What You Think

User	Opinion	Story
Radio Fanatic 27 February 2021 - 1:03pm	Really sad to hear. I worked with Niamh for over a decade. She had an Incredible passion for radio. Well said Clinton, thanks for your memories. Glad you didn't pull out the old 'respected...much loved... will miss her...thoughts are with family' generic line	Vale Niamh Kenny
David 24 February 2021 - 1:42pm	DAB+ station identifiers probably include frequencies because most people listen to a station across a range of platforms. AM and FM radio is likely still the most common so it's worthwhile to continue to associate the primary analog frequency with the station name. Callsigns are assigned to broadcast licences, not transmitters. A broadcast licence may have several transmitters associated with it to provide coverage across the licenced area. Individual transmitters are licenced under apparatus licences, and the apparatus licences for each individual transmitter are associated with the broadcasting licence identified with a traditional call sign.	Callsigns for radio, what is the requirement?
StJohn 24 February 2021 - 11:34am	Anthony, The ABC does lots of networking which is one of the reasons why they no longer use frequencies. Programs can come from anywhere on the network. In addition you use the example of ABC Sydney has a translator in Gosford on 92.5 FM. https://www.abc.net.au/radio/centralcoast/ which is very low power. With the exception of Breakfast the program is purely ABC Sydney. There is of course ABC Illawarra which is on the high powered 97.3 FM. Prior to FM, AM stations had to use their call signs. When FM started the call signs became longer by a letter and the requirement was dropped. So listeners could find the station on the dial, broadcasters started using frequencies as an identification. This becomes a problem because as coverage areas get bigger the need for translators increases and these must be on another frequency to prevent interference. As with the new stand alone digital stations, the list should not include the frequencies as they are wrong. We have been transmitting DAB+ since 2009 and we are still without a plan to switch off the inefficient AM and FM transmitters in capital cities.	Callsigns for radio, what is the requirement?
StJohn 24 February 2021 - 11:12am	I listen to all my radio using a digital receiver. Occasionally I hear news interviews on location which have been recorded and broadcast in stereo. It makes you feel as if you are standing where the interviewer is. There may only be one interviewee, the sound bounces around the surroundings which makes it sound as if you are there. This microphone could be greatly increase the amount of stereo newsgathering feeding into mobile phones.	Wireless GO II, Next Generation Wireless Audio From RØDE
Anthony The Koala 23 February 2021 - 5:42pm	Dear Mr St John, Two points: (1) I agree with you that the spreadsheet should show more information such as network and locality. "Brand" names rather than call sign don't give an indication of the locality of the branded station. For example MMM, Mix and Hit. (2) Where you said "...The ABC no longer calls their capital city stations by ABC and frequency, instead they are called ABC and the region name..." On Sydney's 2BL, where the programs are for Sydney-only, the presenters say, "...this is ABC702..." BUT for RN, the presenters never mention the frequency, but say "...you're on RN and you're listening to program name..." A hint of the source of the program material is when the presenter announces the SMS number for listeners' feedback. The last three digits of the SMS number represent the AM frequency. For example, A program sourced from Sydney's RN asks listeners to SMS -------576, Sydney's Metropolitan asks listeners to SMS ------702 while a program sourced from Melbourne's Metropolitan asks listeners to SMS ---------774. A final remark, when it comes to DAB+ stations, I agree that frequency is irrelevant. For example on DAB+'s main display or scrolling text, 2GB identifies itself as 2GB 873 and WSFM identifies itself as KIIS 106.5, not Channel 9B on 204.640MHz with ID 0x11D0 and Channel 9B on 204.640MHz with ID 0x1181 respectively. On the other hand the DAB+ versions of the AM or FM stations are easily recognised by their brand/callsign and frequency rather than its frequency and ID. You don't say, "This is 2GB broadcasting on 873kHz and on DAB+ on 204.640MHz with ID 0x11D0 in hexadecimal or 4560 decimal." There is still an association between the legacy AM or FM band with the DAB+. Similarly, the commercial TV stations the DVB versions Seven, Nine and Ten are referred by its legacy VHF frequency bands, 7, 9 and 10 and their respective logical channel numbers. Press 7 or 9 or 10 on the remote and you'll get their SD channel. Thus the DVB frequencies for Seven, Nine and Ten are on VHF channels 6, 8, and 11 respectively. IT is the particular network's logical channel number that refers to its legacy VHF band. SBS broadcasts on VHF channel 7, which was formerly the Seven Network's band when it was broadcasting in analogue. SBS's main program has a logical channel number 30 which is not based on its former UHF channel 28. Thank you, Anthony of exciting Belfield	Callsigns for radio, what is the requirement?
Wendy Jane 23 February 2021 - 5:23pm	This is great Jen - such an original thought and a lovely play on words - well done! I was entertained and my little mind expanded.	Can Jen’s new Gnus and Wether page confound FB’s algorithms?
EDITOR 23 February 2021 - 4:43pm	Thanks Virginia, we have passed that info on to ABC Alumni.	ABC should not be taking any ad money from Google or Facebook: ABC Alumni
Anthony The Koala 23 February 2021 - 4:39pm	Dear Ms Madsen, I checked the link mentioned on this page, at https://www.abcalumni.net/home and had no issues. I also checked the link of the "full story" mentioned at the original link, source https://www.abcalumni.net/news-and-views/no-google-ad-dollars-for-the-abc . No issues. If you want to go to the "full story", highlight the above hyperlink with your browser from 'https:' to '-for-the-abc' . Press CTRL C or using your mouse over the highlighted text and paste the link in a new tab. Alternatively right-click the highlighted text and click on the "Goto https://www.abcalumni.net/news-and-views/no-google-ad-dollars-for-the-abc" From your message, clicking on the links seems to have directed you to incorrect websites. This suggests that your browser may have been hijacked by malware. Even if you have anti-virus software, that may not be enough minimise the risk of viruses and malware entering your system. Information about browser hijacking: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_hijacking https://www.kaspersky.com/resource-center/threats/browser-hijacking https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-malware-what-are-browser-hijackers.html In addition to your anti-virus software, you may need to install anti-spyware and malware software. The list of additional software is not exhaustive. Malwarebytes: https://www.malwarebytes.com/ -for Win and MAC. There are free and paid versions and you can also download for free on your browser, Malwarebytes 'browserguard'. Spybot search and destroy: https://www.safer-networking.org/ . There are free and paid versions. Furthermore, the ACCC's 'Scamwatch' warns users to NOT click on popups that say "Your computer is infected with a virus". Responding to these popups may install malware and/or spyware. Responding to these popups may also direct you to a dodgy tech site which may install malware or spyware or pretend to lock you out of your computer OR even lock you out of your own machine. Sources: https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/news-alerts/dont-get-scammed-by-dodgy-internet-pop-ups A series of four videos by Mr Jim Browning starting with episode 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=le71yVPh4uk&ab_channel=JimBrowning Mr Browning's contribution was featured in a BBC documentary. You have until the 1st March. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000fzx2 The consequences of malware, spyware and viruses on your computer could not only result in page hijacking, but may also involve the theft of your ID and information regarding your financial accounts. If installing all this anti-viral, anti-spybot, anti-malware and anti-spyware intimidates you, go to a reputable computer technician. Thank you, Anthony of serious Belfield	ABC should not be taking any ad money from Google or Facebook: ABC Alumni
StJohn 23 February 2021 - 11:28am	https://www.acma.gov.au/list-transmitters-licence-broadcast contains a link to an Excel spreadsheet. The link above is for a database which requires a database program to read. Such a program is not present on the cheapest version of office. There is generally 3 AM transmitters often from different broadcasters per frequency across Australia and in the FM band there are many more transmitters per channel. In radio now there is lots of networking as well as translators/repeaters. A call sign should reflect a unique program source. For example ABC local radio has 58 regional studios, which transmitter is connected to which studio. This is particularly important in the country during emergencies where some studios are staffed continuously during an emergency only. If you listen to the wrong transmitter you could miss out on vital information. Instead of the spreadsheet showing commercial or national, it should replace this with the network name eg. ABC Region name or commercial broadcaster network name eg. Southern Cross/Ausstereo With the advent of smart speakers the advantage of call signs make each studio name unique. Since the internet is world wide, and particularly Australia wide, most want the local studio of a network. For example how many broadcasters worldwide call their stations "Hits"! Anthony, The ABC no longer calls their capital city stations by ABC and frequency, instead they are called ABC and the region name. Many stations use the their frequency as identification, however with digital radio this is irrelevant. All Australian broadcasts are between 195 - 209 MHz and there are up to around 20 programs per channel. They should either use a call sign or a name which does not include a frequency including simulcasts with AM/FM. For those who do not have a digital radio, the radio scans the channels and produces an alphabetical list of programs. No mention of frequency unless you go to the info screen. Lastly using names can be a problem such as MIX which in all capital cities except Perth it is owned by ARN but the Perth station (6MIX) is owned by Southern Cross/Austereo and its on air name has always been "MIX 94.5"	Callsigns for radio, what is the requirement?
Virginia Madsen 23 February 2021 - 11:00am	Important story thank you, but writing in quickly as the link to ABC Alumni is highly suspect and appears to have been hacked: it goes to various commercial sites such as http://ww1.https.com/ and to a site that says it is ABC News with the ABC logo sign but is certainly not a real ABC site. The story headlined "SPECIAL REPORT: Dick Smith’s Latest Investment Has Experts Amazed And Big Banks in Shock"! https://finau.trdnewsflash.cc/bsy24/?origin=gRgEMfEpgo-81058-0a1ea0c3-a03b-4456-8616-d03a0fd79906&trackingdomain=trendzmrkt.me. And when you click on ABC News link it directs you to an advert selling page for Bitcoin.	ABC should not be taking any ad money from Google or Facebook: ABC Alumni