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Workbench
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by John Bisset
Radio World salutes John Bisset, author of Workbench, for his selection as the Society of Broadcast Engineers Educator of the Year.
An industry classic, Workbench provides "hands-on, in-the-trenches" tips -- by and for "hands-on, in-the-trenches" engineers. John Bisset, a chief engineer, contract engineer and industry equipment representative with almost four decades of experience, has compiled thousands of technical tips from readers around the industry, and adds his own special insights. Submissions for this column are encouraged and qualify for SBE recertification credit.
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A DVR Sentry Watches Your Site
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Also: TinyCAD is an open-source schematic capture program for Windows, available for free from Source Forge.
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by John Bisset, 7.02.2008
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Should something suspicious take place, the video cameras can be accessed remotely and in real time.
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Pollen Chokes a Transmitter Site
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And a Tip to Snake Cable Through Conduit That Involves Fishing Line, a Small Rag and a Shop Vacuum
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by John Bisset, 6.18.2008
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The screens kept most of this gunk out of his transmitters. Pleated filters on the transmitters also work overtime in such conditions.
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Chlorine Products, Electronics Don’t Mix
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And a Cool Way to Shoot a Line 100 Feet or More
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by John Bisset, 6.04.2008
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Are corrosive to aluminum and copper and will wreck electronics.
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Who’s Been Nesting in My Antenna?
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Not What You Might Think, Looking Up From the Ground
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by John Bisset, 5.21.2008
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The day before, freak thunderstorms had moved through the area. The culprit became clear.
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Ceiling Tiles and Transmitter Keys
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Another Solution to Fishing Cables in Ceilings
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by John Bisset, 5.07.2008
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I guess what you have on hand and that solves the problem is the proper tool for the job.
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Stop VSWR Trips With a Funnel
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Also, Health Hazards From an Unexpected Source
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by John Bisset, 4.23.2008
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Heavy rain can wreak havoc with any AM array.
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Rack Shelf Adds a Second Pair of Hands
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Also, Here’s a Wireless Video Security System That Can Help Keep Your Site Secure
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by John Bisset, 4.09.2008
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Police respond faster to a crime in progress.
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What’s Inside Box #1?
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by John Bisset, 3.26.2008
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Tearing into the building’s electrical system, he found a large unfamiliar box in the middle of the AC feed to the transmitters.
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Greenies Stick, and Greenlee’s Fish Stix
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by John Bisset, 3.12.2008
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The rods flex nicely, and the set comes with a tip for tying on a pull string or a hook for blind fishing down walls.
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Gremlins Lurking at the Transmitter?
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by John Bisset, 3.01.2008
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If you were to list the most common trait among broadcast engineers it would be our unending quest to learn more.
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Tips on Punching the Right-Sized Hole
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by John Bisset, 2.13.2008
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RW contributor Buc Fitch had an e-mail discussion with an engineer who wanted to make holes in some electrical project boxes. Despite searching the Web and various hardware and supply stores like Lowes, TrueValue and Tractor Supply, he came up empty-handed.
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Zero In on RF Hot Spots
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by John Bisset, 2.01.2008
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What better way to celebrate Groundhog Day than with a resolution to commit to furthering your education?
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Who Let the Smoke Out, Uh, Uhhh?
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Our Caption Contest Drew Hundreds of Entries. Here Are Some of the Best
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by John Bisset, 1.16.2008
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I’m grateful for the hundreds of captions readers sent for our contest a few months back. You have again demonstrated that this column is one of the industry’s best read. Thanks for taking the time to show off your ingenuity.
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Deedleheads Are Wiry & Scrappy
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Also, How a Rain Drop Can Take Your Station Down
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by John Bisset, 1.02.2008
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This collection of 25-pair CAT-5 Deedleheads lives on the desktop of Meg Buenting, a producer for the network’s syndicated “Greg Knapp Show.”
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Microwave Oven Tester Evaluates WAP Operation
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Device Has a Use Beyond Your Station’s Kitchen
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by John Bisset, 12.19.2007
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Ed Dulaney is the market engineer for Crawford Broadcasting’s Denver cluster. He writes that for several months he’s had some old 2.4 GHz Wireless Access Points (WAPs) lying around in storage. From all outside indications they seemed to be functioning perfectly.
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Lubricant Can Be Your Enemy
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And a New Way to Put LEDs to Work Around Your Station
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by John Bisset, 12.05.2007
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The beauty of LEDs is that they are solid-state devices that offer high shock and vibration resistance. The LED mat is the ideal safety item for station remote vehicles, vans and trucks. Use an LED mat to drive traffic into a remote site.
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Eliminate Pesky Peromyscus Leucopus
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So Cute, and Such a Pain
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by John Bisset, 11.21.2007
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Peromyscus leucopus is the white-footed mouse, which seems to love nesting in phasors and tuning networks. These cute varmints can wreak havoc in any station setting.
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Tackle the Cell Phone Interface
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Hack Some Hardware, Fix a Problem
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by John Bisset, 11.07.2007
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Darren admits to a certain amount of pleasure in hacking apart and/or destroying anything related to cell phone “technology,” but the efforts paid off.
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Fiber Optics Provides Site Safety
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Also a Custom Automatic Controller to Build
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by John Bisset, 10.24.2007
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The module senses a break in the fiber optic loops, which would be cut when the thieves attempt to remove the ground bus or other equipment. Interruption of the fiber optic loop triggers an alarm condition and siren.
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Clip and Save: NOTAM Info You Can Use
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by John Bisset, 10.10.2007
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Greg Muir of Cherry Creek Radio offers additional links regarding the new FAA Automated Flight Service System (AFSS). This service recently was taken over by Lockheed Martin with respect to tower light outage reports.
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