V-Soft Communications Newsletter: 06/10/08
In this Newsletter:
FCC Lifts the Freeze on DTV Maximization
On-Line SunDTV Analysis Version 2.22
FCC Announces Singleton Translators
FMCommander Gets a Variety of New Features
V-Soft's On-Line Zip-Signal Utility
FCC Lifts the Freeze on DTV Maximization
The Commission has lifted the freeze on DTV maximizations effective immediately. The application process is based on the "first come, first serve" principal, however all maximization proposals filed before June 20th will be assigned the June 20th filing date.On August 3, 2004, the Media Bureau imposed a freeze on requests from full power and Class A television stations to maximize facilities or to change DTV channels. The freeze provided a stable database during the channel election process....
This link is the the Public Notice:
V-Soft's On-Line SunDTV Version 2.22 Provides Analysis for Final Appendix B Allotments
(The setup above of our on-line SUNDTV program uses the Post Transition (Appendix B) database - For new maximizations do not check the "This is a DTV maximization check box".)
The FCC's DTV processing program currently in use at the Commission, and available on-line to V-Soft Client users, has not yet been modified to conveniently use the final Appendix B allotment table as a set of 'allotments'. As the program is now configured it treats the Appendix B records as regular 'stations' in the study. Therefore, if it finds any stations with the same channel and city as the reference station, it removes the allotments from the study. Consequently, this makes it difficult to properly consider the actual "increase" of interference over and above that which the allotment is already causing. News from the Commission indicates that eventually there will be a new version of their software that handles this, however, in the mean time, the workaround is to run two studies, one with the proposed station configuration, and a second with the same proposed record but with the "City Name" slightly modified so that the program does not remove the allotment and includes it in both the before and after cases. This way, the user can compare the "before" case of the second study to the "after" case of the first study to determine the impact of the change with respect to the Appendix B record. (For a maximization project, the FCC's limit of interference increase to the "not affect by terrain" noise limited population of a given station is 0.5 percent.)
Starting with version 2.22 of the V-Soft SunDTV interface software, when using the post transition appendix B database, the program now runs a second study automatically so that this comparison can be made. The first study, reports the calculated OET-69 interference as configured by the user (in general, the user should configure this study to run using a city name that exactly matches the corresponding allotment record). The second study, which is automatically generated, will modify the city name by appending a "_2" to the end of the city name (thus causing the program to include the allotment record in both the before and after cases). The second study will have "_PT2" (meaning 'part 2') appended to the job name. In this case, the second study will be performed at no charge to the user.
The primary concern is that the allotment might cause interference in some "locations" where the "proposed" station does not (and vice versa). Since the allotment is included in both the before and after cases for the "_PT2" study, the difference reported by this study indicates the new interference caused by the reference station where there wasn't any from the allotment. It is possible by changing the antenna pattern or transmitter location that the reference station will cause "less" total interference (compared to the allotment).
Users should also note that the full text versions of the reports should be used as the summaries still reflect the 2% maximum from the previous study method. Also, remember to include digital applications and CP's in your study databases; they must be protected too.
Informational notes have been added to the SunDTV documentation on the "Post Transition Studies" part of the "Using SunDTV" section. The SunDTV user manual is available online at: http://www.v-soft.com/manual/sundtv/.
We
recently became aware that the FCC will be using an updated version of the 2000
census data. This 'update' consists of a correction to the datum
conversion from NAD83 to NAD27 that was done when the original data was
processed. We have been told that the changes are very small, but the FCC
wanted to implement them anyway. We have acquired this new dataset and
installed it on our Sun machine. In the two test studies we ran for
comparison - for the original and updated data the end results were
identical.
As
of June 10, 2008, all studies run on the SunDTV machine using 2000 census data
will be run using the updated data. All studies run before June 10th will
have been run using the original implementation of the 2000 census data.
To learn more about the V-Soft on-line SunDTV program or to add your name to the list of users, contact Adam Puls, 800 743-3684. To help you get acquainted with this program, the first study using this program is free of charge.
V-Soft's Probe 3 program also contains an advanced OET 69 DTV analysis option. Users will often use Probe to examine various antenna pattern configurations or to do other "what-if" analysis and then the SunDTV program is run as a final check.
FCC Announces Singleton Translators:
By its Public Notice, the Audio Division, released a list of timely filed applications, from applicants that comply with the announced cap limit (10), that are not mutually exclusive with any other applications submitted in the filing window. These “singleton” applications are exempt from the Commission’s auction procedures. Long form applications must be filed by June 20th, 2008.
For a list of the singletons and additional information on Translator Auction #83 use the following links:
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-08-1154A1.pdf
http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-08-1154A2.pdf
FMCommander has seen a number of new features added within build #28, which is the latest version of the program. Some of the new features are functional revisions, while others are more cosmetic.
The "Defaults Setup" screen now has an option button group that allows the user to select the default overlap mode for contour-to-contour studies. This is the "interference checking" mode the program establishes when initially started. When the "Direct Line" option is selected, the In/Out columns on the main screen will display the calculated contour overlap distances on the direct line between the reference station and the database station. If "Show Overlap <" is selected, the program will check all reference station to database station contour relationships and flag contour overlap it finds by displaying "<" in the In or Out columns This process displays the "<" when the program first detects contour overlap and then the checking process moves to the next station, consequently this process is faster than the "Detailed" mode which checks all azimuths for the greatest amount of contour overlap. If the "Detailed" option is selected, the program will show the greatest amount of overlap calculated in the In and Out columns. Once a selection is made, the setting will be employed at every start-up.
The algorithm for "Detailed" mode has
been optimized significantly,
reducing the time to display a screen in this mode.
More new features:
 | The reference station's call sign that is printed when the main screen table is listed or printed is now colored green and the overlap margin distance for the reference station will not be colored red. (Since an FM station does not cause interference with itself, red color flagging of the reference can be distracting.) |
| The name of the terrain database in use now shows up on the "Find Information Screen" when the program is in the interference mode. |
| DTV TV 6 stations have up to 18 characters in the file number (FMCommander previously had been delivering only 16.) |
| New progress bar on the splash screen with a summary of quiet zone issues. |
Another new feature is the screen setting "Text Background" color selector as is shown in the highlighted oval above. This was added to make it easier to select a foreground text with a matching background of the user's choice. The screen shots below shows a favorite color setup at the V-Soft office. Notice that the reference screen text background has been assigned to black since a white foreground text was selected.
(The 73.215 check box (see above) is new in the latest version.)
Take 15% off the price of FMCommander, an FMCommander upgrade or an FMCommander option (shown below) through June 30th 2008. Call Adam Puls 800 743-3684 for more information.
| FMCommander Overlay/Option | Price (w/o Discount) |
| Airport Overlay | $250 |
| Census Scattergram Overlay | $250 |
| Railroad Overlay | $250 |
| Internet Mapping Feature* | $350 |
| Tower Overlay** | $250 |
| Watchdog Option | $250 |
http://www.v-soft.com/FMCommander/index.htm
* Connect to Google Earth and/or a topographic data web site to display the site location for any station displayed on the Finf Information map screen or from other screens within the program.
** If the user had either the VTowers or the IDTowers V-Soft programs, clicking on a tower displayed the FMCommander "Find Information" screen will result in activating the program with the selected tower details displayed on the screen.
Take 12% off the price the Probe 3 options, as listed below, through June 30th 2008. Call Adam Puls 800 743-3684 for more information.
| Probe 3 Option | Price (w/o Discount) |
| OET- 69 DTV Module | $4,995 |
| General Interference Module | $1,500 |
| Measured Signal Import Module | $1,500 |
| Time-Delay (Booster) Module | $1,500 |
| ITU-R P.1546.1 Propagation Model | $1,500 |
| Enhanced Pattern Editing (Pattern Workshop) | $1,595 |
| 2006 Enhanced TIGER Map Boundary Dataset | $950 |
| US LULC 1:250,000km Land Cover Database | $350 |
| Zip Code Module | $950 |
| Airport Module | $500 |
| TIREM Propagation Model | $4,950 |
http://www.v-soft.com/probe/index.htm
Take 10% off the price of AM-Pro standard or professional or an AM-Pro upgrade through June 30th 2008. Call Adam Puls 800 743-3684 for more information.
One of the most often used page on the V-Soft web site is the free Zip-Signal utility. This web program allows the user to list all zip codes within a given AM or FM station's coverage area. The program sort orders the zip codes by signal strength with the hottest signals being listed first. The user can also enter a zip code and the program will list all AM and FM stations within the selected zip code. The database used by the program contains station and zip codes for the whole of the United States and it has been updated as of June 1, 2008. The speed of the current version of the on-line program has been significantly increased... taking only seconds to display a full listing. The screen shot below shows a listing of some of the zip codes within the WJR coverage area: The links in the Facility ID column link into the FCC's CDBS database so the user can see the full operating parameters of the station of interest.
Here's a link to the Zip-Signal's starting page:
http://www.v-soft.com/ZipSignal/default.htm