On November 2, 1936, BBC engineers at Alexander Palace transmitted what is often claimed to be the world’s first television program. However, the world’s first public television transmissions had begun in Berlin, Germany, the previous year. Adolf Hitler became absolutely furious, upon hearing BBC boasting the claim to be the first broadcaster to transmit a television program.

On March 22, 1935, the first regular television program in the world was broadcast from an aerial on the top of the Funkturm Berlin tower. Since 1962, the tower is no longer used for TV transmissions.

The first practical use of television was in Germany. Regular television broadcasts began in Germany in 1929 and in 1936 the Olympic Games in Berlin were broadcast to television stations in Berlin and Leipzig where the public could view the games live.

Nikola Tesla had actually predicted back in 1915 that mankind would produce technology that would allow him to transmit voice and images. In 1936, his prediction did become reality. Tesla was right about many things.

[Source: Television History]

On a special television cable the picture of the speaker in Berlin is transmitted to Leipzig and vice-versa. In this way the two persons are able to see one another and to converse simultaneously over a telephone wire. This is 1936 in Berlin, Germany.

On August 25, 1924, the Funkturm Berlin tower would transmit a radio program. The radio tower ‘Berliner Funkturm’ was opened to the public on September 3, 1926. Albert Einstein made the opening speech at the 1930 Wireless Exhibition (Funkausstellung) at the foot of the radio tower.

A personal reminiscence for radio amateurs: The author of this page personally also knows the tower from its highest point. For the Radio and Television Exhibition (Internationale Funkaustellung, IFA) in 1971 he was installing antennas with other amateurs (DC7AL, DC7BH, DC7CH, DJ7IC, DL7MO, DL7OG, DL7RR, DC7BJ – the author) on the uppermost mounting platform (on top of the elevator housing) for the amateur radio VHF repeater DL0UB on an outrigger. Lack of vertigo was a must and the reward was a breathtaking view of the city. DL0UB later became DB0WF. Decades later the author was up there again to help servicing the 70 cm – band repeater DB0TA. 73 de DC7BJ, Rainer [Source: Wumpus's Old Radio World]

The Funkturm Berlin built between 1924 and 1926 by Heinrich Straumer, which is nicknamed “der lange Lulatsch” (“the lanky lad”), is a point of interest in Berlin. Since 1973, the radio tower no longer serves as a regular transmission tower for broadcasting purposes, but it is still used as relay station for amateur radio, police radio, and mobile phone services.

Phone: (030) 38 19 05
Opening hours: Mon. 11am – 9pm; Tue. – Sun. 10am – 11pm
Map: Mapquest

May 27, 2010 - “Today the House Committee on Science and Technology’s Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation held a hearing to review the status of interoperability for public safety communications systems that enable first responders from multiple agencies and jurisdictions to communicate. Specifically, the hearing discussed the status of the technical standards for public safety land mobile radio (LMR) systems.”

“We’ve learned an important lesson from September 11th, Hurricane Katrina, and other disasters: interoperable communication is critical to effective emergency response. When time is of the essence and lives are at stake, a clear flow of information is essential. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon for police officers and firefighters from a single region, or even a single city, to be using incompatible communication systems. This lack of interoperability has contributed to the deaths of first responders and hindered the ability to rescue people in harm’s way,” stated Subcommittee Chairman David Wu (D-OR).

The reason that the communication system is inoperable is because that in 1989, Project 25, or APCO 25 was implemented, and  since then multiple problems have resulted from this. New digital radio became available, and federal, state, and local agencies were more than ready to adopt the new system. The transition from analog to digital has not been a smooth one.

Why adopt the new digital system? The main reason was to upgrade from outdated analog to modern digital radio standards. Initially, the rational thinking was that the more modern digital modes were supposed to perform much better than analog radio because the digital packets could tranfer more data than analog could. Analog systems use CTCSS, or tones, to break the squelch, and then talk.

But, there were many problems during the implementation of the Apco 25 system. One major problem was the cost; especially at a time in history when federal and state budgets were in the red. Another problem – overall functionality.

“The most important question for the first responders who rely on this equipment is “does it work?” In addition to being mission-critical technology, these systems represent major expenditures for government agencies across the country. Particularly at a time of uncertain and dwindling budgets, cost-effective procurement enabled by an open-architecture is essential,” added Wu.

Project 25

In theory, all P25 equipment is interoperable. In reality, interoperable communications isn’t possible without effective coordination. While new digital technology has the potential for better transmission capability, many P25 features present interoperability challenges. And primarily, too much bureaucracy will not allow for desperately needed standardization of new technologies available.

Basically what this means is this –  after 9/11,  after Katrina, and forwarding on to the next responder red alert, America’s first responders still do not have a standard, reliable, compatible communications system available for deployment. Standards needed to ensure interoperability in public safety communications equipment remain unattainable, especially when Congress is in charge of the project : )

Analog versus Digital

Analog equipment is less complex than digital equipment. Example:

Advantage:  In high-quality equipment, better ability to communicate in cases where a received signal is weak or noisy.
Disadvantage:  Only one conversation at a time can occur on each channel.

Digital communication modes are available.  Example:

Advantage:  More simultaneous talking paths are possible and information such as unit ID, status buttons, or text messages can be embedded into a single digital radio channel.
Disadvantage:  Radios must be designed to the same, compatible standard, radios can become obsolete quickly, cost more to purchase, and are more complicated.

Uniden Bearcat BC355c
The Uniden BC355C 800MHz 300-Channel Base Mobile Scanner (Black) is a great scanner!

Frequency Coverage - Includes “action” bands – 25-54,108-174,406-512,806-956 (excluding cellular)

I had programmed a Uniden BC350A for a friend several months ago, and I liked the way the scanner looked. So, when I discovered that the latest edition was available, I thought I’d try it. I’m sure glad I did.

The Bearcat BC355c cost me around $100 ordering from Amazon.com. The scanner was delivered promptly (as usual from Amazon) and I was tickled to get it. Right out of the box this rig catches your fancy.

What do I like about the scanner? One thing that I really like is the looks of the scanner. I like it because the frequencies are on the front of the scanner, and with the amber background the display always stays lit. This should be the standard for all scanners. If you’re monitoring a frequency, the numerics should always be visible. So easy to view…

I also like the ability to touch a button and monitor Police Dept., Fire Dept., and Emergency Rescue. Hit the button again and you undo that selection. I read on one review that you could not stop the Air/Marine channels from monitoring. Well, this is simply not true. Hit any button on this scanner and it will undo just as easy.

There is absolutely nothing about this police scanner that I don’t like. It is an affordable, efficient, nice looking scanner. If you want something that has trunking capabilities, this is not the scanner for you. And yes, the more expensive scanners have slightly better receive. But the BC355c definitely gets the job done.

If you just want to monitor the locals, and you do not need a digital scanner just yet, this scanner is a very good investment. It’s just that plain and simple.

Some will moan that one can’t program the frequency directly into the scanner without scanning, like some of the handhelds do. My goodness, is this really a big deal? Not for me at least.

If you’re ready to catch the drama as it unfolds, buy the BC355c. It comes with the AC adapter. And what I really like, this unit comes with a cigarette lighter power cord. This means you can scan in the car, on the go, which would really be valuable during a power outage.

And for all the ham radio hobbyists out there, this scanner does scan all of the 10 meter band. It also scans 2 meter, 70 cm, 6 meter, and 11 meter. That’s quite a lot of scanning!

Is analog radio being phased out? Is digital radio technology ready for prime time? Is it adequate for emergency use?

Some police and firefighters in the United States are asking to delay or put off going to a state-of-the-art digital radio system. Public safety officials are voicing their concerns over the safety and reliability of digital communication. And some cities have even bailed out after buying the system.

First of all, it normally costs an average of $20 million or substantially more to install a P25 digital system. This is very expensive for something that isn’t 100% reliable. There have been reported several major issues with the new system.

There are problems with receiving digital signals. Digital signals use computer language to code and decode the signal. The code is compressed to transmit a very narrow signal. But if all the code doesn’t reach the targeted radio receiver, there is silence or talk that is garbled and indistinguishable.

It turns out that extreme noise (imagine a firefighter or policeman encountering noise) can interfere with transmissions of digital signals, producing high levels of distortion. Voice quality can decrease under these conditions. This could create mass confusion in case that a local or national emergency arises.

The signal can sometimes be delayed. And it may take 5 seconds to activate the PTT microphone on a digital radio. This could get quite cumbersome and cost more critical time on a response call.

Some environmental conditions can create vulnerable situations where digital signals cannot be heard. This is thought to have contributed to the deaths of several firefighters throughout the United States. Digital radios can also lose signals inside of a building.

P25 systems are becoming standard and are being deployed globally.

1.  Police Scanners – Click here for live police scanners in your state!
2.  Scanner Frequencies - Click here to get radio frequencies!

Want to listen to live streaming radio transmissions of police, fire, and EMS in your area? Do you own a computer with internet access? If so, you now have a police scanner. Listen to live audio online in the United States.

One website that I’d been familiar with called Radio Reference, has added many channels recently:

San Antonio, TX — April 21st, 2009 –RadioReference.com LLC (RadioReference) announced today its acquisition of ScanAmerica.us, the Web’s leading provider of online radio communications and public safety scanner audio feeds. This acquisition adds over 500+ live public safety scanner feeds to the RadioReference platform and provides a future foundation for the tremendous growth and popularity of listening to public safety communications online.

Whether you own a scanner or not, this is the jackpot if you’re a scanner listener! Some of these frequencies are outside of my receiving range, but still are in locations that I am familiar with, and interested in.

I also like listening occasionally to live air traffic at LiveATC.net, even if I don’t understand all of the jargon.

Do you have a favorite live scanner website?

If a cheap Mobile Scanner Antenna w/BNC is what you are in the market for, the JTM2B is one that you should consider. But don’t confuse the cheap price with performance. This antenna hears as well as the expensive mobile antennas. Actually it is a dual band antenna for amateur radio transceivers, but is a very effective mobile scanner antenna as well. (But, your friends do not need to know that this antenna is inexpensive.)

How does it look? This antenna is sleek, light, and all black. This mobile antenna is very inconspicuous. The antenna resembles a cell phone antenna. A big plus with this antenna is that there is no chrome. We all know that the cheap chrome will rust in no time.

This antenna performs very well. It is designed for 2m/70cm. Those frequencies are very similar to these: police, fire, emergency, government, utilities, businesses. The bands fall into the ranges of 150.000-174.000 MHz, and 450.000-470.000 MHz. Most of what is heard on a police scanner falls in this range.

Although the antenna was cut for these frequencies, it hears very well on the other bands as well. The JTM2B will definitely do the job.

The price is currently (approximately) $14.95 plus shipping and handling. That is a very competitive price. The JTM2B can be ordered at R&L Electronics . This antenna may be listed as an amateur radio antenna, but also performs doubly as a scanner antenna. It is made by Jetstream.

How does this antenna execute on 2m/70cm? No problems at all. Local repeaters easily hit with no noise. There are better high end antennas out there with more gain, but you will pay twice as much. Just depends on your needs.

This antenna works well with a HT. It is fitted with a BNC connector, which is conveniently used by many police scanners.

Features:

The Ultimate Police Scanner
The Uniden® BCD996T Base/Mobile Digital Trunking Scanner
is an excellent scanner that any scanner enthusiast would love to own. Yes, it’s a bit expensive, but this one will get those channels that the normal scanner will not. The BCD996T police scanner is packed with the latest technology.

The BCD996T police scanner is GPS ready. This is a feature that allows you to scan programs in your area. One can use the scanner as a base or in the vehicle.

But one caveat, make sure that the APCO P25 system is in your area. Make sure that you have digital in your area. Also, programming this thing could be a bear. Not for those that are not familiar with scanners at all.

The frequency coverage is unbelievable! Get the state police frequencies that no one else can hear.

 After looking at the reviews at Eham.net, this may be the one to get. This is a definite upgrade from that old dusty scanner that is doing the job now. Again, this scanner costs a little more, but worth every penny to the dedicated scanner listener.

The Uniden BCD996T 6000 Channel Mobile Trunking Scanner with GPS Support and APCO-25 does it all! Put it on your wish list. I want it now!