How (and why) to Ramble on your goat sideways
03-16-2020, 05:35 PM
Yeah, I've been out of the game for a long time, since helming uTorrent through a harbor for folks wearing tri-point hats about 10 years ago (Is that even still a thing?)
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03-16-2020, 10:51 PM
My firm had a staff meeting today, and as of now we are to work from home until further notice. Fortunately I'm already pretty much set up for that, when I built my new PC back in November I got an SSD from work and installed it as a second boot drive. Have all my software, and use a VPN to connect to the office server. Most everyone else is going to need to use TeamViewer, poor bastards.
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03-16-2020, 11:14 PM
Boost Pope
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Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
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In fact, the scene has really calmed down quite a lot, relatively speaking. There are still the usual proper-wars between rival release groups, but they're in the background. All in all, it's become quite reliable and easy to navigate.
Eztv is a great resource.
And, just as a caution to anyone not familiar with what we're talking about. Unless you know what an anonymizing VPN is, and already have one, don't even google this ****.
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03-16-2020, 11:15 PM
Boost Pope
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Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
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My firm had a staff meeting today, and as of now we are to work from home until further notice. Fortunately I'm already pretty much set up for that, when I built my new PC back in November I got an SSD from work and installed it as a second boot drive. Have all my software, and use a VPN to connect to the office server. Most everyone else is going to need to use TeamViewer, poor bastards.
Imagine that, plus having to provide low-latency return video and audio from a hew hundred sources, none of which are PCs.
Plus party-line comms, so that a dozen or so people at a time can all coordinate to do a live newscast, when none of them are in the same zip code.
TV is fun.
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03-16-2020, 11:34 PM
We're in a similar mode.
Imagine that, plus having to provide low-latency return video and audio from a hew hundred sources, none of which are PCs.
Plus party-line comms, so that a dozen or so people at a time can all coordinate to do a live newscast, when none of them are in the same zip code.
TV is fun.
Imagine that, plus having to provide low-latency return video and audio from a hew hundred sources, none of which are PCs.
Plus party-line comms, so that a dozen or so people at a time can all coordinate to do a live newscast, when none of them are in the same zip code.
TV is fun.
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03-17-2020, 12:06 AM
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,038
Total Cats: 6,604
Long story short: I have taken down most of the IP-enabled security cameras on the 2nd floor, and re-mounted them so that they face the various monitor walls in the control rooms. A bit of magic later, and they are able to be received via VLC on clients which are logged into the VPN.
And, hallelujah, they also support audio. Granted, just via shitty built-in mics, but it beats silence.
If we do have to pull the trigger on this thing, it's gonna be a wild ride for all involved. Reporters in the field are going to hear themselves coming back in the IFB on a slight delay. This will be the test which separates the pros from the chaff. People will be putting this on their resumes years from now.
And, hallelujah, they also support audio. Granted, just via shitty built-in mics, but it beats silence.
If we do have to pull the trigger on this thing, it's gonna be a wild ride for all involved. Reporters in the field are going to hear themselves coming back in the IFB on a slight delay. This will be the test which separates the pros from the chaff. People will be putting this on their resumes years from now.
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03-17-2020, 02:07 PM
Long story short: I have taken down most of the IP-enabled security cameras on the 2nd floor, and re-mounted them so that they face the various monitor walls in the control rooms. A bit of magic later, and they are able to be received via VLC on clients which are logged into the VPN.
And, hallelujah, they also support audio. Granted, just via shitty built-in mics, but it beats silence.
If we do have to pull the trigger on this thing, it's gonna be a wild ride for all involved. Reporters in the field are going to hear themselves coming back in the IFB on a slight delay. This will be the test which separates the pros from the chaff. People will be putting this on their resumes years from now.
And, hallelujah, they also support audio. Granted, just via shitty built-in mics, but it beats silence.
If we do have to pull the trigger on this thing, it's gonna be a wild ride for all involved. Reporters in the field are going to hear themselves coming back in the IFB on a slight delay. This will be the test which separates the pros from the chaff. People will be putting this on their resumes years from now.
Also setting up RDS servers, RDSWeb portals, and rolling out distributed services to some of our colo's.
I am doing this from my home office, since we were advised that if we have a good setup for remote work, go ahead and use it.
This will probably last at least a few weeks.
These walls are inching in a little more each day.
I think it's time to finally start growing out the senior sysadmin beard...
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03-17-2020, 11:47 PM
Boost Pope
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Sometimes, Ross Video can be a real pain in the ***.
Because they assume that everyone else is incompetent.
Yes, I get it. A lot of people are utter ******* retards. Many of them voted today. But I have purchased TWENTY-SEVEN robots from you guys in the past four years, and we assembled and balanced them perfectly. I even sent a video, demonstrating how the robot held its position at any tilt angle perfectly, even with the power disconnected, because you didn't believe that someone who doesn't eat poutine was capable of competently assembling and balancing your product.
And yet, now that I have sent them a purchase order for six more (again, thanks for the pen, @rleete, that's another $327k) they're still asking me to fill out the same goddamned questionnaire as we've filled out every single time in the past, to be sure that I'm not a bat-eating idiot who doesn't know how to properly determine the weight and center-of-mass of a payload.
And they're getting really into the weeds, like "I see that in the video which you re-sent us for the third time that there's a viewfinder atop the camera. Is that a standard part of the Sony HXC-P70, or an additional Sony part?"
Does it really look like an actual Sony part, you uncle-******* Canadian ********? It's smaller than @hustler's atrophied *****, for crying out loud. These are robo cams. Its only purpose is to give the folks in the studio a very general idea of the fact that the rubber duck* is indeed facing the correct direction. Let's see: I can spend $1,700 each (x6) with Sony, or just buy the cheapest thing with an SDI input that B&H happens to have in stock at the time. Does Marcellus Wallace look like a bitch?
(Can you tell that I am slightly annoyed right now?)
And so, with only minor paraphrasing, here is the most recent email which I sent in response:
The prompter package consists of:
(Long and detailed list of specific part numbers and quantities)
The forward-facing monitor is a generic PC monitor. I think these are Dell. Might be Samsung. We have a few different brands. None of them are heavier than what you can comfortably pick up with your thumb and one finger.
The viewfinder on the top of the camera is a Liliput 7” LCD. It weighs about 9 ounces, including the mount. I just put one on the postal scale. It didn’t register on the normal shipping scale.
The power strip on the back is a Tripplite model 602. It weighs about the same as three healthy newborn kittens plus a 1€ coin.
There is one BlackMagic micro SDI to HDMI converter centered under the camera. I have no idea how much is weighs. About the same as the amount of sand that’s left in your shoes after a long stroll across the beach in Carlsbad, CA at sunset on a warm summer evening, with the smell of barbeque wafting through the air and the sound of Jimmy Buffet faintly audible from the RV campground perched on the cliffs above, as you cherish the embrace of a svelte young Puerto Rican woman whose love will, alas, ultimately be extinguished by time.
And also some tie-wraps. Please let me know if you need me to weigh and count them.
* = long story. I think I've posted it before.
Because they assume that everyone else is incompetent.
Yes, I get it. A lot of people are utter ******* retards. Many of them voted today. But I have purchased TWENTY-SEVEN robots from you guys in the past four years, and we assembled and balanced them perfectly. I even sent a video, demonstrating how the robot held its position at any tilt angle perfectly, even with the power disconnected, because you didn't believe that someone who doesn't eat poutine was capable of competently assembling and balancing your product.
And yet, now that I have sent them a purchase order for six more (again, thanks for the pen, @rleete, that's another $327k) they're still asking me to fill out the same goddamned questionnaire as we've filled out every single time in the past, to be sure that I'm not a bat-eating idiot who doesn't know how to properly determine the weight and center-of-mass of a payload.
And they're getting really into the weeds, like "I see that in the video which you re-sent us for the third time that there's a viewfinder atop the camera. Is that a standard part of the Sony HXC-P70, or an additional Sony part?"
Does it really look like an actual Sony part, you uncle-******* Canadian ********? It's smaller than @hustler's atrophied *****, for crying out loud. These are robo cams. Its only purpose is to give the folks in the studio a very general idea of the fact that the rubber duck* is indeed facing the correct direction. Let's see: I can spend $1,700 each (x6) with Sony, or just buy the cheapest thing with an SDI input that B&H happens to have in stock at the time. Does Marcellus Wallace look like a bitch?
(Can you tell that I am slightly annoyed right now?)
And so, with only minor paraphrasing, here is the most recent email which I sent in response:
The prompter package consists of:
(Long and detailed list of specific part numbers and quantities)
The forward-facing monitor is a generic PC monitor. I think these are Dell. Might be Samsung. We have a few different brands. None of them are heavier than what you can comfortably pick up with your thumb and one finger.
The viewfinder on the top of the camera is a Liliput 7” LCD. It weighs about 9 ounces, including the mount. I just put one on the postal scale. It didn’t register on the normal shipping scale.
The power strip on the back is a Tripplite model 602. It weighs about the same as three healthy newborn kittens plus a 1€ coin.
There is one BlackMagic micro SDI to HDMI converter centered under the camera. I have no idea how much is weighs. About the same as the amount of sand that’s left in your shoes after a long stroll across the beach in Carlsbad, CA at sunset on a warm summer evening, with the smell of barbeque wafting through the air and the sound of Jimmy Buffet faintly audible from the RV campground perched on the cliffs above, as you cherish the embrace of a svelte young Puerto Rican woman whose love will, alas, ultimately be extinguished by time.
And also some tie-wraps. Please let me know if you need me to weigh and count them.
* = long story. I think I've posted it before.
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03-18-2020, 12:10 AM
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,038
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Coda:
I'm pretty sure that's the most sarcastic serious business-related email which was ever been sent from the [name_of_company_redacted.com] domain.
At least, that was my intent.
If not, I want to fight the person who claims otherwise. Not in a physical sense, more in a "I have the domain password, and also political immunity as the chief of the network, and am IRL friends with the chiefs of ABC, CBS, HBO and NPR, and can thus not merely hurt you beyond imagination, but also make you toxically unemployable for all eternity in this business" sense.
Ok, maybe also in a physical sense.
I'm pretty sure that's the most sarcastic serious business-related email which was ever been sent from the [name_of_company_redacted.com] domain.
At least, that was my intent.
If not, I want to fight the person who claims otherwise. Not in a physical sense, more in a "I have the domain password, and also political immunity as the chief of the network, and am IRL friends with the chiefs of ABC, CBS, HBO and NPR, and can thus not merely hurt you beyond imagination, but also make you toxically unemployable for all eternity in this business" sense.
Ok, maybe also in a physical sense.
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03-18-2020, 08:23 AM
Boost Pope
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Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,038
Total Cats: 6,604
True story: I do, in fact, purchase the bulk-packages of mini rubber ducks from Amazon. At this point, they are pretty much everywhere in the TV station. It's become not merely a running gag, but also an official means of indicating the camera pedestals' "front" position. which is otherwise ambiguous.
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03-18-2020, 10:20 AM
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,038
Total Cats: 6,604
Well, I was wrong. I just sent an even more sarcastic email:
There will be manual lens controls on the six 600XY peds. We haven't decided between Fuji and Canon yet.
These controls will be at the extreme-rear of the assembly, and thus, their weight will be deducted from the total number of / position of Cuescript counterweights which we normally apply to the back of the assembly.
Also, dust occasionally settles on the camera assemblies. It tends to be uniformly distributed front-to-back. If needed, I can collect samples from one of the cameras in studio 2 and weigh them on my cocaine scale.
Joe, they're coming back with another question. Again my apologies for bothering you. They are asking about Lens Control? Are you setting up manual lens control? They say this could add significant weight to the payload.
Could you please confirm that there will be rear lens controls on there.
Could you please confirm that there will be rear lens controls on there.
There will be manual lens controls on the six 600XY peds. We haven't decided between Fuji and Canon yet.
These controls will be at the extreme-rear of the assembly, and thus, their weight will be deducted from the total number of / position of Cuescript counterweights which we normally apply to the back of the assembly.
Also, dust occasionally settles on the camera assemblies. It tends to be uniformly distributed front-to-back. If needed, I can collect samples from one of the cameras in studio 2 and weigh them on my cocaine scale.
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