Radio Websites column links Feb to April 2007

Links for all websites mentioned in Chrissy Brand’s Radio Websites column (February 2007 to April 2007) in Radio User, Britain’s best radio listeners' magazine: http://www.radiouser.co.uk/


Feb 2007
iRadio Intel: http://www.radiointel.com/ this site gives reviews of the latest as well as older models on the market

Phil’s shortwave radio buying guide (2006 edition) is at: http://www.radiointel.com/phil/phils_06_buyguide.pdfHis equally useful Radio tuning Tricks document can be read at: http://www.radiointel.com/phil/phils_radio_tuning_tricks.pdf

Dave’s Receiver page, which is a great read in its own right: http://www.ticon.net/~n9ewo/

Intel’s Radio in the News section: For instance ‘Has Satellite Radio Peaked?’, a debate on the Sirius and XM systems in the States: http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/samiljan/3291
And ‘Digital radio takes an ambitious step into Africa’: http://allafrica.com/stories/200612040676.html

John Cull’s Waveguide brings you the latest television and radio news and states is in its 22nd year online, which is quite an achievement, considering when the internet actually took off. It may well have had an earlier life as an email based group.
http://www.waveguide.co.uk/

thejazz:
http://www.classicfm.co.uk/goout.asp?u=http://www.myspace.com/talkaboutjazz

There is also information on the latest DAB station at Classic FM: http://www.classicfm.co.uk/ and: www.digitalradionow.com/

Sometime co-writer of this column, Mark Savage, has an entertaining look at aspects of radio at his blog: http://www.radiofar-far.blogspot.com/

The Young Stars Radio Club (YSRC): http://www.geocities.com/ysrc_india/

CVC International Australia: http://www.cvc.tv/go/fuseaction/comps.main/lang/english

Radio Taiwan: http://english.rti.org.tw/

Radio Polonia: http://www.polskieradio.pl/polonia/gb/

Even BBC Radio 2 gets a mention: http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/competitions/

Globecast Radio is an online station that also broadcast sporting RSLs (Restricted Service Licence) such as the International Horse Show from London’s Olympia and Racing from Le Mans: http://www.0157.org/live.php

Pandora’s Box: http://www.pandora.com/ It is part of the Music Genome Project set up seven years ago when a ‘group of musicians and music-loving technologists came together with the idea of creating the most comprehensive analysis of music ever’.
You type in the names of bands or styles of music you like and it recommends similar acts and sets up an Internet radio station just for you to hear. It is absolute brilliance and making the most of the technologies that combine radio, music and the web. Try it for yourself.

March 2007

Kim Elliott, Voice of America’s Communications World http://www.kimandrewelliott.com/

Kim appeared in early 2007 on the Voice of America’s ‘Talk to America’ programme, which is in the archives as an mp3 file at: www.voanews.com/english/NewsAnalysis/TTA-New-Past-Showsx.cfm
or go to www.voanews.com and do a search on ‘Kim Elliott’.

A radio video you shouldn’t miss is the country and western song ‘Come and Join us on the Airwaves’. This extols the virtues of being a ham radio operator, but with the smartly dressed singers balancing in the air atop a transmitter tower! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTUnYHwU_S8&search=PLC%20shortwave%20radio%20nois\e%20ham%20hamradio

A quicker route is to type in ‘ham radio song’ at www.youtube.com

When Pirates ruled the Waves, (sixth edition) by Paul Harris has just been published. A preview is at http://www.kennedyandboyd.co.uk/biblio/1904999379.htm

There is an interesting summary of the changes of the past 80 years at the BBC Press Office website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/speeches/stories/mosey_tvsport.shtml

Radio Netherlands’ excellent Media Network blog also covers the Beeb’s early sports commentaries at: http://blogs.rnw.nl/medianetwork/?p=6931

A special broadcast by BBC Radio 5 Live and Five Live Sports Extra took place on 21st January: www.bbc.co.uk/fivelive/sportsextra/

This was to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the first football commentary, which used a grid system for listeners to work out where the ball was: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/1760579.stm

The first FA Cup Final to be commentated on radio was in 1932, with George Allison providing the voice. There is more on this in a book out this month that I am the co-author of. Wembley-Stadium of Legends, published by Dewi Lewis Media: www.dewilewismedia.com

Another exciting part of the BBC is BBC Engineering, with its own website at: www.bbceng.info
There is also the story of the BBC Droitwich transmitter:
www.bbceng.info/Operations/transmitter_ops/Reminiscences/Reminiscences.htm

Why not try listening to sports radio stations around the world, in other English speaking countries? To start with, Reciva.com has a great list.

Go to www.reciva.com and choose ‘sports’ in the ‘genre’ drop down menu.
Perth 6PR at: www.mytalk.com.au

Canada’s ice hockey scene with Fan 960 at: www.fan960.com

Radio Sport on 1332 AM in Auckland, or live at www.radiosport.co.nz/

U.S.A has dozens of stations specialising in sport. A couple of good websites that give overviews are: http://www.sportsusaradio.com/ and

http://www.officialusa.com/stateguides/live/radio/sports.html.

Amongst the many things to do at the latter you can tune-in to follow the fortunes of Baltimore’s Ravens and Orioles at: http://wbal.com/
have a ball with 1530 KTIK the Ticket: www.ktik.com/ and keep up with the Atlanta Braves: www.wgst.com/

April 2007
Some recent podcasts I have enjoyed started from Podcast Alley: http://www.podcastalley.com/
Hypernonsense ‘it’s a radio show we do from our house’ is enjoyably daft: http://hypernonsense.com/

You can create your own podcast, free of charge at: www.mypodcast.com/ If you want more information then a good site is Podcast Nation at: http://podcastnation.co.uk/podblog/


Regular BBC local programmes that I tune into online include ‘The African Caribbean Experience’ on BBC Radio Derby: http://www.bbc.co.uk/derby/

BBC Radio Guernsey’s ‘Jim Trott’s Magic Bus’ at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/guernsey/local_radio/

and BBC Radio Foyle’s Late Night Show with Eamon Friel, at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/radiofoyle/index.shtml?link

Many radio stations around the world have a similar listen on demand facility. Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion, now in its 32nd year and still full of tall tales, homespun philosophy and folksy output, makes good use of this. There is a huge archive stretching back years at: http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/

Other listen on demand stations that I have whiled away an enjoyable evening with recently include

Brazil’s Rádio Gazeta 99.9 FM, a selection of radio stations from Fiji, including Legend FM, and Radio Wave from Windhoek in Namibia: http://www.gazetadigital.com.br/
http://www.fijivillage.com/
http://www.radiowave.com.na/

Polderbits Sound- recording off t’Internet: http://www.polderbits.com/

Freecorder: http://www.applian.com/freecorder/

Australian company NCH: www.nch.com.au/software/

Needless to say, do ensure you are not infringing copyright when you do this!

Riviera Radio in Monaco http://www.rivieraradio.mc/news.asp and online at http://www.rivieraradio.mc/listen.asp

The Identifications and Interval Signals CD set put together by Radio Canada InternationaI’s Ian McFarland and Colin Newell for a food bank charity in British Columbia last year can also now be paid for by Paypal, Ian tells me. Details at http://www.dxer.ca/, which since 1994 has been Canada's original resource for the World Band Radio Enthusiast: www.dxer.ca


In March a second two CD set was launched at the Winter SWL Fest in Kulpsville, PA, in the USA. Prices are the same as for the Idents CD set, which is 13 Euros. Ideas for a third CD set, again about shortwave, are also in the pipeline. This was also mentioned at the excellent Anorak Nation website: www.anoraknation.com

Ian McFarland now has a blog packed with radio related information at: http://www.dxer.ca/content/view/44/86/ And there are DX podcasts which started in February. Follow the links from the Dxer ca homepage:

http://www.dxer.ca/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/ or

http://www.dxer.ca/images/stories/podcasts/dx-podcast_for_Feb17-07_mixdown.mp3