The JaYmes Escape

When I first started working on DAB Digital Radio in London, no-one had heard of it. It was a geeky world of techno-babble and acronyms and bore very little relation to most people’s lives. So I didn’t really try to explain it. I just worked on computer-related technology for a radio company.

Times have changed though, and the chances are that if you’re in the UK, you might well have used a DAB radio and experienced some of my work. The most obvious thing is the dynamic text that scrolls across the screen when you’re tuned to a station. Around two thirds of DAB radio stations in the UK use technology built by myself and my former colleagues at Unique Interactive to manage what appears in that text and get it reliably on the air.

For the last 18 months or so that same technology has been used on trial DAB services down here in Sydney. It’s actually quite flattering to pick up a radio set on the other side of the world and see your work in action on the screen. However, unlike the UK, Digital Radio here is virtually unheard of, and at least 5 years behind. Receivers are not on generally on sale yet, primarily because (beyond the trial) DAB services haven’t been licensed. What I’m working on here then is demonstrating some of the capabilities of the technology for the benefit of the broadcasters.

Every few days I extract cash from the ubiquitous hole in the wall. I frequently boast about my Nationwide account – no fees for cash withdrawals anywhere in the world, and a quality exchange rate to boot. Trouble is, one day you end up using a faulty machine, your card gets stuck in the mechanism, and you never see it again.

Thankfully I’d considered this possibility, so I have a number of cards from different banks. My only pain will be paying some fees on cash withdrawals until my replacement card arrives.

I’m not going to rant on about the news, but there are a number of important articles linked to the top right of the page under the ‘current affairs’ heading. Right now, these are even more recommended than usual. Above all, this article by Matthew Parris in The Times seems to really hit the spot for me.

I am very pleased to announce that, beginning on Monday, I will be working on DAB Digital Radio trials at Commercial Radio Australia, here in Sydney.

One of the most disturbing things I’ve seen in recent days is the political reaction to the London bombings from outside the UK, and particularly from west of the Atlantic. For some seem to be reacting with the sort of secret smug glee you might feel when your disliked neighbour’s house gets burgled instead of yours. On America’s Fox News an anchorman declared that it ‘works to our advantage, in the Western world’s advantage‘, the implication being something along the lines of ‘maybe those inconsiderate Brits will understand now’.

Meanwhile our old and beloved friend George W Bush is Read the rest of this entry »

No need to say that I feel very uncomfortable about yesterday’s events in London. Edgware Road station is particularly close to home for me, having worked in that vicinity for over six years. My thoughts are most definitely with my former colleagues at UBC who are undoubtedly feeling very close to this.

Still, very important to keep a sense of proportion. It is of course a tragedy for those directly involved but it could have been a whole lot worse, and London has experienced many disasters in recent years. The death toll doesn’t seem that far removed from the Paddington rail crash, for example, and terrorism is nothing new to Londoners either.

If I was still there today I would be determined to take a deep breath and carry on living my life as before. There is no reason to let a wimpy little bomb attack change things, and anything it does change is a success for the perpetrators. Stay away from the media frenzy and keep it real. Life must (and will) go on.