Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Brian McKelvey]

This is a great idea!  YouTube is awesome for this kind of thing.  I use it 
constantly to learn about other things, particularly hobbyist electronics 
(Arduono, raspberry Pi, etc.), and the maker movement.  I'd offer to work on 
making a few videos but I'm afraid I wouldn't be best suited to it because of 
the aforementioned issues.

Anyone know of good screencast-oriented video capture software for Linux?

Brian

Sent from my iPhone

> On Nov 6, 2014, at 11:45 AM, Brandon Sossamon  
> wrote:
> 
> I'd support a conference but it may make more sense to host a webinar for 
> those too far away or without time to dedicate to the travel.  At minimum, a 
> YouTube channel for how-to's.  Perhaps folks could submit suggestions for 
> content and a topic (or a topic suggested by more than one individual) is 
> chosen each week and a video is produced.  I've found some Linux YouTube 
> channels are helpful just to understand it in a general sense which has 
> helped me grasp the inner workings of RD a little better/faster.
> 
> brandon sossamon
>  
> ___
> Rivendell-dev mailing list
> Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
> http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev
___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Brandon Sossamon]

I'd support a conference but it may make more sense to host a webinar for
those too far away or without time to dedicate to the travel.  At minimum,
a YouTube channel for how-to's.  Perhaps folks could submit suggestions for
content and a topic (or a topic suggested by more than one individual) is
chosen each week and a video is produced.  I've found some Linux YouTube
channels are helpful just to understand it in a general sense which has
helped me grasp the inner workings of RD a little better/faster.

brandon sossamon
___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Cowboy]

On Thursday 06 November 2014 01:23:06 pm Brian McKelvey wrote:
>  It's almost like the lexicon of knowledge is only picked up through 
> on-the-job involvement and exposure to it,

 We call it "job security.":)

 Truth be told, you are right !
 Like many fields, the terms and jargon *as used* are often picked up
 only through association with the field.
 As an apprentice, if you will.

-- 
Cowboy

http://cowboy.cwf1.com

The opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.
-- Bohr
___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Brian McKelvey]

I second the move to documentation.  I honestly don't have nearly as much the 
Rivendell experience as many others here.  I have it installed on a machine in 
my office but am not using it for anything still, despite interest, because the 
task of learning how to use to its full potential is daunting.  For me, 
however, it's not daunting from a technical perspective: I'm totally confident 
in my ability to get up and running on whatever kind of setup I would want to 
build.  I'm a software engineer who has been working deeply and daily with 
Linux since 1999.  The part that's difficult for me is all the legacy and 
industry-specific concepts, terminology, and jargon from the radio industry.

I started playing with Rivendell in about 2003 when I was going to school at 
Biola University, studying film audio engineering.  There was a basically-dead 
on-campus radio station that had been running a Winamp playlist on repeat, and 
the studio was full of old and broken gear and badly needed a new paint job, 
console repairs, new (non-fluorescent) lighting, etc., and also needed an 
actual radio automation system.  My friend and I were the only ones who had any 
interest, so we went in and re-did everything ourselves on a shoestring budget.

Because of my Linux experience, I was able to set it up with an NFS server to 
host the audio files and act as Windows domain controller with roaming profiles 
for the students to have their own accounts on the production machines and be 
able to add content to watch folders from their dorm rooms, etc.  I even wrote 
custom content ingestion and processing scripts.

What was missing for me, and still is to this day, is understanding what a lot 
of the radio-specific terminology even means.  The jargon used in radio is so 
unique and distinct from other areas of broadcast and especially different what 
I was most involved in, film production.  The radio industry seems to have 
different or special names for things things oftentimes that are different from 
how everyone else refers to them, and there are a lot of radio specific 
concepts or legacy concepts or metaphors that are long-since obsolete and 
probably should be done away with but we keep around because their usage is so 
entrenched amongst industry veterans.  Referring to "carts" and "cuts" for 
example.  Someone coming into this arena who's never worked with magnetic tape 
before and lived in the digital realm their entire lives wouldn't have the 
slightest idea what a "cart" was.

I guess my overly long-winded point is, I agree there is a very real need for 
documentation.  And not specifically technical documentation, but information 
about what radio automation even is, a complete rundown of exactly what it is, 
and what all the other parts that go with it are (3rd party traffic scheduling 
software, for example.)

I had to figure those terms and concepts out on my own, with little help or 
guidance, mostly by trial and error, pushing buttons and entering data to see 
what happened.  There's still a good easily 50% of the concepts and UI in 
Rivendell that I still have absolutely no idea whatsoever what it might be used 
for.  "Clocks," "dayparts", "scheduler codes", I have only a surface-level idea 
about those things, but not enough to really understand how to use the music 
scheduler, so I've always been stuck with manually created logs.  For years, up 
until recently, I had absolutely no idea what on earth was meant by "traffic."  
The only thing I could imagine was that it had something to do with reporters 
talking about morning-drive freeway congestion.  I understand now that it has 
to do with scheduling and tracking ads, PSAs, promos, etc., but only a surface 
level understanding... There's probably more that's encompassed?  (And 
"traffic?"  Really?  What on earth do ads and promos have to do with "traffic?" 
 I'm sure there's a totally logical and historical explanation for why it's 
called traffic, but given that I can't imagine what it might be, that's a clear 
indication that we ought to start migrating towards a more modern and clear 
term)

Mind you, I'm extremely adept at using Google to find answers.  I rarely post 
asking for help, especially when I feel like I should be able to find the 
answers on my own.  But Google isn't always terribly helpful at finding 
information about concepts and terminology that are uniquely used by 
radio-industry professionals.  It's almost like the lexicon of knowledge is 
only picked up through on-the-job involvement and exposure to it, and then when 
people do post or discuss things online, there's a base assumption that 
everyone already knows the concepts.  I've seen relatively few resources geared 
toward someone from the outside trying to learn the language.

The concepts & terminology around music and traffic scheduling, for example, 
are so daunting that on multiple occasions I'd almost considered diving into 
the MySQL schema and just writing my own mu

Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Cowboy]

On Thursday 06 November 2014 11:08:59 am you wrote:
>  The NAB
> is great but you won't get the much needed, thorough, explanation of
> Rivendell. 

 I disagree !
 We can make it happen.
 I will agree it's not going to happen standing at the booth *during*
 the show, but that's not all that's available.

 Moreso, schedule your flight a day early, and you might be surprised
 at how much can be had in that "before the show" period.
 A day after might also be possible. ( as well as easing flight arrangements )
 If you bought a support agreement, possibly both !   ;)

-- 
Cowboy

http://cowboy.cwf1.com

The opposite of a profound truth may well be another profound truth.
-- Bohr
___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] Conference?

[Kelly Rasulo]

I would go and appreciate the one on one attention to Rivendell.  The NAB
is great but you won't get the much needed, thorough, explanation of
Rivendell.  I would also want to send others in our organization, like our
Linux IT specialist, who is not too familiar with Rivendell...Of course
this depends on the date.

Thank you for your desire to do this.

*Kelly*

KDKR & KYJC 91.3 FM Dallas/Fort Worth/Commerce/North Texas
*Also heard on:  99.9 FM and 97.5 FM, in many additional areas of the DFW
Metroplex*
*~Your Stations For Life~ 2 Peter 3:18*
 ___
Kelly Rasulo, General Manager
5617 Diamond Oaks Dr., South,  Suite 200, Fort Worth, TX  76117
817.831.9130/Local  877.588.9130/Toll Free  888.781.6007/Fax
Listen On-line: *www.kdkr.org* 
Penfold Communications, Inc. Network - KDKR, KYJC, KRTM, KKRS, KTWD, WKJA,
WTPG, WJIK, WIGW & Translator K260BP, K248BC, W207CB




On Wed, Nov 5, 2014 at 3:15 PM, Cowboy  wrote:

> On Wednesday 05 November 2014 03:28:40 pm b B wrote:
> > Has there been a Rivendell all-users conference?
>
>  Kinda sorta, but not really.
>
>  Best, is the NAB Spring show, since the bulk of professional broadcasters
>  are there anyway, from everywhere in the world.
>  That way, there are many, MANY things to afford cost justification,
>  and setting up a users group meeting would be trivial.
>  Free passes are so easy to come by, it's hardly worth mentioning.
>  Shows are scheduled years in advance, so scheduling is well known.
>  Show accommodations often afford reasonable discounts, and NAB itself
>  provides transportation from the NAB deal hotels, so you don't even
>  need a car.
>  Not to mention, usually years preview of the "toys" of the trade
>  To me, the only down-side, is that it's always in Vegas !
>
> --
> Cowboy
>
> http://cowboy.cwf1.com
>
> "Here's something to think about:  How come you never see a headline like
> `Psychic Wins Lottery'?"
> -- Jay Leno
> ___
> Rivendell-dev mailing list
> Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
> http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev
>
___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

[RDD] Conference?

[Jim Stewart]

I agree that a traditional conference might be a bit ambitious.  For example, I 
live "only" 700 miles (1000 KM) away and probably wouldn't even make it.


What I think would benefit Rivendell the most is a push to update the Wiki so 
that it is:


1) More up to date

  a) A more complete and updated users guide (Existing is very good, but need 
updating)

  b) A useful administrators guide (Existing is only a template, and even that 
needs work)


2) Contains more "step-by-steps" for newbies (Including some "quick-starts" to 
handle getting most people up and going).  I'm thinking it is difficult for 
newbies to even figure out where to start!


3) Contains a LOT more details on administration and initial setup (see admin 
guide above)


4) Then more examples of peoples' "unusual" setups.


5) Contains lots of troubleshooting sections so fewer are simply lost when 
something goes wrong.


I for one am guilty of not participating in this yet as I think I have several 
unusual things I've gotten Rivendell/LInux to do on our station that others 
might be interested in (and that I brag about to those running many of those 
"other" commercial systems).


A single conference tends to only benefit those who attend at the time, where 
as fixing up the Wiki will provide a lasting benefit for all of us and many new 
users.  It took me quite awhile to get things working for us, and I had a 
pretty good Linux background, but had never used Jack audio before which in 
itself had a steep learning curve.  I currently struggle with many aspects of 
MySQL which I previously had little experience with.


___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] RECOMMENDATION For Newbies

[John Anderson]

Oh, and what you say also makes perfect sense.  I didn't get the
experienced part.  The great thing about Rivendell is there are so many
options, just find the one that works for you...


On Thu, 2014-11-06 at 09:23 -0500, Jay Ashworth wrote:
> I believe you misunderstood me, John.
> 
> While in fact it's a good idea to be working with the current version
> if you're starting out from scratch, that isn't the issue I was
> discussing. What I was talking about was people with Linux experience
> wanting to do their first Rivendell install /on the Linux distribution
> they know/. That seems like a good idea, but in practice it actually
> isn't.
> 
> While you probably want to end up on the distribution you're
> intimately familiar with when you get ready to go to production,
> you're better off doing your initial installs on the 'factory
> supported' distribution for the reasons I mentioned.
> 
> Cheers,
> - jra


___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev

Re: [RDD] RECOMMENDATION For Newbies

[Jay Ashworth]

I believe you misunderstood me, John.

While in fact it's a good idea to be working with the current version if you're 
starting out from scratch, that isn't the issue I was discussing. What I was 
talking about was people with Linux experience wanting to do their first 
Rivendell install /on the Linux distribution they know/. That seems like a good 
idea, but in practice it actually isn't.

While you probably want to end up on the distribution you're intimately 
familiar with when you get ready to go to production, you're better off doing 
your initial installs on the 'factory supported' distribution for the reasons I 
mentioned.

Cheers,
- jra

On November 5, 2014 5:06:11 PM EST, John Anderson  wrote:
>On Tue, 2014-11-04 at 11:47 -0500, Jay Ashworth wrote:
>> If you're going to try Rivendell out for the first time, as a toy, or
>> as a deployment candidate for your facility, I have one really strong
>
>> suggestion to make to you:
>> 
>> Even if you have a compelling reason to want to deploy it on the
>Linux
>> you're most familiar with, or that someone has recommended... do your
>very
>> first installation on The OS Fred Uses, whatever that is at the time.
>
>
>Hi Jay,  
>
>While I will agree with 100% of what you say, there are a few thoughts
>I'd like to put out there.  I do agree that staying with the current
>version is the best, and there is usually help that you can get if you
>have problems.  The current version, also is a little bit pickier on
>hardware, and gives you a whole lot of choices, or options to install
>that some folks may find difficult. (even though the install says to
>install the standalone if it's you first experience!)
>
>I think if you are a broadcaster, or someone with some knowledge and
>experience, the broadcast appliance is the way to go.  For a bunch of
>total newbies, LPFM'ers and some just looking for a jukebox, the
>pre-packaged old version of RRAbuntu seems a might easier..
>
>(i can feel the flames starting now)
>
>> 
>> If you're new, you're guaranteed to have some problems, and they can
>come
>> from one of three places:
>> 
>> 1) I'm not familiar with Rivendell yet
>> 2) Rivendell has problems on this particular distribution
>> 3) Rivendell has bugs
>> 
>> Fred's pretty good at eliminating 3), and you can't really do much
>about
>> 1) on your first trip out... but 2) is pretty easy to eliminate, and
>why not?
>> 
>
>
>You're right, out of the box, Rivendell can be daunting, but you really
>have to ask the question WHY.  Also, Keep in mind that Fred/Paravel
>does
>not support anything but the current version, which is the appliance,
>although I do see him chime in with answers more often than not. 
>
>
>The first question I ask, is if the user knows what a traffic system
>is,
>because if they don't, they really don't seem to be Rivendell's target
>user.  Of course, I am not speaking for anyone but myself, but if you
>try and set up Rivendell, without basic knowledge of radio, and how the
>different parts come together, it's going to appear really difficult,
>because you don't know what's expected, and you are not familiar with
>what the software is supposed to do.
>
>Various distributions, this goes without saying, as one big fear is I
>don't understand Linux.  While I agree that you don't have to
>understand
>it to operate a running version of Rivendell, trying to set a version
>up
>from scratch, is another story. So here, we agree, the only difference
>is what's in your hardware scrap pile.  The version two appliance
>requires 1 gig ram, at least a 300 gig hard drive, etc, a lot of people
>have this, but a whole lot may not.  What if you're stuck with 32 bit
>system, and an 80 gig hard drive, the new version is out, and we
>recently saw comments from a user, whose hardware was just the
>opposite,
>as it was "too new".
>
>bugs, yea, but what doesn't, and you have to admit, they are fixed
>fast,
>but keep in mind, we are talking about newbie starters, who just want
>to
>see what the program does, and if it works for them. The would'nt know
>a
>bug...if it...well, you know
>
>
>> Once you have it running, and you understand it a little better, then
>you 
>> can do your production install on the distro you like, and at least
>> you will be able to distinguish between problems caused by those
>three
>> sources a bit better.
>
>Once you figure it out, and to use it in a production environment, you
>are flat best to run the current supported version, if you can.
>Certainly there are folks out there (Alban, for example), who have a
>provide an alternate version for those folks who like that distro, I
>keep a version of RRAbunu up and running, since one of my clients uses
>that version.  I would be hard pressed to upgrade that version without
>his work, and folks who start with RRabuntu do have an upgrade path.
>But the point is they have a simple plug and play system, with demo's
>that anyone can use to set up a working Rivendell system in 30 minutes
>or less, without

Re: [RDD] Beta appliance cd. First impressions from a noob...

[Wayne Merricks]

Hi,

Log into rdadmin click on edit hosts.  Copy the host that is there and 
make a new one with the same name as your new computer.


This should fix your greyed out buttons etc.

Wayne Merricks
The Voice Asia

On 06/11/14 00:34, Pedro Picoto wrote:

Today I gave a small leap in the Linux world.
I downloaded the beta appliance CD, centOS 7. Things went better this 
time because I got a screen resolution suitable for my monitor, out of 
the box.


Regarding Rivendell:

Soundcard... it was tricky. The graphics HDMI  kept showing up, 
messing the setup. Rdalsaconfig and asound.conf did the trick. 
Imported some audio and they played.


Issues(?):

I saved the DB of  a working setup and all the respective audio files 
into a flashdrive

Using DB restoration I imported it, ending up with:

- Audio settings turned to Jack (wich I was using on the working setup)
- On Air screen and other modules with greyed buttons. Checking Rights 
they look the same as the primitive setup. Restoring DB to the 
primitive setup activated the buttons except (at least far as I seen) 
the RDLibrary has the transport buttons greyed out and after tweaking 
the soundcard settings it reappeared.


Basically I have absolutely no rights to act over Rivendell on one of 
the DBs, the bigger one, and no transport on yhe newer one.  Been 
checking, changing all the visible variables and nothing.


Hints?

-





___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev


___
Rivendell-dev mailing list
Rivendell-dev@lists.rivendellaudio.org
http://caspian.paravelsystems.com/mailman/listinfo/rivendell-dev