[BC] Another history question

[Tom Bosscher]

Donna Halper wrote:

> .... I can tell you that, sadly, few authors do original research-- 
> it's easier to cite previous sources, even if those sources were wrong 
> ......

    Donna, this is so very true, and very few people seem to get upset 
by it.

> ... the Times says he was "among the first to give radio wings to 
> speech."  Notice-- AMONG THE FIRST. ...


    I now assume that the Wright brothers were among the first, that 
Henry Ford was among the first, etc. There is plenty of evidence to 
prove that many people were thinking the same thing at the same time, in 
different parts of the world.

    In my little corner... Many decades ago, I wrote up a business 
proposal (my idea) for the commercial radio station were I worked for to 
supply the local cable system with a full time weather channel. I had a 
live radar link, a character generator fed by the NOAA weather wire, 
weather gages electronically wired to the character generator, and a 
bank of U-matic machines for the commercials. We met with the local 
cable people, and they were very enthused. For several reasons, the 
planned rollout date was pushed back several times in increments of 
three or four months. Then, after a year or so, in one of those special 
moments, I thought, why not deliver this to all cable companies across 
the US? We even came up with a name, something like "Weather Link". We 
actually started to get costs on uplinking, and then when we went to 
register Weather Link, we then found out about The Weather Channel. It 
was not on the air yet. At this time, I had been sitting on my idea 
about five years. But they had money, knew people, and they got it on 
the air, and I didn't. Somebody else is worth money, and I'm not! But 
that is how it goes. Bummer eh?

      We what you have researched, and Barry and Scott, it would be 
interesting to tie it all together on one of Barry's pages for claims 
for the first broadcast. Which then begs the question? What constitutes 
a broadcast? Many amateur radio operators talked to their neighborhood. 
(LPAM?) Is it the first station to have a license? First to charge air 
time? First to have news? First to accept payola (!)?

      Many great minds think in parallel.
   
    tom bosscher