14 July 2004
Hong Kong viewers will be able to enjoy digital television broadcasts by 2007 at the latest, after the government gave Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) and Asia Television Limited (ATV) the right to beam programmes to viewers using the technology.
Under terms of the licences, TVB and ATV must begin transmitting digital signals in tandem with their existing analogue service by 2007, the South China Morning Post reports.
The two broadcasters will also be allocated spectrum to launch high-definition TV services, which allow for higher resolution than standard televisions.
TVB and ATV are also required to extend their digital network coverage to 75 percent of Hong Kong by the end of 2008.
If a national standard for digital terrestrial television (DTT) broadcasting has not been established on the mainland before the end of 2006, the government said it will let the market decide on the selection of the technical standard.
Both broadcasters have indicated that they will adopt the European DVB-T technical standard for digital broadcasting by 2006 to encourage the introduction of DTT services in the territory.
10 July 2004
In what could well be a first in Arab TV broadcasting, Al Jazeera Channel has finalised a Code of Ethics guided by a transparent Vision and Mission Statement.
The document, which will be made public in the next few days, states unequivocally the satellite channel’s professional beliefs and standards. Foremost is Al Jazeera’s intent to adhere to professional core values, distinguish between what is news and what is opinion and analysis, and monitor its output acknowledging unintended mistakes if and when it occurs and ensuring it does not recur.
Defining Al Jazeera as an “Arab media service
with global orientation”, the Code re-emphasises its motto of “The One and the Other Opinion”. It further asserts the Channel’s position as a “forum for pluralism, seeking the truth while observing the principles of professionalism within an institutional framework”.
The Code of Ethics, as well as the Vision and Mission Statement, were the result of exhaustive meetings held over a period of months by Al Jazeeras Editorial Board and discussions that invited views from all the Channels employees. The firm conviction has always been that any media organisation has to be responsible towards the environment in which, and with which it interacts, and consequently it is imperative that there should be clear and transparent communication.
Waddah Khanfar, Channel Director, said that the Code is one way of putting our vision and mission statement into action. Al Jazeera has always endeavoured to promote public awareness of issues of concern. Khanfar further pointed out that one of the Codes articles stipulates: “Al Jazeera aspires to be a bridge between peoples and cultures to support the right of the individual to acquire knowledge and strengthen the values of tolerance, democracy and respect for liberties and human rights”.
The Code also stresses that professional considerations are sacrosanct, and thus have priority over political and commercial concerns. Consequently, virtues such as honesty, courage, fairness, balance and independence are but few of Al Jazeera’s core professional values.
The announcement of the Code of Ethics coincides with the launch of Al Jazeera World Forums first annual conference to be held in Doha on 12-13 July 2004. The title of the conference, which around 120 Arab and Western journalists are expected to attend, is Changing Media Perceptions: Professionalism & Cultural Diversity.
The AIB is attending the Doha conference and AIB members will receive a briefing about the event.
Al Jazeera is a Platinum Member of the AIB
9 July 2004
Apple’s Safari is a free web browser which is available over various platforms. At first, Safari was only dedicated to iOS or Mac, but now, with greater demand of Safari flowing in, Apple has made it available to other platforms as well.
Safari is most well known for its high speed, reliability, security and extremely simplistic user interface. But with a choice of many other free web browsers in the market such is Firefox, Chrome, etc. why would you choose Safari as your default browser?
In this article we shall discuss the various Pros and Cons of using Safari for Windows and whether you should download it or not.
Pros of using Safari for Windows
- It is a free web browser, which means you do not have to pay anything to download Safari for any platform or operating system.
- It is the fastest web browsing platform available in the market, delivering speeds of 2x over other web browsers.
- Safari supports CSS3 and HTML5.
- Top Sites for Windows, which allows users to view thumbnails of their most visited websites on the top of their browser screen.
- Cover Flow option which allows users to browse through complete spread sheet versions of the sites as they last visited them. This is extremely handy if uses want to pick up from a site where they left off the last time.
- The new feature of Search History in Safari allows users to type a single word to find every single page they have searched which contains that one word. This can be helpful in times when users can not recall the name of the website they last visited and need to go back to search for that particular web page.
- Reader facility allows users to view the entire contents of a site on one single page.
- Tabs on Top feature allows users to browse through their open tabs at the top of the Safari browser. They can even drag and move tabs along the safari page for their convenience.
- Safari for windows is extremely stable and user friendly, having probably one of the most simplistic user interfaces which allows even first time users to access Safari without any issues,.
- Additional safety, security and privacy features allows users to keep their web page history completely hidden from outside prying eyes with just the touch of a button.
- Safari is extremely stylish and elegant as well as convenient.
Cons of using Safari for Windows
- Not all Safari features are available on Windows.
- Safari lacks customization options that are available on many of the other competitor platforms.
- Safari does not provide a lot of updates, and still has a few bugs and fixes which are to be solved.
- Flash does not work well with safari.
- Safari is vulnerable to malware.
- Certain security issues for Windows users of Safari which Mac users of Safari do not face.
After discussing the pros and cons of Safari browser for Windows, it can safely be said that Safari is one of the best browser choices you can have for your convenience.
8 July 2004
The BBC has announced that, subject to contract, Siemens Business Services has been selected as the Single Preferred Bidder for a new Technology Framework Contract (TFC) for the Corporation, and as the new owner of BBC Technology. This announcement follows a rigorous EU Procurement Process and approval by the BBCs Executive Board. The sale is subject to the approval of the BBC Governors, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport and clearance by the European Commission under the terms of the EC Merger Regulation. Subject to the necessary approvals, the contract is for 10 years and is worth up to £2bn.
Subject to the necessary approvals, the deal will complete by Autumn 2004 once final contract negotiations are complete.
8 July 2004
Harris Corporation announced that CTV, the Taiwan television broadcast network, has purchased 16 of Harris Broadcast Communications Division’s NetVX(TM) High-speed Network Systems and upgrades for Harris’ FlexiCoder(R) Encoding System. The equipment will be installed during the second phase of the network’s digital rollout for the distribution of its TV services.
At CTV, the NetVX system will receive feeds from either the Chung Hwa telecom network via fiber or CTV’s digital microwave system to drive the DVB-T transmitters at the network’s remote sites. At regional sites that provide localized encoding, the NetVX system will be equipped with a SD encoder that will encode audio and video from the local station to MPEG-2 and multiplex that signal into the final multiplex.
With its ability to establish links with all packet-based (ATM, IP, and
microwave) services and receive satellite signals for news sendback and local news drop and insert, the NetVX system enables broadcasters to efficiently and cost-effectively move media (analog or digital video, audio and data) between physically disparate locations simultaneously. This capability will help CTV to integrate the monitoring and control of the DVB-T transmission and transmitters via IP over ATM or IP over MPEG.
At NAB2004, Harris featured a major enhancement for the NetVX system, a Gigabit Ethernet interface with the extended capability for transporting video over IP networks. The Gigabit interface is capable of high-speed file transfer and transport of 64 real-time, bi-directional streams for video services. It also features Forward Error Correction, which automatically corrects for packet loss often found in networks.
8 July 2004
Germanys international broadcaster Deutsche Welle started transmitting its English Service on DRM to Europe on 6 July with a prime-time evening broadcast hosted by Mark Caldwell. The broadcasts can be heard every Tuesday evening, on 6140 KHz, 7125 KHz, 16.00 – 19.00 UTC.
With the new digital technology, radio stations will retain the same national and international reach as with their conventional AM short and medium wave broadcasts, but listeners will benefit from near-FM quality sound and additional data services. The new digital system DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) will take the crackle, interference and hiss out of international broadcasting so it can compete for listeners on equal terms with domestic services.
DW’s Director of Marketing and Engineering, Peter Senger, heads the 25-nation DRM consortium spearheading the introduction of the new technology. He said there is now “no alternative to digital broadcasting” and the DRM standard offered “a bit rate that could supply near FM quality”. DRM would also be cheaper that conventional AM, saving between 40% and 60% in transmitter costs.
DRM can also be used to transmit text messages and pictures, and it can also pack several radio channels into the same frequency, offering the listener a far greater choice of programmes.
