Talk:Radio Data System
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"Traffic Information Memo"
- implemented by Blaupunkt in 1993, worth writing up about.
When the car radio is off - ignition standby or turned off using "on-off" button, it can capture traffic announcements to flash memory. This happens for 6 hours and the logic captures the latest 4 announcements. It can be set to start capturing after a user-set number of hours so the user can capture announcements that occur in the morning peak.
Earliest form of flash-memory audio recording.
Scrolling RDS
Added a line of information about the use of scrolling RDS. In many places it's use is discouraged because it can distract drivers. This is true in the UK, at any rate, where it's use is not completely outlawed, but is definitely discouraged. Some stations flout this recommendation.
- A number of pirate radio stations along the Northern Ireland border use "scrolling RDS" for displaying advertisments, phone numbers and identifying the song currently playing in the PS (rather than the correct RT field). However as well as the potential road safety/driver distraction issues the system doesnt even work particularly well. The Error correction system used for PS text was only designed for use with static text and unless reception conditions are ideal (rarely the cse in a moving reciever) the data gets corrupted to varying degrees resulting in jumbled text. 80.229.222.48 09:50, 29 April 2007 (UTC)
RT and PS
In my place (Lithuania) all stations use PS for displaying data such as clock or "Now Playing" text.
- Why dont they use RT (radiotext) ? Thats what RT is for 80.229.222.48 09:50, 29 April 2007 (UTC)
Incompatability between PTY tables used in RDS and RBDS
Why did the the EBU not make the North American version of RDS more compatable with the European version by (wherever possible) matching equivalent programme types in the PTY table (see below) given the high probability of radios manufactured in Asia for the US and Europe being imported into the "wrong" market ? Surely given the EBU's role in cordinating standardisation this was an act of enormous stupidity ? 80.229.222.48 10:57, 29 April 2007 (UTC)
PTY code RDS Program type (EU) RBDS Program type (USA) 0 No program type or undefined No program type or undefined (OK) 1 News News (OK) 2 Current affairs Information (why not 3 ?) 3 Information Sports (why not 4 ?) 4 Sport Talk 5 Education Rock (why not 11 ?) 6 Drama Classic Rock 7 Culture Adult Hits 8 Science Soft Rock 9 Varied Top 40 (why not 10 ?) 10 Pop Music Country (why not 25 ?) 11 Rock Music Oldies (why not 27 ?) 12 M.O.R. Music Soft 13 Light classical Nostalgia 14 Serious classical Jazz (why not 24 ?) 15 Other Music Classical (why not 13 or 14 ?) 16 Weather Rhythm and Blues 17 Finance Soft Rhythm and Blues 18 Children’s programmes Language 19 Social Affairs Religious Music 20 Religion Religious Talk 21 Phone In Personality 22 Travel Public 23 Leisure College 24 Jazz Music Unassigned (why) 25 Country Music Unassigned (why) 26 National Music Unassigned (why) 27 Oldies Music Unassigned (why) 28 Folk Music Unassigned (why) 29 Documentary Weather 30 Alarm Test Emergency Test (OK) 31 Alarm Emergency (OK)
RDS abuse
Among the less ethical pirate radio operators in some cities it is a common practive to use the "TA" flag (set permanently on) or PTY (set to "Alarm/Emergency") to "lock" peoples radios to their station. or to use an identical PI code (without the AF data) to another station in order to "steal" that stations listeners. 80.229.222.48 09:50, 29 April 2007 (UTC)