Messages

361

TWC Classics News / Re: TWC Classics relaunch

« on: January 27, 2013, 10:18:40 PM »

Just saw this and tried to cast a vote, but it was closed. No idea what the poll results were, but another idea - of course a lot of this depends on if you're using a database to manage content. Why not make it possible to sort the material whichever way you like? A simple click could switch the site between media type or chronological.

The results were that after a whopping 4 votes, "by media type" was the clear winner. I noticed some bugs with the polling plugin, so I'm not sure if the lack of votes was due to a bug or a lack of interest.

Most of the site's content is currently in a database, though I'm looking to get away from that due to the infrequent, but consistent connection errors I'm seeing in my error log file. Being a web developer, I can design the site in almost any way you can imagine.

Can you expand on your idea for allowing the visitor to sort? Are you talking about two versions of the same site, with the possibility for the visitor to choose the one they prefer? One organized by media type and another by date?

362

Contributions / Re: Local forecasts every 4 minutes

« on: January 27, 2013, 10:06:50 PM »

Kinda like... music videos? I think someone slipped TWC the MTV marketing plan.

Makes me think of this...

Why Doesn't MTV Play Music Videos Anymore?

Ouch!

363

Contributions / Re: Local forecasts every 4 minutes

« on: January 27, 2013, 02:53:03 PM »

I think the problem here isn't that TWC isn't a service, but that it's primary concern today is ratings. If it was more concerned with adhering to its original goal, it would be more watchable. But instead it sees in the ratings that someone stopped watching after 9 minutes and says "oh no, we need another long-form program!"

364

TWC Today News / Re: Slow and laggy

« on: January 26, 2013, 05:53:52 PM »

I get the feeling that what we have is sufficient.  Technical problems always occur, but this site is accessible to me almost everyday.  Having your own dedicated server would cost so much that you would wonder if it would ever be worth it.

Yah, I almost never have any problems accessing this site. Then again, I'm generally only on it for a minute or two a few times a day.

365

Contributions / Re: Local forecasts every 4 minutes

« on: January 26, 2013, 05:50:04 PM »

TWC, in my opinion, was so much better back then.  I think it was at its peak from about 1987 to 1995-1996 at the latest.  For various reasons, depending on the timeframe, it's been going downhill ever since.

I totally agree. I also agree that errors were more fun to catch back then. I remember being so excited when the BTF version of "Seguaro" played during a 3 min LF around Thanksgiving 1993! Mainly because it was the first time I had heard the song past the 53 second mark. New playlists were a lot of fun when they came around. Mainly because they were done so infrequently that it was a big deal when it happened. Of course, back then it was almost all jazz and new age music. No rock or mainstream music. So each playlist brought a batch of songs that were brand new to me. The longer timespan, of course, gave you a better chance to get used to the playlist. I also like how many of the earlier playlists were added over the course of days/weeks.

I'd add that changes were more fun to notice back then. New BTF backdrops, changes to the 4000, etc.

366

Contributions / Re: Local forecasts every 4 minutes

« on: January 26, 2013, 12:57:11 PM »

Why did you post this under contributions? I posted that video.

Anyway, when I watch these old videos, I wish I had discovered TWC earlier than 1992. It seems like things were even better back then. Sure, they weren't as "polished" as they are today. And there weren't as many "babes" on air, but it was clearly all about giving viewers what they wanted...weather.

367

TWC Today News / Re: Slow and laggy

« on: January 25, 2013, 10:43:53 AM »

I have the same problem with my site. Especially when it comes to database timeouts. I'd love to upgrade to dedicated or virtual hosting, but it doesn't seem worth it since I don't make any money off the site.

368

TWC Today News / Re: Weather in posts?

« on: January 18, 2013, 10:21:43 AM »

I tried modifying the data source with the old code but it failed. Once the NWS changed their format it broke the code. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions for a replacement option I am open to any ideas!

I'm guessing it's the same problem I had with my short-lived "your weather now" area (or whatever I called it). I never figured it out either. Mainly because I lost interest in trying to find an answer.

369

General Discussion / Re: Songs You Love To Hate

« on: January 17, 2013, 11:25:10 AM »

Rap music is garbage. I don't know why people love to feed that stuff into their ears. I see no novelty in lyrics that talk about junk (however I'll say eminem is an exception)

Agreed. Same with hip hop. I couldn't care less if it has a "good beat." If I can't relate to the lyrics, I'm not listening. I have a hard time relating to telling b****es and hoes to "give it up" and then "get outta the way." I couldn't care less if they're not talking about me. It's still offensive.

Speaking of "they're not talking about me..." I'm sorry, but that's the dumbest excuse I've ever heard for the horrible things rappers say about women in their songs. If you don't care what men say about women that's one thing, but don't tell me your pro woman, but then give rap and hip hop a free pass.

Since I like beats, but hate sleazy lyrics, I love listening to New Jack Swing, a style of R&B that was popular in the late 80s and early 90s. It mixed hip hop beats with traditional R&B. Sadly, it died out in the 90s with the rising popularity of whiny alternative music.

370

Local Forecast / Re: Have these songs played on the weather channel before?

« on: January 15, 2013, 07:56:55 PM »

was jacket town by the yellowjackets ever used?

Also what Acoustic Alchemy songs were used on TWC during their classic days?

Doesn't sound familiar. The only Acoustic Alchemy song that was used on TWC during the classic era was "Take Five" from "Reference Point" in 1990.

371

Programming and Graphics / Re: Deadliest Space Weather

« on: January 11, 2013, 10:41:17 AM »

I was going to watch it, but forgot. I recognized the experts from the various space shows the so-called History Channel has (which are often fascinating). I thought the show was going to be about weather in space, not possible scenarios. I'm less interested in what could happen, but I might check it out next week anyway.

372

Local Forecast / Re: Early 90s-era music rotation schedule

« on: January 08, 2013, 03:24:00 PM »

...I recall when I watched a marathon of the Travel Cities Forecast for almost a half an hour certainly could contribute.

LOL. I have a few of those on DVD. One, I believe went on for several days! Not 24/7, but almost every LF.

In case anyone actually happens to have footage, this particular date would have been evening June 25, 1993 and morning June 26, 1993, from what my records tell me.

I don't seem to have anything on the site for those dates, but I bet I have something on DVD. I'll check tonight.

373

Local Forecast / Re: Early 90s-era music rotation schedule

« on: January 07, 2013, 06:45:08 PM »

I remember this quite well. I believe it occurred from September 1990 to maybe 1994, after the April 1993 ended, but I could be wrong. Although I remember this, I've never paid attention to whether or not this schedule was always kept. Are you sure these "errors" weren't technical in nature (ie. the local forecast didn't load correctly)?

374

TWC and your Cable Company / Re: Is cable TV going downhill?

« on: January 07, 2013, 03:36:54 PM »

http://www.businessinsider.com/jeff-bewkes-on-cord-cutters-2012-11

The CEO of Time Warner brushes off those who have cancelled their cable TV service. I find it comical that anyone would go to the CEO of the largest cable company in the country to get his take on whether services like Hulu are a threat. Of course he's going to deny that they're a threat!

What I find interesting, though, is that he compares people who spend $5 at Starbucks everyday to cable TV. The problem, as I see it, is that when you go to Starbucks you generally get what you want (and nothing more). With cable and satellite TV, you get what you want, and a lot of what you don't want. Now if you don't get what you want at Starbucks, there are dozens of other coffee places you can go to. With cable and satellite, you don't really have a choice. If I could get the shows I like on demand from another provider without paying for the "extras," I'd sign up in a heartbeat!

Oh, and the reason most don't go with the "cheap" cable package is because they don't have any channels worth watching. I don't know about you, but the channels I want are always in one of the top two "tiers." The cheap plan for Cox Cable, for example, is almost exclusively public access, local, and shopping channels. Sure, it also includes WGN and TBS, but who still watches those channels?

375

General Discussion / Re: Introduce Yourself! (For New Members)

« on: January 07, 2013, 03:24:45 PM »

Hey Travis!! Welcome back!! As Zach already explained, activity on my forum went way down a few years ago, so I decided to bring everyone that was left over here, where there was more discussion. I don't recall ever merging threads, though. I tried to bring back the old forum, so some could do research, but the backup I had was bad. Drop me a line sometime, I'd love to hear about what you've been up to!