noggin's posts, page 291

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NG
noggin Founding member

Cue Dots

bluecortina posted:
Markymark posted:
bluecortina posted:

With regards to your last sentence, not me, as I know nothing of TVS or Thames' intersite arrangements. With regards your first sentence, why would MCR be involved? It would be the transmission control room switching between an incoming network source and a local source even if it's logically the same source.


I do apologise, it must have been someone else, the ex Thames chap over on DS perhaps ?


Not to worry. I'm trying to rack my brains with regard to mono SIS. I can clearly remember a few of the PYE units knocking around but can't for the life of me remember where they might have been used. I have a feeling radio links? .. but too long ago now I'm afraid.


SIS was used on microwave and satellite contributions by broadcasters ISTR. I guess LWT may have used it for microwave OB contribution circuits - though I'm guessing satellite downlinks would have been handled elsewhere?
NG
noggin Founding member

30 years since the Late late breakfast show was ended

Steve in Pudsey posted:
A slight diversion to the continuity announcement in the clip linked in the original post - I was quite surprised to see the CEEFAX 888 caption appearing part way through the announcement.

Now according to http://625.uk.com/tv_logos/bbc1_85.htm the COW generator units had a control which switched in that caption. Was there a remote control for that in Con, or did somebody have to go to the apps room before each junction to switch it as appropriate for the following programme?


Think it was a separate logo generator, which could be remotely controlled. Not sure if the key/fill were switched or if key masks were switched in and out.
NG
noggin Founding member

30 years since the Late late breakfast show was ended

deejay posted:
I'm pretty sure those options could be remotely switched on and off as required. On the later globe, 'Subtitles' and 'Stereo' were optional extras, plus I think, 'South East', as NC1/2 used to announce regional programmes once everyone else had opted out. I don't think there were separate South East symbols recorded on the laserdiscs... I'm sure some one will correct me if I'm wrong. I think the clock generators could add all of those options too as required.


Laser discs were recorded clean and distributed clean. The BBC logo and regional identifier were added by a local graphics and keyer combo (IPK LogoGen or LogoGen 2 from memory) which was part of the laser disc set-up. Memory is hazy but it could be that there was a Logo Gen used for the original blue/gold globe, and a LogoGen 2 for the CRV laser disc system. I'm sure if someon has the time to scour 'Eng Inf' online they will see something on it. (*) You could add or remove the keyed logo manually - and select which of multiple logos were inserted - as well as which track on the laser disc was cued and run. Many regions used the spare space on the discs for their titles or other sequences (it was effectively a nice, easy-to-cue, titles player).

(*) The idents weren't played from consumer laser disc players (good though they were). Instead Sony's CRV which was a component analogue optical recording system was used. This was a WORM system (Write Once, Read Many) - which meant the discs were not erasable but were designed to be mastered and then played frequently. They were far more resilient than tape - though as they aged they did suffer from drop-out.

Regions got players, but Network had a few recorders in London, so whenever a region needed to add a new ident (or titles) to their discs they would send someone down to do it at a booking in London.

BBC News also used the CRV players for playing titles, and the animated slaved backgrounds for the 'Virtual Blue' One/Six/Nine (and Business Breakfast, Breakfast News for a while) as well as the backgrounds for the all CSO/Chromakeyed 'Working Lunch' original look. They continued with the CRVs for titles well into the 00s - when they were replaced by a BBC in-house player called 'Stingray'. (English regions got a replacement for their CRVs called Vera - a nod to the original ill-fated BBC VTR)
NG
noggin Founding member

Cue Dots

Markymark posted:

ITV didn't employ the digital sound in syncs system (on a network level) that the Beeb developed in the early 70s. C4 used it from the outset in 1982, but ITV didn't use it until NICAM stereo broadcasts started in 1989. (There was no other choice really, and the coding for stereo SiS allowed for seamless transfer into the NICAM domain at the Tx sites)

AIUI the BBC used SIS to remove the need for additional 'music' circuits - which meant a cost saving, and a quality improvement as well. I wonder if ITV had a different payment model for their circuits?

Quote:

However, C4 were unhappy about the audio quality of The Tube from Tyne Tees, and they installed SiS on the circuit used from TTTV to C4.

I think blue has mentioned before that TVS used SiS 'internally' between Southampton and Maidstone, and Thames between Euston and Teddington ?


I'm guessing it was cheaper and better quality - so a win/win if you could justify the capital expenditure?

As others have said DSIS (i.e. Dual / Stereo SIS) was routinely used for network distribution for BBC and ITV and C4 (until C4 went for digital component distribution in the early 90s?) as it was identical in data terms to NICAM 728, so removed the need for NICAM encoders at the transmitters, with the audio just remuxed and modulated. (Though it was also why you sometimes heard a NICAM splat and saw the OSD NICAM stereo symbol briefly flash on and off on some TVs when BBC regions soft-opted)
NG
noggin Founding member

Children in Need 2016

MrDexB posted:
Oh dear. It would have been nice to keep Graham for the whole event to see how good he would do. I can't recall why Dermot hasn't returned this year.


Dermot wasn't doing X Factor last year, so was available, and not tied to ITV significantly. This year is different.
NG
noggin Founding member

BBC loses Great British Bake Off

cylon6 posted:
I don't think it will do as well as Channel 4 expect.


How well do they expect it to do? If it recoups their investment in advertising and sponsorship, and then generates a bit of extra income to return to other programmes (C4 is a non-profit PSB after all) then I suspect they will be happy.

I don't think anyone at C4 expects BBC One level ratings, though I'm sure they hope it will do better than Channel Four News...
NG
noggin Founding member

Children in Need 2016

davidhorman posted:
Tangentially related to this, but more radio than TV:

BBC Western House, located next to New Broadcasting House in central London, will now be known as BBC Wogan House.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-37999400


What a great thing to do. They did the same thing for John Peel, renaming Egton Wing (not to be confused with the previous Egton House) as Peel Wing.
NG
noggin Founding member

The Freeview Thread

Markymark posted:
noggin posted:
Markymark posted:


From 1936 until early this century picture quality has improved, now it's being compromised


625 B&W viewers saw a quality drop when colour broadcasts were introduced. B&W IO pictures usually looked a lot sharper on B&W sets than colour pictures...

SD is the new B&W.


Yes, but no. B/w was slightly impaired to make colour possible, SD is being impaired to make more SD possible


To be fair, there wasn't that much B&W origination around quite soon after colour launched (apart from the OU and regional opts) - so that point is moot.

What's the schedule for DVB-T2 migration in the UK I wonder? Once we do that we can cease simulcasting SD MPEG2 DVB-T simulcasts (once reigonal opts on BBC One HD in England, and BBC Two HD Nations happen that sticking point will have gone) and switch all SD-only channels to H264 in T2. We'll have to though, as we're likely to lose COM7 and COM8 aren't we?
NG
noggin Founding member

The BBC One Regions

Markymark posted:

Even in the 70s, regional BBC TV news (away from the 18:00 ish prog) wasn't much more than a talking head, with a couple of slides


70s?! Even in to the mid-90s quite a few (most?) regions were using in-vision + stills presentation for the 1'00" / 1'15" regional opts after the daytime news summaries! (Hourly in the morning on BBC One, and twice in the afternoon on BBC Two from memory)

The original regional opts into Breakfast Time were also mainly stills and presenter reads.

(The presenters often self-opped their vision and sound mixers - and in some cases slide scanners - in many cases)
NG
noggin Founding member

Why BBC hasn't sold the Blue Peter format?

I'm not sure Blue Peter is that distinctive as a format to be a commercial propostion in format sales terms. It's really a studio-based kids magazine show with recorded inserts, so in format terms, nothing really unique enough to justify purchase of the format by other broadcasters.
NG
noggin Founding member

The Freeview Thread

Markymark posted:


From 1936 until early this century picture quality has improved, now it's being compromised


625 B&W viewers saw a quality drop when colour broadcasts were introduced. B&W IO pictures usually looked a lot sharper on B&W sets than colour pictures...

SD is the new B&W.
Last edited by noggin on 10 November 2016 11:52pm
NG
noggin Founding member

News programme credits

elmarko posted:
I see. Is it a direct replacement for producer then in those instances?


Not really.

Hierarchy is usually - in increasing order of importance - in 'normal TV' :
Researcher
Assistant Producer
Associate / Line Producer (which is often a role closer to Production Manager in some cases)
Producer / Day Producer / Output Producer / Output Editor (when the Editor name means something a little different)
Series Producer
Editor
Executive Producer / Executive Editor

Some shows in News will have an Editor but not an Exec Editor or Exec Producer - so the Editor will be the most important credit. Some shows will have a 'hands off' Exec, who will be there more as a commissioning Exec, and in that case the Editor or Series Producer will be the most senior 'hands on' person.

News can be a little different - and may not have AP and SP roles in the same way - and AP and Producer / Output Producer roles may be nearer Broadcast Journalist, Snr Broadcast Journalist and Asst Editor roles.