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Time for rejuvenation
(1.9.2006.)
 On the occasion of the 80th Anniversary celebration of the Croatian Radio Television (HRT), a new technological infrastructure was implemented in conjunction with the CS Computer Systems and we decided to closely investigate what it’s all about
Inline with expectations, countless bottles of champagne were opened on the occasion of the anniversary of both Croatian Radio and Croatian Television. However, the HRT wished to make the event even more memorable by launching a new production infrastructure that had been a matter of discussion for a long time. The implementation of the new technology was carried out by CS Computer Systems, a company from Zagreb, whose representatives we had the opportunity to interview about this extensive project worth nearly ten million HRK.
The renewal of technology saw its beginnings back in 2000 with the digitalization of radio production and was continued in the following year when it was incorporated for the first time into iNews, an advanced News editing and presentation system, developed by Avid, and which is now completely integrated with the new audio and video technology for news production. The major advantage of this system lies in its ability of transforming a very complex and delicate process into simple segments intended for various types of employees in the production chain, while simultaneously automating as much work as possible.
As in any newsroom, news production begins with a lot of digitalized information coming from other newsrooms and agencies, (e.g. Reuters, HINA and others) which is later displayed on the editor’s computer and categorized according to determined criteria. Very important news, for instance, is immediately put on the top of the priority list. Afterwards, the information is checked and edited by the Editor and directly sent to the studio screen or gathered in the form of a "script" i.e. prepared in reading order. The same process can be applied to the sound which is immediately stored on the main server and put at the editors` disposal for editing and montage. They are then sent to sound engineers who activate them with a press of a button during the show when the time comes.
The system supports control of the access rights of each user depending on this role. Thus, the editors have complete access to materials, while the engineers only to appropriate supplements, etc.
As far as video recordings are concerned, HRT is currently equipped with a series of Avid AirSpeed appliances. Each of these receive video signals in the desired format which are then coded in real time into digital signals and are then sent to a server from which they can be further manipulated.
It is interesting that every signal is encoded in two formats: a 50 Mbit/s one, used for broadcasting and a 1 Mbit/s supporting MPEC format. The recordings, stored in the first format are extremely large and impractical for computer editing thus all effects and montage are done in “smaller” version. Only after completing the whole story the high quality final version is prepared. The software side of the story has also been taken care of by Avid with its programs especially designed for this purpose and it should be mentioned that the 50 Mbit/s format is the best format for video recording currently used in Croatia. (for example, the standard currently used by Nova TV is 25 Mbit/s). The entire system is HD-ready, that is, completely compatible with HDTV format, ready to massively penetrate the systems in the near future. Aside from direct transmission, the system offers the possibility of post production, as well.
This enormous quantity of material is stored on the main server that comprises 6 slot lines with 16 hard discs each, creating a total capacity of 15 terabytes. They are distributed in striping RAID sequence in order to be recognized as a single disc by their host-systems and they support multiple access to the files too, which is extremely important in case of such organization. The server is based on 2 gigabyte fiber channel connections which are connected to the
In order to show both sides of the story, we asked one of the numerous new system end-users for an opinion.
How long did it take you to get used to iNews in comparison with earlier solutions?
Well, in my case, very little. I do not consider myself a computer specialist, far from it, but I have been using computers for years now. No special prior knowledge but the ability of using Windows and Word was required to successfully operate the iNews system. On the other hand though, some of the elderly colleagues had problems in dealing with new technologies, even if there were some very positive exceptions among them, as well.
Does the system cover all production segments or are there also parts that need to be worked on? The system nearly covers the entire production. The automontage is completely digitalized while automated and digitalized broadcasting is being worked on speedily. Programs on Radio Sljeme and Glas Hrvatske are already digitally broadcast. In my opinion, Netia broadcasting system needs to be enhanced but they are already working on that.
Have theses new solutions partly caused personnel redundancy, in your opinion?
Absolutely. There is already a reduced need for certain professions, like typists. On the other hand, the new system requires computer educated cameramen. Digital editing offers numerous production possibilities and even though it requires more time the final product is better and consequently it is step ahead remaining Ethernet network with the aid of corresponding converters. The discs are redundant and the user can rearrange them in their order of importance for each group of data, which determines whether they will receive their back-up copy on special discs.
However, the end-users, i.e. the televisions viewers shouldn’t worry about the compatibility of their TV with the newly adopted HRT standards. In spite of widespread digital technology, analogue broadcasting will continue and users will not be able to feel the difference between the two systems, except for the better production quality. The project being realized by HRT is first and foremost an investment into the future in which early indicators of completely digitally edited and broadcast television. You a probably already aware that the DVB-T signal is currently being transmitted on experimental basis in Croatia and that it is becoming more and more popular both in Croatia and all round the world, while the pictures of devices for DVB-T signal broadcasting can be seen on the pages of the magazine Bug.
Interview with Robert Sipek, Technical Director
How many work stations and servers were encompassed by the project? Who was you manufacturer of choice?
Forty servers and fifteen work stations. Other than the already mentioned Avid, we opted for Cisco network equipment, Hewlett- Packard hardware, Microsoft operating system, etc. We have often had opportunities to work with these all these companies and we have had excellent experience.
Did the implementation of the new system require any personnel training?
Yes, it did. And this is another segment of the project I am satisfied with. Tens of HRT employees have been trained, for the most part in Avid training centers abroad.
In your opinion, what are the main benefits gained by adopting new solutions?
Flexibility and organization - there will no longer be cases of cameraman bringing freshly filmed material which is immediately and chaotically grabbed by the editors any more. Changing from tapes to digital multi-user interface simplifies the work of all production employees and besides, the new technology is waiting ready for future and already widespread standards such as DVB-T, HDTV and others, to come.
Written by Oton Ribič, published in Mreža, July 2006.
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