From: Andrew Gilbert <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Re: Silence sensor for digital broadcasters?
This is relatively straightfoward on UNIX (cron job or resident script with
sleep loop to do a ps and look for the server, restart or alarm if not
present).
NT is a little harder. I assume the platform is NT (clue being that the server
crashes regularly). If this is the case you have to work a little harder. The
server runs as an NT service. You can use the SCM to monitor service status.
However, if the server crashes NT will likely pop up a dialog box and wait for
a user acknowledge before the service truly goes away. This can mislead the
monitor app into thinking the service is still running. You can overcome this
by fiddling with Dr. Watson / registry key settings (don't remember the
specifics but it is possible to disable the debug hook that causes the dialog
to pop. Or at least it is possible to insert your own handler for this hook.).
Now at least when the server dies it dies and your monitor app can reliably
know what is going on.
RealForum wrote:
> From: "Bill Parker" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Subject: Silence sensor for digital broadcasters?
>
> Yes, that would be nice. Let me borrow an idea from my years in the
> (analog) AM & FM broadcasting world. At all stations I worked at (many were
> unattended automated ones) we has a device called a "silence sensor". Simply
> put, this device "listened" to the off air monitor (an expensive radio) and
> had a time delay setting from 2 seconds up to one minute. If the on the air
> audio stopped for any reason this device would scream and could be tied to
> bells, pagers, etc.
>
> How about a digital version? Use a Real Player Plus as a client and find (or
> write) a little program to monitor the output and scream if it goes away for
> more than "x" seconds.
>
> The advantage of this, like the analog ones of the past, is it catches a
> failure in any part of the transmission chain, be it the encoder, server or
> splitter server as well as the network connectivity.
>
> If anyone knows of this kind of "silence detector" program let me know. I've
> been away from writing software too long to try it myself.
>
> Thanks
>
> Bill Parker
> President
> BroadcastAsia.com
> Hong Kong
