HomeMy WebLinkAboutE.GOVERNMENT INFO. CHANNELMEMORANDUM
City of Port Arthur
Date: November21, 2002
Tm Steve F'~zgibbons, City Manager
Froam Ray Cline, Library Director
RE'. Status of new equipment for producing text on Govemrnent Information Channel (Cable 4)
Mr. Gary Underwood at Time-Warner has been my contact on this matter. He stated
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 trips to the Time-Warner "Head Station" for several weeks
to program Channel 7,
Our old "blue box'' that was transferred from City Flail 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 recentiy received by PAISD is at least two
levels of technology ahead of where we are - if not mom. 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 Ubrary and hardware for the cable '"head station" will run
between $1,500 and $3,000 according to Mr. Undent,,ood. He also indicated that
soma 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 office. 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 hell). It would also enable her to back up her
wo~ which is in danger of being lost every time the electricity goes off.
For the record: TCI did donate two computers to the Ubrary a few years ago for
public use. We placed them in the "Public Typing Room" for word processing. Time-
Warner also provides a cable connec~on to the Ubrary and has offered to provide a
RoadRunner drop to assist us with public access to the Intemet. We appreciate this
generosity. We do, however, nccd to find a way to upgrade our current equipment.
It is my recommendation that we re-visit this request with Time-Warner in January
2003 after their new budget goes into effect.
Ray Cline