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CBS 6 Albany FAQ's:
Written
by Chris Neher, Webmaster, CBS 6 Albany
Don't
see your question? Ask it now.
CBS 6
Television FAQ's:
Written by Fred Lass, Director of Engineering, CBS 6 Albany
Don't
see your question? Ask it now.
CBS 6 Albany FAQ's:
Written
by Chris Neher, Webmaster, CBS 6 Albany
Q.
Why doesn't my browser display the Instant Doppler or CBS 6 Skycam image?
A. You have a firewall or other software that is not passing referer information.
How referer information works:
Referer information is information that a Web site sends to another Web site when you click a link on the first Web site to open the second Web site. When you click a Web page, your browser makes a note of the current page you are on and sends that information to the server of the new Web page. This way, the server for the new Web page knows the last Web page you viewed.
If you block referrer information, the server of the page you are requesting to see does not know what page you saw last. However, some Web pages require referer information before allowing you to view the page, or portions of a page. The Instant Doppler and CBS 6 SkyCam images require you view them from the page in which they are hosted.
For example, when you are on the Instant Doppler 6 page at www.wrgb.com, when that page tries to load the radar image, the browser sends information to the server that includes the fact that you are currently viewing the site www.wrgb.com. If you block referer information, the server does not "know" that you are at www.wrgb.com. Since the server requires this information, your browser would not display the image.
If you are using Symantec products, by default, Norton Internet Security (NIS) and Norton Personal Firewall (NPF) block referer information. The Symantec web site has a couple of Knowledge Base articles that describe the issue and how to correct it.
How to pass referrer information to specific Web pages:
Norton Personal Firewall and Norton Internet Security (pre 2003)
Norton Personal Firewall and Norton Internet Security 2003
Q.
Why does the website seem too wide; why do I have to scroll left and right
to see the full page?
A. You likely have your computer's screen resolution set below
1024 pixels by 768 pixels wide. CBS 6 Albany is optimized for a screen
at least 1024 x 768 in order to be able to present as much information
as possible for today's typical computer setup. To change your monitor's
settings:
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Macintosh
OS X 10.x:
Open
"Displays" in System Preferences and choose a minimum
of 1024 x 768:
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Windows:
"Right-Click"
the mouse on your desktop, choose "Properties" in the
drop-down menu, pick the "Settings" tab and choose a
minimum of 1024 x 768 with the Screen Area slider bar:
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Q.
What kind of computers do you use to create and maintain CBS 6 Albany Online?
| A.
As Webmaster, I use an Apple PowerBook G4 Titanium running Mac OS
X along with Mac OS 9.2.1 and also run Windows 98 via Virtual PC 4
in order to check page layout in various browsers and operating systems.
The PowerBook has 768MB of RAM installed and is pictured to the right.
It also outputs to an additional computer monitor, so that I have
a wide, dual monitor desktop for a large workspace. You can click
the PowerBook or here
for detailed information and tech specs. |
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Q.
Why do you use QuickTime for onine video and audio?
A. We use QuickTime because it offers the highest quality for progressive
downloads which are movies that play as soon as they begin downloading
and don't require you to wait for the whole file to download. QuickTime
is also cross-platform and supports the widest variety of file
formats - currently over 200.
Q.
How can I quickly find a section within CBS 6 Albany Online?
A. Use the common drop-down menubar located the top left
of every page of the site. It lists all of the sections and subsections
contained within CBS 6 Albany Online. Special topics are contained within
the buttons and text links running along the left and right of each page
sitewide.
Q. Where can I get the QuickTime
player and how do I install it?
1)
You can download the QuickTime player from Apple at http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
2) Go to the box at the bottom of the page, enter your name and email
address, select whether you want the Windows or Mac version, then
click on "Download QuickTime."
3) Save the download to your desktop
4) After downloading QuickTime, double-click on the installer, which
will appear on your
computer's Desktop. QuickTime WILL NOT OPERATE until you complete
this step!
5) Once QuickTime has successfully downloaded, double click the QuickTime
icon on your desktop to begin install.
6) Follow all steps required (you may need to restart your computer
after install)
7) To insure that you have successfully installed QuickTime, check
the box that says "Yes, I want to view the Sample Movie". |
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Q. How do I change my preferences?
A. Some users will have to change their QuickTime preferences to allow
the QuickTime stream to pass through a firewall. Follow the steps below
to successfully change your QuickTime preferences.
Note: A QuickTime upgrade box may pop up after you have installed the
free version of QuickTime. While not required, you may want the upgrade,
which unlocks more features in QuickTime. If you do not want to pay for
an upgrade, simply hit the LATER option.
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A.
To change your preferences:
1) Open the QuickTime Player.
2) Go to the 'Edit' menu, At the bottom select 'Preferences'
3) Under 'Preferences' is a section 'Streaming Transport'
4) In 'Streaming Transport' select the button that says 'Use HTTP,
Port ID:' Make sure the button '80' is selected as well.
5) The last step is to click the 'AutoConfigure' button, And press
'OK' after QuickTime is finished checking. |
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Q.
Does QuickTime cost anything?
A. No. Apple offers a free QuickTime player in a number of languages for
both Windows and Macintosh computers. Click here to
find out where to get QuickTime for your computer.
Q.
Why am I having problems viewing Streaming Video?
1) You will need to use QuickTime 6 or higher. If you do not have QuickTime
6 or higher, please go to http://www.apple.com/QuickTime/download/ and
download a newer version of QuickTime.
2) Some users will have to change their QuickTime preferences to allow
the QuickTime stream to pass through a firewall. Click
here for detailed instructions on how to change your QuickTime preferences.
Q.
Why is Windows Media Player trying to play my QuickTime movies?
A. If Windows Media Player tries to play when you click on a movie, then
you haven't correctly installed QuickTime on your machine. Please follow
the QuickTime installation steps to insure that
you have installed all the necessary components.
Q.
Why do some of the QuickTime movies appear clear and the others are blurry?
We use two types of video transport. The first one is QuickTime Streaming.
This is for the longer-length and LIVE video. The picture quality is
lower to allow a full-length movie to be streamed with less download
time. The second is QuickTime Progressive Downloads. These are for the
shorter clips (up to 7 minutes) that we offer on CBS 6 Albany Online.
The picture quality is higher, but you download the full movie file as
you view it (usually up to 5 megabytes for low bandwidth as with modems
and 40 megabytes for high bandwidth as with cable modems, DSL and higher
connections).
Q.
Why do the QuickTime movies play for a minute and then stop?
When you download our shorter clips (QuickTime Progressive Downloads)
you must wait until enough of the QuickTime file is downloaded (based
upon your connection speed) to insure that the video won't stop. If you
only download a small portion of the movie the video may stop at the
point where it has not finished downloading. Simply wait a moment
and the movie will resume playing normally.
Q.
Why do I hear no sound in QuickTime?
1) Check to see that all your volume levels are up and/or your speaker
system is plugged in correctly.
2) You may be using an earlier version of QuickTime. You must have QuickTime
6 or later installed on your machine to hear audio.
3) If you're working on Windows 95 or 98, make sure DirectSound is installed.
Q.
How do I make the QuickTime movie larger?
A. You may adjust your monitor resolution to make the movie larger or
smaller. Consult your monitor's instruction manual to find out how to
adjust the resolution. Please note that the larger you make the movie,
the more blurry it may become.
Q.
I'm using an AOL browser and I can't view the QuickTime movies. What now?
A. AOL does not support streaming media. You must be using at least Netscape
4.5 and higher or Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 and higher to view
our movies via QuickTime.
Please go to Netscape
or Microsoft
IE for Macintosh or Microsoft
IE for Windows to download.
Minimum
System Requirements for QuickTime 6
To run QuickTime
Player on the Macintosh platform, you need:
· Mac PowerPC
· OS 7.1 or later
· 32 MB RAM
· 28.8K modem or better
· Internet Explorer 4.0 or Netscape 4.5 and higher
To run QuickTime
6 Player on the Windows platform, you need:
· 90-MHz Pentium processor
· Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0
· 16 MB RAM
· 16-color display card and 16-bit sound card
· Sound Blaster or compatible sound card
· 28.8K modem
· Internet Explorer 4.0 or Netscape 4.5 and higher
CBS 6
Television FAQ's:
Written by Fred Lass, Director of Engineering, CBS 6 Albany
Q.
My reception of channel 6 is poor, but I'm on cable; why is that? I have
a vertical bar in the screen or a ghost in the picture.
A. You likely have a problem that the cable industry calls "ingress".
Ingress is caused by a strong off-air signal leaking into the cable and
interfering with the cable signal. Ingress can be caused by poor quality
jumper cables between your VCR/TV, inadequate shielding in some consumer
equipment, poor connections in the cable system, or low signal levels
on the cable.
Q.
Who fixes ingress problems?
A. In most cases your cable operator will either fix problems with their
wiring or identify ingress problems in your equipment. WRGB is not responsible
for problems with the cable or your equipment
Q.
What if I want to fix the problem myself?
A. You may be able to fix or reduce the problem if it originates in your
home. Click here to read "Busting Ghosts in CATV drops"
December 1991 issue of Communications Technology, a cable trade magazine.
Q.
I have a DBS dish and was promised local signals via satellite. How can
I get WRGB on my DBS dish?
A. WRGB is now available on both the Dish Network and DirecTV to viewers who
live within our DMA. Some DirecTV viewers in Southern Columbia County and Southern Berkshire County must install an over the air antenna to see WRGB.
The reason for this is that the DirecTV 7S satellite uses a spot beam to send
signals to Albany viewers. The spot beam does not cover these locations.
DirecTV will not sell Albany stations in those areas. Dish Network customers
do not have this problem.
Q.
I have heard that HDTV is coming. When will WRGB be digital?
A. WRGB began DTV transmissions on July 18th, 2003. We purchased a temporary
antenna for use at our analog tower while we waited for the new DTV building
to be completed. At first the signal was standard definition only. On
September 18th we became the first over the air HD station in Albany.
On December 3, 2003 the DTV building became our new home.
Q.
How is WRGB broadcast on radio @87.7FM?
A. WRGB's audio signal is on 87.7 because channel 6 is situated just below
the FM band. The signal heard on 87.7 is really the channel 6 audio, not
a separate transmitter.
Q.
Why did WRGB decide to broadcast on the radio?
A. We didn't have to decide because all channel 6 TV station's in the
US, Canada, and Mexico have an audio transmitter on 87.7.
Q.
Where is Ch. 6/WRGB television antennae located, and how tall is it?
A. The channel 6 analog antenna is located in the Helderberg Mountains, above
Thatcher Park. The base of the tower is 1520 feet above sea level, the tower
is 314 feet tall. The digital tower is about one mile SSW of the analog
tower. The base of the digital tower is at 1780 feet above sea level. The tower is
499 feet tall. This puts the height of the antenna 430 feet higher than the analog antenna.
Q.
How is WRGB broadcast on cable?
A. The WRGB signal is sent to Time Warner on fiber optic cable and distributed
from their head-end on Washington Avenue Extension in Albany. Time Warner's
cable then feeds West to Amsterdam, East to Pittsfield, and North to Glens
Falls. All other cable systems receive the channel six broadcasts over
the air and retransmit it on their cable.
Q.
If I live in a hilly area /or a valley/ what do I need to receive Ch.6?
A. The answer depends on your distance from the WRGB transmitter and the
terrain near your home. In most cases a rooftop antenna, properly aimed,
will do fine. As you go further away from the WRGB transmitter, a larger
antenna is needed. A preamplifier can also be helpful, especially if the
antenna is connected to more than one TV set. In extreme locations it
may be necessary to try various locations on your property to see where
the signal is the strongest. In some places in the Catskills and Adirondacks
the best location for a channel 6 antenna may be on a mast 10-15 feet
tall located in a clear area away from the house.
Q.
How is WRGB's television signal made?
A. The channel 6 television transmitter is really two transmitters, one
for video and a second for audio. The visual transmitter uses Vestigial
Sideband Amplitude modulation, the aural transmitter uses Frequency Modulation.
Q.
How does the signal get from WRGB to my house?
A. If you are receiving WRGB directly off the air your antenna and TV
set detect the RF field created by the WRGB transmit antenna and transmitters.
Q.
If the neighborhood loses power, how does WRGB stay "on the Air"?
A. WRGB has dual buried power feeds from two Niagara Mohawk substations
as well as a back-up generator at it's studio in Niskayuna. Our analog
transmitter in the Helderbergs also has a back-up generator. The new
digital building has been outfitted with dual generators and the ability
for our transmitter to run on either of them. In most cases we have a
one week supply of fuel at each location. During a power outage WRGB will
be the only TV station that you will be able to receive using your battery
operated FM radio.
Q.
What's involved when reporter is "live" at a location for a
story?
A. For live locations in the metro area we use a microwave signal transmitted
from a truck with a tall mast to to send the video back to a receive site.
The receive site sends the signal to our studios, where it is manually
switched into the news show and sent to the viewer. We have microwave
receive sites at our transmitter in the Helderbergs, atop One Commerce Plaza
in Albany, on the roof of our studio building in Niskayuna, on top of Jiminy
Peak near Pittsfield, and on Willard Mountain near Greenwich, NY. Locations
that are not line-of-site to one of the above microwave locations, we use our
satellite truck. The dish on the truck sends the signal to a satellite located
22,300 miles above the earth. The satellite then sends our signal back to
the earth and we receive it on a dish located at our studio in Niskayuna.
Q.
How do the anchors know what to say when they aren't looking at the stories
to read them?
A. The anchors are reading a "TelePrompTer". A TelePrompTer
is one of those tricks that use a mirror. The script actually appears
on a partially silvered mirror located directly in front of the camera
lens.
Q. What kind of camera do
you use to take the pictures of TV people?
A. We use Sony and Ikegami cameras with three charge coupled devices (CCD's)
as their image sensors.
Q.
What kind of TV tape do you use to record on and why?
A. Our news stories are recorded in the field on DVCAM tape. Our Ikegami
HL-DV7W cameras are high quality digital standard-definition cameras.
At the studio, the digital signal from the tape is transferred onto a
video server for editing and playback. A video server offers operational
advantages over VTR's.
Q.
What is HDTV?
A.
WRGB is currently transmitting many CBS programs over-the-air in
High Definition Television (HDTV). HDTV is turbo-charged
television, yielding clearer pictures, better sound, more network
channels, and more viewing excitement than traditional analog television.
HDTV offers a picture free of "ghosts," "snow" or
interference. The crisper, sharper image is due to the increased
number of pixels the signal puts on the screen -- the higher
the number, the sharper the picture. Furthermore, HDTV can
provide 5.1 channels of Dolby Digital CD-quality surround sound,
adding to the ultimate home theater experience. Broadcasting digitally
also enables broadcasters to multicast, delivering three or more simultaneous programs.
Q.
Why is HDTV better than "regular" SDTV?
A. HDTV brings viewers five times the picture resolution and clarity
of SDTV, making viewers feel like they are right in the middle of the
action on their screens. HDTV uses binary code, the same system of
ones and zeroes that run on computers and digitally recorded compact
discs. With a 16:9 aspect ratio, HDTV has a wider, rectangular
screen, compared to today's square 4:3 aspect ratio of analog television. The
wider image is more lifelike and realistic.
Q. What
do you need to see CBS programs in HDTV?
A. You need three things: A high-definition TV set, A high-definition
over-the-air receiver, and an antenna. In addition, we are now carried in HD on the
Time Warner Cable system on channel 1806. Some HDTV sets, but not
all, have the high-definition over-the-air receiver built right in. Please
visit www.antennaweb.org for over the air reception information. |
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