I know most stations use Selector, or something like it, to creat a playlist based on certain characteristics of the song. On Charlie, smooth sueges (sp?) are not really a priotity. Anyone know how they create a playlist?

I meant *create* a playlist. Shit, it's embarassing to make a typo in the subject line!

Judging by the general quality of production (???) I have heard on Charlie's, I am almost inclined to believe they must be using the Playlist Editor in Winamp/XMMS...........

.......with the audio itself encoded as Monkey's Audio nontheless! *snickers*

Selector or Music Master, just with the "segue coding rules" turned off...

Are you sure they have the "segue coding rules" turned off? Because I have yet to hear two rap songs back to back on charlie.

Techically, Selector has no set rules (or didn't the last time I used it). The PD creates any rules she/he wants (no two songs with Wind in the title backtoback) and then assigns each rule a priority.... which rules Selector should break if it can't find a song that doesn't break a rule. Usually a separation rule (do not play in the same daypart for x days... and do not play in the same hour for x days) have the highest priority... a rule that Selector is never allowed to break. Other rules (artist, tempo, theme, style, gender, era, mood, whatever, ) are assigned different priorities. You also tell selector how deep it can go into the stack before it can start breaking rules.

(Among my claims to fame is having a gold floppy - presented to me by Andy Economos/RCS for being the first person in the country on "Selector." Andy created it for the stations of the NBC FM group.)

What did they use before Selector???

Index cards!!

(Oh, geez...I just knocked the box onto the floor!!)

manitees in a tank with music balls, like family guy.

When I arrived at KGAR, they alternated the top 20 songs with the next 30 and a stack of oldies.

*bump*

"Oh #$%*(#$%, what to do now?"

[sound of little cards falling all over the place]

...and a new format was born.

"It's time to get totally out of your freaking mind RANDOM with the new and improved WHACKED 105 FM where we don't say 'em, but just play em all day long."

KGW used index cards, but by 1978 one of the engineers in Seattle had build primative computers, and programmed them to schedule music. The program was written in fortran, because neither DOS nor personal computers existed. In SF, the NBC stations used cardboard strips...1/4 inch high by 8.5 " wide. They were kept in a plastic flip book.

You placed a strip (color coded for catagory with intro length title and artist on it) into a plastic holder. You added cardboard strips for spot breaks (separate log) and talk breaks. When you had a few hours complete, you took them to the copier and made 3 copies, the DJ, the Nabet engineer, and the PD. Then each cardboard strip when to the bottom of the master list. You could do as many hours as the power currents rotated before you had to photocopy. For overnights and weekends, the list had to be given to the engineers, since only a NABET could load the automation carousel.

In 79 the unions still had so much power at the network O&Os that the music director needed an engineer to listen to new music when the record companies brought it to the station, and they grieved and tried to require an engineer be used to operate the record button on Mike Phillip's pocket dictaphone because it was a recording device being used inside a radio station.

When RCS brought us the first selector computer, I had a bonfire on the beach with the cardboard strips. The computer was the size of a washing machine, and had about 5 mb of memory.

At KRPL in Moscow, Idaho, as late as 1980, they simply picked whatever gold they wanted and then put on a "hold" shelf for period of time. Talk about unscientific rotation methods! Of course, the jocks would mostly pick their favorites and sometime even steal from the hold shelf! What a different era!

sheeeooot in 1992 I was still playin all music on carts (on FM!) and my system was no system at all. Just put out a stack for each airshift that was a mixture of currents, recurrents and golds with one per shift "experimental" song to test audience reaction.
All other carts were locked away in my office so no one could play anything that wasn't in their stack.
Then the jock on shift would just start at the top of the stack and roll through and start again if necessary.
RCS is a lot of unneccessary stuff. People make it wayyyy to complicated. "Rules", "priorities" etc. Ehhhh. Loved CHR in the 80's and 90's. Much easier to program. Not so fractured.

Thanks for saying your last paragraph dodger. I would have, but, well you know. Wanted to avoid confrontation.

Where I was you put all of the records in a giant box. Then you turned the crank on the side of the box and a jingle played. At the end of the jingle the lid popped open and a consultant in a clown suit popped up and handed you a record.

"You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension - a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into the Twilight Zone."

Picture if you will, a lonely DJ in the control room of Rosie 105, smoking a fat boy, knocks over and looses station que cards, thinking as quickly as he can in his current state, as the song ends a new station is born, "Hey there, that was XYZ from ABC and this is Joe on.....ummm.....BUZZ 105!

"CharlieGirl" Shel Bailey can now be heard on KGON from 10:00am to 2:00pm. She is filling in for the vacationing Iris Harrison. She is doing a good job of it but boy what a tough spot to fill!

Dodger is hereby awarded A BRONZED index card.

If you would like an optional colored sticker affixed to it please Notify this office via registered mail...........

I think Shel Baily sounds GREAT!!! WHy doesn't she have her own show on Charlie??? That station needs to add more jocks!

Aside from a little dead air about 1:43 this afternoon things have been going and sounding good! IRIS is the Queen of Classic Rock though.....she's Great!

To answer Beano's question, technically, she does have her own show, "Charile Girl's Random Request Hour."

No she does NOT! That show is gone. Although I wish it would come back.

How do you know it's gone? Doesn't it run at random times? Maybe you have just been missing it lately.

Strange I should know that. I never listen to 97.1.

ITs called taken off the website DUDE2.
It is no longer on the Website!!!
While I will agree it was a STUPID move for them to remove it, because our OFFICE LOVED the random request hour, infact we actually had people call in and make requests!!

Apparently lot's of office's like the "Charlie" "Mike" format. Take a look at this TV commercial from a similar Boston station 93.7 Mike-FM We Play Everything:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5285820510055893684&q=93.7+tv+commercia l&total=4&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0

See, those commercials are actually FUNNY!!!

they are not really funny.