[opendtv] Re: Attracting NextGen TV Engineers
- From: "Mike Tsinberg" <mike@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2010 15:38:23 +0000
It is true that hardware evolution basically followed this path: transistors,
IC's, huge IC's, Field Programmable Logic Arrays (FPGA). The reapirability of
hardware is basically improved if manufacturer makes sure that FPGA and control
code can be reloaded in the field. In that case remakcbale changes can be done
without turning on soldering iron or opening the box.
Mike Tsinberg
http://www.keydigital.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Cliff Benham [mailto:flyback1@xxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Friday, April 2, 2010 06:02 PM
To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [opendtv] Re: Attracting NextGen TV Engineers
The problem with "television" today is that everything is a computer running
windoz and all the engineers I talk to say they mostly push buttons and reboot
things to get them working again. One chief engineer I have known since the
'70s says nothing built after 2000 can be repaired in the field. The mfgrs.
want the stations to buy maintenance contracts which is most always a board
exchange program. So this may explain why there are very few "enginerrs" out
there who can actually troubleshoot and repair broadcast equipment down to the
component level. Cliff Manfredi, Albert E wrote: > It would help if people
could see that what goes for wireless IT also goes for OTA broadcast, minus the
extra restrictions on IT caused by the need for the very scalable return
channel. "People" being not just aspiring engineers, but also the various
business types associated with broadcasting, not to mention the pundits who
have a way of perpetuating misperceptions. > > Bert > >
----------------------------------- > http://www.tvtechnology.com/article/97468
> > Attracting NextGen TV Engineers > by James Careless, 03.30.2010 > > OTTAWA
> > Recession notwithstanding, there are jobs available for skilled TV
engineers. The problem is finding people qualified to take these jobs;
particularly from the ranks of the young. > > "I myself have found it difficult
to fill the last two positions I have had open," said Vinny Lopez; chief
engineer of WSYT-68 (Fox) and WNYS-43 (MyTV) in Syracuse, N.Y.; and president
of the Society of Broadcast Engineers. "The pool of qualified candidates in our
area is not what it used to be... One issue is the 'graying' of the broadcast
engineer. Our profession seems to not have the younger people joining it in the
numbers that they had in the past." > > NEW BLOOD > > Lopez is not the only
person to worry about this trend. The same concern is shared by Bill Hayes,
director of engineering for Iowa Public TV, president of the IEEE Broadcast
Technology Society and frequent contributor to TV Technology. > >
Unfortunately, there are many reasons why broadcast television has ceased to be
viewed as a glamorous profession. One central problem is broadcast television's
image. Compared to IT, which encompasses wireless telephony, the Web, and
computer hardware/software, television seems old-fashioned and bland. > > "The
IT industries are viewed as cutting-edge by graduating engineers," said Hayes.
"In contrast, they see television as a dinosaur on its way out. Part of the
problem is their lack of knowledge: Most of these graduates think of television
as something that comes from a cable or satellite TV spigot. They have no
knowledge of terrestrial broadcasting and all the engineering challenges
associated with it. As a result, they don't find it to be exciting." > > Lopez
agrees that image is a factor in the "move of engineers from broadcast to
computer and IT fields." But a lack of perceived challenge and glamour is just
part of the problem. The fact is that new engineers believe that they can make
a better living working in IT, and have a better home life to boot. > > "Many
IT jobs are 8-5 positions with better pay scales, no "on call" status, and the
possibility of working from home," he said. "Yet another thing that is
occurring is consolidation of broadcast operations into centralized facilities,
or existing groups purchasing additional properties and eliminating the
duplication of effort and positions. This centralization may have indeed driven
some good engineers from broadcasting in search of more stability in their
careers." > > That's not all. "Many of the young engineers who might be
persuaded to enter broadcasting don't have the RF skills," said Ralph Hogan,
SBE vice president and vice president and associate GM of Phoenix DTV stations
MCTV and NPR radio stations Sun Sounds, KBAQ, and KJZZ. "We used to get a lot
of people with these skills when they retired from the military, where RF was a
priority. But now with the military moving more to an IT emphasis, these
veterans are going to IT-related companies." > > WHAT CAN BE DONE > > Ralph
Hogan has come up with a simple, effective way to make his broadcast positions
more attractive to young engineers. "We are recruiting the job descriptions to
focus more on IT, which is where the industry is going anyway," he said. > > A
second idea is to jazz up broadcast engineering's image. "We need to
communicate that broadcast TV is wireless video and data on a grand scale,"
said Hayes. "Wireless data can't do what we can do. For instance, there were so
many wireless demos occurring in Las Vegas at CES 2010, it caused traffic
problems on the local cellular network. That just doesn't happen with broadcast
TV: We can handle scalability!" > > A third solution is being developed by the
IEEE Broadcast Technology Society; namely a new course called "Bridging the
Broadcast/IT Gap." Currently under development with support from CNN, ESPN,
Fox, NBC and Turner Broadcasting, this course is designed to help broadcast TV
engineers become far more comfortable with IT-based technology; notably
compression, video and data networks; and seamless file-based editing, storage
and play-out. But this same course could be used "to attract IT engineers into
broadcasting," said Hogan. "It could help bridge the gap between the two
professions." > > Finally, it couldn't hurt to boost the pay and improve the
hours of broadcast TV engineers. Unfortunately, the current economy makes this
unfeasible for most broadcasters. In the interim, there is still room for
broadcasters to pitch their industry at IT students currently in college.
Another low-cost option would be for the SBE and IEEE to produce a PSA to run
on TV stations playing up the glamour and excitement of broadcast engineering.
> > Whatever the over-the-air broadcasting industry does, it needs to start
doing it now. As Lopez has pointed out, the current crop of engineers is
getting older. When they retire, someone will have to take their place;
ironically at a time when digital technology, centralcasting and HDTV are
making broadcast television more cutting-edge than ever before. > > >
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