How do you get this stuff on twitter?

This is a common question.  If you follow one of my notification twitter accounts @WCAlerts or @NorCoAlerts, the first thing you realize is that everything is completely automated, unlike some of the other ones where some guy is cutting and pasting information in his spare time.  I will manually post if there is an ongoing incident and I happen to be at the computer, but 99% of my info is done without any user intervention.

So how do I do it.  The very short answer is this:
/usr/bin/perl /usr/local/bin/ttytter.pl -status=$msg -ssl

A less short answer is I use a program called TTYtter (http://www.floodgap.com/software/ttytter/).  Once you set it up, you can send a twitter post through the command line, with the $msg variable above being the actual post.  This is  done in a linux bash shell, so you either need to be running linux/Unix, or cygwin (https://www.cygwin.com/) under windows.  This should also work in MacOS 10, although I have never tried it.

Setting up TTYtter is actually pretty easy, however getting your data to a state where you can easily send it is not. 

My Backround

I went from working as a paid EMT back in the early 90's  the IT industry.  The last 15+ years I have dealt mainly with Unix/Linux systems.  Everything is done via a bash script.  These scripts are  very specific to my systems and the county websites, so it isn't something I can just hand someone and say go for it.They are adaptable and if another county comes online with a CAD, should be easily made to work with it.  I was able to get Northampton County up and running very quickly.  

Part 1 - CAD Posts

Sending out the CAD entries from Warren & Northampton Counties work pretty much the same way.  The scripts are a bit different due to differences in their formats, however they both basically work the same way.

Every couple of minutes I pull down all the CAD entries into a file (using lynx).  Then I do a series of of ugly unix commands (awk, sed, cut), and remove all the spaces and unwanted content.  The end result is everything in the CAD listed in a file which looks like this:

MVA W/INJURIES , RTE 57, MANSFIELD TWP

FALL 94 YOF, 73 W JOHNSTON ST, WASHINGTON BORO

CHEST PAIN 49 YOM, 130 POLKVILLE RD, KNOWLTON TWP

ELECTRICAL FIRE , 1041 RIDGE ST #33A, PHILLIPSBURG TO

The next step is I take each line of the file, compare it to an archive of all the previous posted entries.  If the entry does not exist, I post to twitter and add it to the archive.  If it is in the archive file, it moves on to the next line.  I keep about 75 of the newest entries to compare to.

That is really the high level explanation of how it works.  The next Blog post will cover the fire page mp3's (Part 2), and for those really bored, the history on how this whole thing developed (Part 3).

uniden firmware updates are out (notice no caps or explanation marks)

This was a big let down.  Fixed very little and added nothing.  Here are the links to the pages if you are interested.

http://info.uniden.com/UnidenMan4/BCD436HPFirmwareUpdate

http://info.uniden.com/UnidenMan4/BCD536HPFirmwareUpdate

In other news:
.
MONOC is continuing testing on NJICS

Middle Twp. appears to be gearing up to move to NJICS.  Radios are currently being programmed.

New Brunswick is reported to move to either Middlesex County or the State 700 system.  The bad news is they are probably going to be encrypted.

Rumor has it.....

MONOC is going to be moving to the NJICS 700 system.  This is welcome news to scanner listener's, especially if you have ever subjected yourself to listen to the North Jersey UHF repeater for any length of time.

Since MONOC dispatches the Atlantic Health Units, we may very well be hearing MONOC now all over North Jersey, since Atlantic's MICU/EMS coverage is pretty wide spread.

Now if only MICCOM would jump on, then we would have the 3 big players on 700.

BCDx36HP Updates are coming

Uniden Update
Uniden's Upman stated that some firmware updates are coming.  That was about 2 weeks ago, so they should be here any time.  Of course no one knows exactly what has been fixed.  I can only hope at this point the Analyze features have been updated so they actually are usable.

While we are on that subject, there are other rumblings that they finally have a permanent fix for the RTC Clock issue.  Of course that is going to mean returning the units to Uniden to be repaired.  No word on the screen dimming, or if there is even a permanent fix for that issue.

All is quiet on the Whistler Front
Everyone who bought the new 1095 scanners must be happy with them, as there has been very little posted about it.

Speaking of Whistler scanners (and their clones), if anyone has the ability to fix a Pro668 (My keyboard connector came off the circuit board), please contact me directly.

NJ Scanning News
There was an apparent issue with the NJICS system that went on for many months.  If you were experiencing dead air, that issue may now be resolved.  I can report that everything off the Montana Mountain tower is coming in great once again.

NJDOT must be ramping up for winter, over 100 new radio ID's have appeared over the last week.  NJSP has been busy adding radios as well. Speaking of NJSP, for some reason they seemed to have moved the Met Life Stadium ops over to StateCom-2.  Maybe to provide better inter-ops with other agencies.

Now that football season is almost here, Rutgers will be busy with their home games.  They generally will be on one of the StateCom talkgroups and will NOT be encrypted so they can coordinate with Middlesex County and NJ Transit Police.

Look for another update once we hear from Uniden.

Update:  After posting this, I came across this on Radio Reference from Uniden's Upman.  Apparently we will have a back light fix for the x36HP radios...eventually:

The above is a little premature. While we are setting up a process for those of you who are experiencing this issue, the fix will require some parts that have a long lead time. We expect to be able to start the program in a couple of months. In the mean time, we appreciate your patience while we get everything in place. At this time, if you are experiencing either the display backlight fading or real-time clock battery issue, please do not send your scanner in for repair.

WS-1090 IF Out (Discriminator Audio)

This is from the Radio Reference forum:

When the scanner was first designed, IF Out was a desired feature, and it was going to be ported over from the PSR-800. However, because the audio paths are different in the PSR-900 and GRE couldn't get the speaker IF Out to work, they removed the feature.
Whistler resurrected the PSR-900 design, and after months of hardware and software changes, created the WS1095. Renewed interest in the IF Out function from RR caused Whistler to take another look and determined that it could be made to work through the headphone jack but not the EXT speaker.
Unfortunately, the first production run was already complete and shipped from the factory.
The first production run has date code (sticker on the back of the unit) 04A15. This run does not have IF Out Subsequent production runs (date code 05A15 or later) does have IF Out circuitry and only required a CPU update to make functional.
If you have a unit with date code 04A15 and want the IF Out feature, the recommendation is to contact customer service at 1-866-923-8719 and you will be directed to a repair center that can update your unit.

It is nice to see that Whistler has jumped right in and offered to update the first run units.  Had they added GPS to these units, I would have probably had my 536HP up for sale already.

Speaking of Uniden, still no word from Uniden on the x36 issues.

WS-1095 Out in the Wild

There have been some reports, and pictures as well of the Whistler WS-1095 mobile finally ending up in the hands of the users.  Reports have been limited so far, but over all people seem happy with it.  The main feature here is the remote head.   In today's vehicles, it is very difficult to mount anything.  The head is thin enough to be able to be mounted just about anywhere.  This is also a superior design, compared to Uniden's RH-96 head sold for the old T/XT scanners.

Not that this is a surprise, but despite the awesome remote head, unfortunately scanner isn't any different from the WS-1080 scanner (and RS Pro668), and has the same limitations.    Even still, it makes the base/mobile playing field that much more crowded.  Uniden's lack of a decent remote head gives this scanner an advantage, despite the lack of GPS and quick keys to easily change scan lists.   Uniden's iPhone app, although works, doesn't even let you change the volume on the radio itself.   Comparing this against the Home Patrol, the HP has more install options due to its unique form factor, however the need to use an amplified speaker and the awkward setup of cables coming out both sides complicates that as well.

The big issue I find with the scanner (and it's hand held cousins) are that you cannot put a trunk site in a favorite list.  If I were to set this scanner of for all of NJ, I would have to duplicate the NJICS system at least 6 times, and the NJSP system 3 times (not including any of the IR sites).  I have tried to use the multi-site settings, however I found that more often than not, it tends to sit there for up to 5 minutes at a time polling all the sites and never worked well.  This feature goes back to the PSR-500 radios and as far as I can tell, has never really worked right.  If they can make that work, the need for quick keys becomes less important (and GPS to an extent).   Aside from that, having to turn scan lists on and off manually through the menu isn't really something I would want to do, however with more flexible mounting options, that will negate that to a degree.

If you want to talk desktop scanner only, it really comes down to preference if you like Whistler over Uniden.  Reports are still pending, however you may run into the same intermod issues when using an external antenna, similar to the hand held models.

Overall, for a mobile install, it is worth considering, especially if you do not need/want the GPS feature.  The remote head puts it ahead of Uniden as far as mounting wise.

Pros:
Remote Head
Bright Clear Display

Cons:
No GPS
No Quick keys
Quirky software

On a semi-related note, there are rumors circulating that Uniden is preparing a hardware update to the x36 line, to address the battery and possibly the display issues.   Hopefully this will put an end to some of the issues with these radios.

Hot 97 Summer Jam Incident at Met Life Stadium

For those of you who missed it, the Hot 97 Summer Jam went into complete chaos when people started jumping the fence.  NJSP was operating on Statecom 2 at the time.

I posted the audio for download.  I cut out the dead air, except for when the emergency button was it, which keeps the carrier open.  Each file is approx. 15 minutes long.  Most of the action takes place on parts 3 thru 6, but it is worth listening to the entire thing to see how things escalated.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/74iv1yojrnkerr6/AABV-tbniD6Z_jLH-tiv97BYa?dl=0