IMA SOL MAN
Flashlight Enthusiast

IPAWS National Test 2023
FEMA, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a national test of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) on Oct. 4, 2023.
This is my point exactly. A lot of the broadcast systems produce hissy, distorted audio because they're either not calibrated correctly or their upstream source (which is simply picked up from another station via antenna) is poor. This whole system needs to be redesigned IMO to include IP-based distribution of audio.My local NOAA radio station has been humming away almost perfectly for years, but suddenly this month, they have been having major problems with it--noise, having to resort to manually doing the announcement, and then the EAS over the broadcast radio, which has been not working for years, suddenly is working, but the audio is all distorted. I can only believe that all of this has been in preparation for the big test in October.
It takes a long time for the broadcast industry to change, and the government even longer. During the great unemploying of 2020, Kansans found out our department of labor was still using 1970's computer technology. Needless to say, that with all the claims coming in, things bogged down to a crawl, and we got defrauded big time. Hopefully the KDOL has upgraded everything to current state of the art, but I'm not going to hold my breath on that. So, I'm not surprised that the TV emergency alert system is behind the state of the art by quite a bit. I know, as a citizen and taxpayer, you expect that with the government's awesome responsibilities and unlimited tax income, that things would be handled properly, but I have very little expectations from it. It's just the way it is.One thing I find particularly disconcerting is the fact they use SDTV resolution when I see their tests conducted, even on cable systems which are 100% digital, and on HDTVs. I don't have much confidence in a system that is still using standards which were more or less obsolete well over a decade ago. Send the messages in 1080P. The few people left who still have SDTVs are already connected to a digital receiver of sorts, either a cable TV box, or a digital-to-analog converter box. Either way, they'll still receive the messages converted to a format which works on their TV.
Then after the test, when it goes back to normal programming, it takes a few seconds for the sound to come back.
The weird thing is we seem to have no problems using the latest and greatest for national defense, but fail big time when it comes to other things. A big part of the problem is public employee unions and contractors both figure it's the government, so let's milk them. This seems to be mostly a problem in the US. We spend 5 to 10 times as much building infrastructure here as they do elsewhere. Maybe we need to adopt whatever oversight measures these other countries are taking.I know, as a citizen and taxpayer, you expect that with the government's awesome responsibilities and unlimited tax income, that things would be handled properly, but I have very little expectations from it. It's just the way it is.
This is my point exactly. A lot of the broadcast systems produce hissy, distorted audio because they're either not calibrated correctly or their upstream source (which is simply picked up from another station via antenna) is poor. This whole system needs to be redesigned IMO to include IP-based distribution of audio.
I used to maintain some of these systems. I was even pressed into service once to make an emergency tornado announcement over the air when the local emergency response team's equipment was flooded out due to the accompanying storm. Back then the systems were simpler but they were still a little tricky to keep running correctly. They're somewhat more sophisticated now (look up ENDEC devices if you want to know more) but they still have serious weak points.
Yep, I remember this. Besides patching any vulnerabilities, it's best practice to limit which IP addresses can reach the system, starting with geofencing from all offshore IPs.
I found this that you will be interested in:One thing I find particularly disconcerting is the fact they use SDTV resolution when I see their tests conducted, even on cable systems which are 100% digital, and on HDTVs. I don't have much confidence in a system that is still using standards which were more or less obsolete well over a decade ago. Send the messages in 1080P. The few people left who still have SDTVs are already connected to a digital receiver of sorts, either a cable TV box, or a digital-to-analog converter box. Either way, they'll still receive the messages converted to a format which works on their TV.
Then after the test, when it goes back to normal programming, it takes a few seconds for the sound to come back.
It's about time. This is one of those things where investing pennies now saves many dollars down the road.I found this that you will be interested in:
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Next Generation Warning System Grant Program
Next Generation Warning System Grant Program (NGWSGP) will support investments that improve the resilience and security of public broadcasting networks and systems.www.fema.gov
Finally! It looks like it's only for public TV stations, but at least it's a good start towards overall modernization and improved clarity and reliability. This can't happen fast enough for me.I found this that you will be interested in:
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Next Generation Warning System Grant Program
Next Generation Warning System Grant Program (NGWSGP) will support investments that improve the resilience and security of public broadcasting networks and systems.www.fema.gov
It came on my EAS equipped AM/FM broadcast bands radio like a champ, but not my NOAA radio--wasn't it supposed to get pushed out on all the alert systems?Well the cellular test went fine as far as I could tell (except for being sent 2 minutes early). The PBS station in my area did fine also, but the CG alert that was displayed by the cable system had no sound. This might be understandable if it was a small independent system but this was one of the large national providers.![]()
That's a really good question! I'm sure it would if it was a local or regional weather emergency, but there's no such thing as a national weather emergency. And if it's a national emergency, it's not about the weather. I'm going to do a bit of reading on this.It came on my EAS equipped AM/FM broadcast bands radio like a champ, but not my NOAA radio--wasn't it supposed to get pushed out on all the alert systems?