This is mostly for recall after I go senile, but here goes nothing.
Using the example posted above, this is the objective:
We want to be able to paste in the URL and have the editor offer up the option to link it to the HD2 channel.
The problem is that HD2 channel does not exist. Since it wasn’t loaded from HDradio.com, we have to create it:
The +HD2 link will create an empty record to be filled in and switch to it
This gets confusing – the FCC information (Licensee, Power, Class – the green area) comes from the FCC and is already filled in. The City, Time Zone and a few other fields are copied from them HD1 main channel. The URL is initially set to the home page of the main station, but most other information – Format, streams, Facebook page, etc – are not carried forward. In this example, we have the URL from the news story, so we need to set the URL and format.
We’be now established an “official” HD2 channel out of thin air, captured a screen shot, set the format – if there was a stream or Facebook page, we can add that too (there isn’t yet). The key here is that we are using the FCC fiction – that the “station” on 93.7 is really a simulcast on another frequency’s HD2 channel.
Eventually someone is going to get much smarter. FM/HD is currently a hybrid analog/digital format – but HD radio is designed for an eventual all digital FM transition and receivers are already built for that. By dropping out the analog signal, the number of digital HD channels increases a lot – I want to say maybe up to HD8? Some of it is based on whether you want CD quality or just “Normal FM” – so if clear channel gave up an analog FM signal, they might be able launch 8 new FM stations in New York City if they can round up enough FX licenses. Is 13 FM stations in New York by one owner too many? The coding added today does not assume than HD4 is the highest possible channel number.
The “relationship” of what primary station an FX translator is rebroadcasting is often wrong. KOIA-FM is the current home for K229CC. While it potentially is useful information to know that an FX translator has been reassigned, we don’t want the FCC update to clobber what we just did – but on the other hand, a valid change is worth knowing about. Saga has a pending Construction permit to move the FX translator (matching the story). Perhaps when that gets through officially, the other data gets corrected.
Cumulus dropped another 15% today – this is as much fun as riding Thunder Road at Carowinds – Yeehaw!
*** added bonus ***
The station search suggest now recognizes FX call signs. It was nothing, really.
I believe this is now complete, other than tracking them down. Since currently the FCC doesn’t care, there is no obvious way to track changes other than reading press releases.
In talking about FM analog/digital/hybrid formats, there is another component called SCA (Subsidiary communications authority) in the USA. At the beginning, there was a mono FM channel (L+R) or Left plus Right channels together. As stereo came alone, FM wanted to broadcast it but be compatible with existing receivers, so they added a second channel that was (L-R) or left minus right. Solving linear equations, by adding this two audios together, you get 2L+R-R or 2L. Subtracting them (adding them after reversing polarity) you get L-L+R-(-R) or 2R and have your L and R to drive the audio speakers.
Later came a third hidden channel that your father might have listened to that was commonly used to read talking books for the blind, medical information for physician, stock market news, and then later digital information for stock market, digital traffic etc. That was called SCA and I believe it is still used. It is an analog channel that often contains encoded digital information rather than audio. (Similar to the SAP or Second Audio Program for television).
My understanding is that the HD channels on FM basically replace the SCA channel…. so, in addition (or instead) of having HD channels, a station may have SCA programming such as talking books for the blind, traffic information, etc.
True – the problem is the sideband FM receivers were custom built and will have to be replaced – a great job for free government money.
The only thing I remember hearing him listening for (in the 1960s) was at a certain time of the day/week, they would read the supermarket ads from the newspapers, displacing one of my functions as a helpful child who had been learning to read and bonding with my father.