[BC] Oh No another automation comparison question

[Larry Fuss]

>  1) Configuration is difficult.  Even minor changes are not something that
>  can typically be handled locally.  Configuration is definitely not
>  user-friendly.

> It's not horrible, though. tedious, yes... but that is generally not a 
significant obstacle for an Engineer who is skilled in PC tech.

But how many small stations have such a person?

>  2) Newly recorded spots are not immediately shown in the database, which 
has
>  to be rebuilt every so often.  That's terribly inconvenient.

> I have never seen this happen with our system. I import a cut, and it's
there 
instantly on the local machine. Mere seconds later, it's mirrored to the 
other box. (We only have two AV machines.)

We only have one.  It happens all the time.  Unless we force a database
rebuild,
it can sometimes take days for a cut to show up.

>  3) If the audiovau.mbd file gets corrupt, as it often does, you have to
>  delete it and rebuild it.  Then the color schemes for the tabs have to
all
>  be re-set.  (The color schemes are stored in a different file in Version
9,
>  which solves that problem).

> I have never seen this happen. We started with the AV100 system in 1997.
We 
upgraded to the Vault2 in 2004. It runs 24/7/365.

It happens about once every 6 months.  We have Vault 2.

>  4) The AudioVault does a poor job of running satellite.  It works, but
it's
>  clunky.

>  It works great for us! We run a LOT of satellite-delivered programming,
most 
of which the AV system records during the overnight hours. It sends commands

via the serial ports to the switchers & Unity 4000 sat boxes to change 
channels/inputs. It records over the previous day's files each time. Some
files are 
unique day-to-day, being overwritten each week. It not only records all of
these 
feeds, it records backups for most of them, as well.

I used to run LIVE (not delayed) satellite programming.  It was clunky.

>  5) If you forget to load a new log, it turns into a pumpkin at midnight.
>  Other systems, like AirForce/StorQ just go back and repeat the log from
the
>  same day of the previous week.  It beats being off-air because somebody
>  failed to load a log.

> Our system never does this. The previous week's log would already be
there, 
and thus it would just come up. We've never had any such issue. Is someone 
*deleting* the logs after they air over there?

Must be a configuration setting that allows it to go back and play a log
from the
previous week.  Mine doesn't do that.  I'd look into it, but you have to be
a rocket
surgeon to handle configuration.  Maybe I'll call support and ask.  I might
get a callback
in 3 days.

LF