HomeMy WebLinkAbout(2)GOVERNMENT INFO CHANNELMEMORANDUM
City of Port Arthur
Date: November21, 2002
To: Steve Fitzgibbons, City Manager
Fm~ Ray Cline, Libra~j Director
I[IE: Status of new equipment for produc~g text on Government Information Channel (Cable 4)
Mr. Gary Underwood at Time-Warner has been my contact on this matter. He Mated
that the reason PAISD got new equipment and software for the Education Channel
(Cable 7) was that their old equipment ceased to function. I know that Janet Cline at
PAISD had been making tdps to the Time-Wamer "Heed Station" for several weeks
to program Channel 7.
Our old "blue box'' that was transferred from City Hall to the Library quit working and
TCl (at that time) replaced it with a unit that had been (if memory serves correctly)
used by Sabine Pass lSD. The equipment recently received by PAISD is at least two
levels of technology ahead of where we are - if not more. The unit we have is a
TexScan MSI CompuVid model 82300 and the manual for it is MN-18 (Revision A)
dated November 1986.
Cost of software at the Library and hardware for the cable 'l~ead station" will run
between $1,500 and $3,000 according to Mr. Underwood. He also indicated that
some funding from Time-Warner might be available in their 2003 budget.
In addition to a better presentation the new system would have advantages in
organization and operation. Debra Campbell, whose job it is to update Channel 4,
could be more productive if this system were in her off.ica. A computer-based system
using her existing computer would take no additional space (which is why the current
system is in another office down the hall). It would also enable her to back up her
work which is in danger of being lost every time the electricity goes off.
For the record: TCI did donate two computers to the Library a few years ago for
public use. We placed them in the "Public Typing Room" for word processing. Time-
Warner also provides a cable connection to the Library and has offered to provide a
RoadRunner drop to assist us with public access to the Intemet. We appreciate this
generosity. We do, however, need to find a way to upgrade our current equipment.
It is my recommendation that we re-visit this request with Time-Wamer in January
2003 after their new budget goes into effect. Ray Cline ~ 0~. i