I never understood why a purpose built properly fitted out and efficient TV Centre in London where artists and staff are available and transport from theatres, stars homes and other venues to appear in productions was practicable and reasonable was moved to Salford . If a move were considered a cost cutting excercise why not Birmingham, or Bristol for England , Cardiff or Glasgow for Wales or Scotland - Salford was just politics - not practicality. As for programmes; on BBC1 it seems whoever is 'fat controller' hasn't a clue as standards go lower.- as for BBC3 and BBC4 'half channels' only rarely are the programmes worth watching - then it's re-screens of 1970-80 BBC2 programmes !
If BBC wasn't such a sacred cow it would be sold off like Royal Mail and British Rail(ways) and we'd all have a free licence .....
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May I be down to earth and not try to prove how techo I am please.
Firstly, the Internet can be controlled - servers can be switched off by government interests DAB too. DTT can also be manipulated as it's limited to muxs and within country borders. DTT is based on quantity of channels - but generally TV programme quality (material) has degenerated to a point where children are open to hearing vile language in many movies or watching violence in soaps.
In the days of Analogue a decent programme and good picture could be reliably watched on a portable with a set-top aerial. Ironically many of the 7" digital flat screens with their 5" bits of wire can often fail to get any sort of picture!! yet firms still con customers into buying them - only to have them returned, ask Maplin. So digital TV needs a damned good aerial even in a strong area - where old fashioned analogue could be relied upon digital might offer all sorts of stations - but if you cant get ANY signal its rather pointless. Broadband TV needs a damned good Wi-Fi hub and really super speed or freezes etc are common - and if your ISP has a street-box fault and you can't use off-air TV (via box and aerial) you loose your TV . Whilst BBC remind you that you have to have a licence, are they prepared to refund lost service? I don't think so. To Hell with more mobile phone waveband space so kids to bosses can play and send inane messages - we viewers and listeners have suffered the appalling ignorance of politicians since the 1960's - and before and some stupid ideas (DAB) and policies (Marine Offences Act). If these phone companies want waveband space end DAB and give 'em that.
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All this swapping of 'facts' and opinions and we all know that in a few years the paper compulsory TV licence will, like the car 'road fund' licence be replaced.
In a few years the Free View digital TV box, or integrated circuitry to convert the digital signals from TV (and DAB) stations will be encoded (as Sky and Virgin do now) so unless a fee, additional but not included in the Sky or Virgin subscription, is pre-paid (licence) you the viewer will see a pattern on your screen -no picture and DAB radio receivers or satellite streams to Wi-Fi radios or PCs will be blocked.
The excuse will be the loss in revenue to UK Government through evasion of licence payment; pensioners over 82 may be excluded.
I suspect even the EU will support such a move and claim its 'fair'.
So all the grumbling against and all the self-righteous defending of an out-dated system which was fine until the 1990s before Sky subs, Virgin subs, FreeSat costs and we had to buy a box to watch 'Free view' - to watch even the load of stations that simply sell things and provide no programmes no entertainment, will be pointless.
The present partial answer would be to charge Sky and Virgin the licence fee for each of its TV customers with a condition they could not pass the charge on. For FreeSat a one time licence for life and for Free View (who have less stations available to them anyway) complete abolition of the licence.
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Why is Local City /Bonanza not available on Sky I can understand Local City being a terrestrial only station in the case of Birmingham and Sutton Coldfield transmitter obviously some chap in Glasgow is hardly interested in Brum - unless he's an away from home sales rep or ex-pat but surely good old Ben, Horse, Adam and Little Joe not to mention A Ling or A Pong the cook should be on ?
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BBC 3 only apeals to youngsters many of which don't have to pay the £145.50 a year perhaps some - the more popular programmes from '3' could go to BBC2 or BBC4. BBC TV regional news has, especially with the floods etc kept folks informed in places a local 'paper couldn't be had and local radio couldn't show important pictures and plans though perhaps an alternative would be a closing of some TV sub-regions which terrestrial transmitters don't fully reach the borders of (i.e. East Midlands) and a longer regional news programme from Birmingham (in this case) . After all whitehall created the so called East Midlands and West Midlands - it was The Midlands before they messed it up. Wales and Scotland already have their local 'regional' news so why change it ? Stations to get rid of are Radio 1 (there are now plenty of commercial stations playing pop) and The Asian Network - this is England and everyone living here should speak English . Ok BBC 1 has become crap in recent years with such as The Voice , Come Celebrity Prancing crap yank films desparate comedy and dramas where shouting passes as acting including Eastenders going from bad to worse . but the idea no one really cares about their region is daft . No, scrap BBC3 , Radio 1, Asian Network and then , providing the areas news is covered properly , combine sub-region news back into the former regions (i.e. East , Midlands , West (including Devon, Cornwall C.Islands) South (including S.E) North (including Yorks,Newcastle, Carlisle) and give them a full hour . Scotland , N.I. , Wales a full hour from one studio in each country. Perhaps recorded and repeated instead of the crap American film later or on BBC2.
BBC4 has too many limited audience interest programmes , liven it up with a few mid-brow dramas or popular series/serials of the 70's 80's from the vault. Make every station , TV and radio worth its audience .
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Lets have an end to this feeding aspirins to the corpse of digital radio, the BBC, co-illusion government and God knows who else has a little finger in this moulding pie are wasting more and more money of licence payers, share holders and very naive radio purchasers who were conned rotten by BBC and a few commercial station like Classic FM making unsubstantiated claims of 'super CD quality' sound, which upon demonstration proved very much otherwise - so listeners returned and re-tuned to FM and AM. BBC even tried to force listeners to go DAB by using certain analogue-used frequencies the listeners were previously enjoying - to 'test' such as DRM ! , the obvious untruths couldn't do it, listeners are not sheep to be hurdled and penned, so other methods of persuasion were tried - after all how many £M had been wasted? Now, in sheer desperation , it can be the only reason, they the digital lobby in government (EU elections, general election, BBC charter and commercial companies going bust) staunchly supported by the posh chaps at Ofcom , who time after time have compromised on broadcast sound quality to give the money men more quantity- the latest admission of failure to be flagged-up is the long denied move to make those existing DAB sets obsolete in the same way the conventional reliable radios with LW,MW, SW and FM should according to those now huddled in the corner fingers in mouths with silly mindless smiles consigned to land-fill. They have gone too far to admit they cocked it all up, so rather than falling on their 'all new things are better' superannuated swords they proclaim " You know what we said last year, month, week ago we definitely wouldn't do - well we're doing it ' so throw out your hardly ever used DAB set which kept making funny noises or going off and here's a new more expensive set which will still make noises and go off .... Can we chaps (at Ofcom) get our golden pay-offs and OBE's at the door? ..................................
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Sunday 25 August 2013 12:36AM
Briantist: Where ever did you get the idea Radio4 was 'a mixture of programmes from the Home Service and Light Programme name your evidence. Radio 3 was the only one of four national labels and they'd already tried to re-name that as Network Three - though it was not a network. As for the re-naming which previously did give some idea of the station content and regional qualities of the Home Service - the listener/ compulsive up to then licence payer had no choice but to accept the totally undescriptive numbering. As with the itv where again regional content or opt-out is almost ended - itv wanted to end regional news but the government reminded them of the details of the Commercial TV Act. For decades people have been a little proud of being in ATV, Granada, Anglia etc areas in the same way they are as being Midlanders, Yorkshire folk etc. Itv completely ignored that in London , If BBC can 'label' their regions , as the itv companies did for decades then so can itv - the laws controlling contract rights and regional advertising haven't changed for years only the amount of advertising per hour has been allowed to almost double! (at peak up to 4 minutes from 2.5 in the years of the networking companies). It is now the industry that thinks it knows - but apart from a flawed system of audience counting it's not getting anything like the viewers for 'peak shows' ('Doc Martin' etc average quoted itv 9 million, whilst in the mid 1960's Steptoe & Son got 21 million.
I remember several people being confused when BBC 4 and BBC 3 came into operation simply because of confusion with radio 4 and radio 3 and a refusal of BBC to name the BBC TV4 and BBC TV3 one excuse was that in Europe there was already TV3 - however when it was pointed out the continental (French I believe) was not receivable on UK TV's BBC still insisted on not adding TV to the station names! I have now been told BBC do no longer use the general term 'radio' but the Audio and Music Dept.
Brian, you know commercial and national/regional boundaries are not recognised by radio waves so saying itv can't offer itv regions outside the broadcast area in incredibly naive and in effect scientifically impossible as far as unscrambled satellite transmission is concerned. Itv must also accept were regions and sub-regions meet (i.e. East Midlands and West Midlands) and particularly where the 'official' region transmitter fails to cover the particular town or community area then your final paragraph is unworkable - by itv itself!