Merging data from WideOrbit and satellite

[David W. Wolfe]

I need some assistance on MagicRDS setup. Here's the situation:

We have 2 inputs:
1. We receive now playing data (PAD) from a Westwood One receiver in the Title;Artist/r/n format.
2. We receive data from Wide Orbit automation. I can configure WO to send now playing data in different formats. (TXT, XML, etc.)

We have 2 outputs:
1. Pira P332 RDS on port 9340, TCP, Server
--I had to set the P332 to server mode. I have a VBScript currently interpreting the raw data from Westwood One. The script commands require the receiver to be in server mode.
2. Securenet Streaming PC on port 9001
--This receives the PAD data directly from the satellite receiver. Their program accepts the Title;Artist/r/n format and interprets it for display on streaming.

Here's what I'd like to do:
1. Receive data from both inputs, but with a catch. When I'm receiving data from WideOrbit, I want to ignore data from the satellite receiver.
2. My VBScript has a scheduling module which overrides satellite data with static text. It's rather clunky to work with; and it only sends data to the Pira P332, not to the streaming service.
3. Our streaming service can receive data from WideOrbit. However, that means sending emails to switch it over and emails to switch it back. I sent them emails explaining our dilemma.

It seems to me this should be a fairly common issue. Many stations are part-time satellite (evenings and overnights) and would need a way to switch RDS from a satellite PAD stream to an automation stream.

[Jan]

Yes, the Magic RDS supports switching between different text sources. This can be realized by a simple script. See more details in extsrc.pdf, section 'Dynamic configuration of the External Text Sources'.

Let's assume that both sources are put into the Output sequence. In such case the example would be:

Code: [Select]

set Output1.SrcSequenceItem1Checked:"0"
set Output1.SrcSequenceItem2Checked:"1"
The Magic RDS can run this code automatically upon several events. You can use the Task scheduler to launch the code on specific date/time/day event. You can also use the Text Conditions to launch the code on occurrence of specific keyword in any text source (create a separate Output for that purpose).

Each text source has an option called 'Expires after' which temporarily removes the source from the Output sequence if no text update occurs for the specified period.

This set of features should cover all common situations and needs. Let me know if something is not working as expected or if some feature is missing.