Issue 52 SMARTS Broadcast Systems December 1998
Merry Christmas! Once again, I wanted to be one of the first to wish you the best of the season. Here's hoping you can keep the spirit of the season in spite of the hectic schedule of radio.
ARCHIVE
I would hope that you keep a copy of these newsletters for future reference. In case you don't, past issues can be found on our Website. You'll find us at http:\\www.smartsbroadcast.com.
I would also hope that the letters get passed around the studio. Anyone who touches the SMARTCASTER should know the information in the newsletter. One station I know makes copies of the newsletter as soon as it comes in and passes it to all of the announcers. Now that is what I am talking about!
RESOLUTIONS
We're closing in on the end of the year, and that means New Year's Resolutions! I always make several, knowing that if I keep just one or two; I am still a better person for it. This is also where I get to preach to you. Backup and Optimize! That means save your stuff to disk and defrag your system. Let me present it this way. Can I interrupt you for five minutes? Can I interrupt you for three hours? In your busy day, you might be able to give me five minutes, but I'll bet you don't have three hours! The backup might take a whole five minutes and save you three hours. Backup saves
important files like Timed Events, Functions, Announcers, Clock, and Unattended Record. These are things that will take hours and hours and hours to put in by hand if something goes wrong. Restoring the backup only takes a few minutes. So, backup
regularly!!! This is not a full-blown computer backup, it just saves important information
in a matter of minutes. Defrag allows your system to run faster and smoother.
If your commercial load has a high turnover, you should defrag once a week.
MORE PM
I have some more thoughts in regard to Preventative Maintenance. You know the commercial load is going into overdrive for the next month. Take the time to go into List/Delete or Cut Manager regularly and delete the outdated spots. You know that you will need as much space as possible. Deleting outdated audio cuts will give you space. Sort by End Date will show what cuts are the oldest. You determine which ones actually go.
The other topic is Static. 'Tis the season, ya know. If you are taking anti-static measures on a regular basis, you are preventing hassles. We suggest a 1:4 mixture of fabric softener and water sprayed on the floor of the studio. This cuts down on static. Static doesn't do the announcers any favors, and can render the keyboard non-functional.
We know that radio keeps you VERY busy. A little preventative maintenance will save you a lot of hassles later.
COMPARE
If your company is thinking about buying a new digital automation system, we ask that you consider us. I recently heard a story of a station that had one of our early units. They decided to upgrade their system and eventually purchased from someone else. They ASSUMED that our systems were only as good as the early unit they had. Just to set the record straight, we continue to make improvements in our systems and lead the industry with our capability. Talk to our Sales Department about "the latest and greatest" because we just keep getting better and better.
MUSIC GENERATION
We might remind you that condensing all of the songs into one category in the Digital Program Director software WILL change your stations' music format. You need to be careful when making changes to your system. We always suggest that you make one change at a time and then test the results.
Here's hoping you have a great season and a fantastic holiday. Merry Christmas!
Doug Burton
OFFICE: 800-7476278 SUPPORT: 800-765-2930
SALES: 800-498-0487 E-MAIL: support@smartsbroadcast.com