Get off my LAWN! "Grumpy Old Farts"

[ahc]

Here is an article for you radio engineer types.

New Master Antenna System Serves D.C. - Radio World

AU is my alma mater. I worked at WAMU AM for a short time which was a low power station meant to only serve the campus. It was a completely separate entity from WAMU FM. We weren't allowed anywhere near the FM. The area where the tower is located was a popular "make out" spot before the dorms went coed. Which they thankfully did in my sophomore year.

 

[GwenOnBass]

The downside (I suppose?) of coed dorms is the realization they are just as human as you

 

[beans-on-toast]

Now they have coed bathrooms. The difference is that women say excuse me to anyone within earshot when they fart in a cubicle.

 

[Charlie Tango]

Like many over the air TV transmissions, radio will eventually be replaced with digital fiber optic delivery.

Well, then there's mobile transmission to consider, too.

 

[beans-on-toast]

AU is my alma mater. I worked at WAMU AM for a short time which was a low power station meant to only serve the campus. It was a completely separate entity from WAMU FM. We weren't allowed anywhere near the FM. The area where the tower is located was a popular "make out" spot before the dorms went coed. Which they thankfully did in my sophomore year.

What did you do at the radio station?

After high school I worked on the technical side building/modifying/maintaining electronic equipment.

 

[Deleted member 268085]

An interesting approach. If the tower is taken out, multiple stations go off air. One complaint about these installations is that they’re a blight on the skyline. As are cell towers. Not in my neighbourhood often comes up when new installations are proposed.

Like many over the air TV transmissions, radio will eventually be replaced with digital fiber optic delivery.

I used to think the same thing. But not anymore (sadly). The world is going wireless. 5G cellular will be a game-changer. There's no "last mile" to deal with. No easements required. No trenching. No technicians with vans/trucks driving all over kingdom come. No nada. I would very much prefer fiber to my home, but no one wants that business anymore.

My guess is that, once the world goes completely wireless, sunspot activity will significantly increase and take down wireless networks.

End of my conspiracy theory for today.

 

[Deleted member 268085]

What did you do at the radio station?

After high school I worked on the technical side building/modifying/maintaining electronic equipment.

AM radio was a blast back in the '60s! In high school, I dj'd the "Top Ten Tunes" show each evening at 7 on the low power AM station in Janesville, Wi. My younger brother read the news.

Then we both got fired. Part of my brother's job was bulk erasing the reel-to-reel tapes we used to record the show. Welp, one of the "unmarked" reels contained all of the new jingles for the station (the call letters changed to align with their new FM station)...and there was NO backup. Definitely not our fault, but we were teenagers. What did we know?

 

[beans-on-toast]

Well, then there's mobile transmission to consider, too.

That will eventually end in favour of internet digital. For a while they will have dual systems in place but analog will be phased out. With low power, some country areas currently loose digital connections. My current car is always online even though I never use it.

Satellite TV has been on the way out for years. Not sure how much time sat radio has left. It’s just a matter of when high speed national coverage will take to have the infrastructure in place. More populated areas always come first.

 

[GwenOnBass]

Now they have coed bathrooms. The difference is that women say excuse me to anyone within earshot when they fart in a cubicle.

Completely not true!

 

[Charlie Tango]

Completely not true!

"Her name was Bertha...Bertha Butt...she was one of the Butt sisters..."

 

[Deleted member 268085]

Completely not true!

Never heard an "excuse me," but I have heard plenty of cussin' when the party in question is unable to clean themselves and vacate the premise quickly.

Only once have I actually seen the results. Looked like the smog in L.A. back in the early '70s. I almost peed myself, trying to get out.

 

[GwenOnBass]

"Her name was Bertha...Bertha Butt...she was one of the Butt sisters..."

A big woman ....

Bertha Butt Boogie, the followup to Troglodyte, is bass player hell Same line for five minutes.

 

[BargeOn]

I used to think the same thing. But not anymore (sadly). The world is going wireless. 5G cellular will be a game-changer. There's no "last mile" to deal with. No easements required. No trenching. No technicians with vans/trucks driving all over kingdom come. No nada. I would very much prefer fiber to my home, but no one wants that business anymore.

My guess is that, once the world goes completely wireless, sunspot activity will significantly increase and take down wireless networks.

End of my conspiracy theory for today.

And one I agree with. In fact, I have a custom made tin foil hat in my bomb shelter just for the occasion.

 

[GwenOnBass]

That will eventually end in favour of internet digital. For a while they will have dual systems in place but analog will be phased out. With low power, some country areas currently loose digital connections. My current car is always online even though I never use it.

Satellite TV has been on the way out for years. Not sure how much time sat radio has left. It’s just a matter of when high speed national coverage will take to have the infrastructure in place. More populated areas always come first.

What I want to know is why we still use above-ground lines. One thunderstorm, one unlucky tree, and 200 people have to replace the contents of their refrigerators and freezers. They're unsightly, inefficient, there's just so many things wrong with a world of utility poles.

 

[GwenOnBass]

IIRC Robert Crumb is the first artist to draw utility lines and utility poles in his street scenes. We see these things so often we don't even notice they're there.

 

[notJaco]

IIRC Robert Crumb is the first artist to draw utility lines and utility poles in his street scenes. We see these things so often we don't even notice they're there.

And then there is Bangkok

 

[Charlie Tango]

What I want to know is why we still use above-ground lines. One thunderstorm, one unlucky tree, and 200 people have to replace the contents of their refrigerators and freezers. They're unsightly, inefficient, there's just so many things wrong with a world of utility poles.

Agreed, and underground lines have issues, too. At my old house there was a transmission line underground behind the house in the common area. The was a cloud-to-ground lightning strike a couple blocks away one summer evening, and everything went dark. It took hours and hours to locate, dig up with mechanized equipment, and repair the fracture to the line that the lightning caused. I wandered around back to "supervise" and talked to one of the bosses. He said they go through that drill dozens of times a summer, usually.

 

[Charlie Tango]

IIRC Robert Crumb is the first artist to draw utility lines and utility poles in his street scenes. We see these things so often we don't even notice they're there.

They're really noticeable in b&w photos, but no, not so much just driving around. We've become inured to them.

 

[GwenOnBass]

They're really noticeable in b&w photos, but no, not so much just driving around. We've become inured to them.

 

[StereoPlayer]

Lots of utility poles!