Posts

I Guess It Leaves Me With NO Other Option (SAM DJ)

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I look at the Spacial Audio SAM Broadcaster/SAM DJ forums regularly. I witnessed a post from a user whom it appears is having subscription issues with SAM DJ (Formerly SAM PARTY DJ) I guess it leaves me with no other option then. Seeing that I paid for my copy of Sam DJ I really feel cheated because I never expected Spacial Audio to be so Deceptive This is not the first time Spacial Audio have been called out for being SHYSTERS The subscription model that Spacial Audio use is AWFUL at best and the activation servers keep locking genuine users out. I don't like software that has online activation requirements or keys. This user could do worse than use RadioDJ it has a better crossfade & stability than SAM DJ. IF I were still doing discos I'd probably be using RadioDJ to run my set with. There is better software than SAM DJ well better than anything SPACIAL AUDIO CODE. 1) Mixxx (FREE) 2) Virtual DJ 3) Traktor ...

Rockies Sheffield (The Forgotten Gay Nightclub?)

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I was reminded about a pub I used to frequent in the city of Sheffield recently. The Cossack on Howard Street (Now Demolished) was the first Gay Venue I was ever taken to followed by a pub called The Albert Which is where I saw my first ever male stripper and drag artiste. Don't like strippers the baby oil stains your shirt if you get too close So it got me thinking about Rockies the nightclub that I was introduced to in November 1989 Rockies was a Gay Club and you didn't dare mention your sexuality for fear of being beaten up by some Homophobic THUG. Queer Bashing was common in the late 80s. The late 1980s & early 1990s were an Awful time to be growing up as a Gay man. Section 28 didn't help matters. So much rampant Homophobia and Abuse from people I never really expected to get it from Rockies Sheffield was sister club to Rockies Manchester owned by a guy called Michael Snailham. The club was housed in the fo...

How To: Start Your Own Internet Radio Station

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Have you ever wondered how to start your own online Internetradio station? Its not as difficult as you'd think...To run a radio station online you need the following. A decent broadband connection minimum of 2MB upload speed A decent spec desktop computer with a decent processor 1Ghz+ & 1GB RAM will do the job. A varied and large music collection a collection of around 2500+ songs usually helps. Decent automation software you can pick some up for free. A Shoutcast or Icecast server. A mixer and a decent microphone. If your current computer isn't up to the job of streaming 24/7 then you need to invest in a new(ish) computer. You should be able to pickup a decent computer with a decent specification cheap enough from places like eBay. You'll be needing a decent radio music automation program we highly recommend RadioDJ radio playout software for this. Reasons to Use RadioDJ: ...

I Have Zero Stress With Radio DJ Free Radio Playout Sofware

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I got into Internet radio in 1999 when I tuned into a LIVE365 station when Internetradio was in its infancy. It was late 2001 before I got my own Computer and Internet connection and was able to look into Internet radio a bit more. I then set about learning about how to stream on the Internet. I lost a position on an Oldies station in 2002 because of software constantly Malfunctioning without warning. They let me go after a few weeks because I couldn't manage to do a full show even though it was software at fault. I then set about trying to setup my own Internet radio station using a Shoutcast server which I rented for £7.50 a month. Radio automation software offerings were few and far between in 2002 Winamp with DSP plugins, Streaming Audio Manager, DRS 2006 were a few of the available pieces of radio software available. Winamp isn't suitable for running a radio station it has no artist/title repeat rules ...

I Rely On SAM Broadcaster Pro To Make a A Living

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Came across a guy venting on Spacial Audio's social media feed. I bought SAM Broadcaster Pro recently I was having issues and was told to upgrade to the newest version Now I have no working SAM Broadcaster No way to contact anyone Refused support via email Give me back my money! I rely on SAM for Income No Doubt that comment will end up hidden from other users Spacial have a nasty habit of hiding negative feedback. Then theres this recent comment on the SAM Broadcaster Forums. I am having random problems with SAM Broadcaster freezing Along with "This program has crashed press OK" messages Yet again I'm only relaying what I see on the Internet. Spacial Audio have a RAFT of unhappy fed up users in their wake. The Activation requirement in SAM Broadcaster keeps locking genuine licenced users out of the software as they're just about to go LIVE. Update: September 21st 2023: Spacial Audio appear to have done some work on the SAM su...

I'm FED UP With Having To Defend Myself

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As most of you know I happen to be the Worlds Biggest fan of RadioDJ ITS A TITLE I'M PROUD OF! RadioDJ is the most perfect piece of radio playout software and works everytime I need to use it. However I get a lot of people having a dig at me for the way I defend the program. Gary is acts in a sectarian way by defending the software tooth and nail I'm fed up with people having a POP at me everytime I go to stick up for the software. OK so I'll admit it RadioDJ isn't 100% FOOLPROOF BUT It performs better than other radio playout solutions. Some Users seem to EXPECT far too much from Marius he codes the software in his spare time and some people can't grasp that. I champion other software as well such as Voicemeeter so my posts are not always about RadioDJ Even in BETA RadioDJ software has been stable and just for the record I've pointed out the flaws with the BETA versions. Flaws have always usually been...

Dear Arthritis (How You Have Robbed Me)

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I used to walk & cycle most places and had no issues walking long distances I used to take walking for granted. I carried Record cases to/from gigs and a full record case could be heavy when packed with Singles & Albums. In 1995 I was a bar cellarman and I was throwing 22 and 11 gallon barrels around a cellar and lifting crates with NO ISSUES. In 1998 I worked in a huge cellar in the West end of London that went through over 50 barrels a week. it was 2002 when I started to realise that something wasn't right when I had a back spasm while out shopping. Back spasms can be extremely debilitating and I have to rest when they happen & theres no cure for my Spondylosis. I was diagnosed with Osteoarthrtis & Spondylosis in 2010 and I had a reasonable(ish) quality of life back then. Around the time of my Arthritis diagnosis I started usi...

Sam Broadcaster Crossfade Problems

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As hard as I tried I could never get SAM Broadcaster to transition smoothly between songs. I'd either end up with a few seconds of dead air or a complete car crash of a crossfade All my files were ripped properly and volume levelled so that wasn't the issue. It happened with every version of the software from v2.7.9 through to the newer versions. So it's not just a problem confined to one version of SAM Broadcaster but every single version of it. The default settings would cut the end of songs off & jingles and station ID's would never fade/play properly. I even tried settings suggested by Festerhead on the SAM Broadcaster forums but that only made the issue worse. We think Spacial Audio ripped off a Winamp DSP plugin called SQR Crossfade to make the fadeout feature in SAM. I need a little help with cross-fading when there is a voice-track or Station ID SAM Broadcaster cuts off the last second of the track Where would I deal with that? Can ...

There Is No Malware In RadioDJ

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Sometimes antivirus programs flag up the RadioDJ program files as suspicious. Avast, AVG, Bitdefender, Kaspersky & Norton keep deleting and quarantining files from the RadioDJ website. I had issues with AV software deleting RadioDJ a while back. I sent the RadioDJ.exe file to an antivirus company and they came back with this. Sorry, it was a false detection. It will be fixed in the next update After the next update the Antivirus Deleted the RadioDJ program files again so I binned that piece of Antivirus software off. It annoys me when Antivirus Software flags up a perfectly SAFE program as being infected when it isn't You can be rest assured there are ZERO Viruses in RadioDJ. Marius sometimes has issues with the way he packages the Installer He tries to protect his code from being stolen by other developers The AntiVirus thinks the packaged files are Infected when they aren't! Q: Do you need Antivirus softwar...

Important: When You Make A Change In RadioDJ Backup The Database

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Its pretty much self explanatory... BUT IT IS IMPORTANT RadioDJ saves most of the settings in the database these days although there are some settings still taken care of by XML files. Whenever you EDIT a track be it Cue Points or Artist/Title/Album etc... You must Backup your RadioDJ using the Database Setup tool this will preserve your changes to the database. YOU CAN NEVER HAVE TOO MANY DATABASE BACKUPS! Its probably best IF YOU Backup your database onto an external Cloud server such as Google Drive. I have Google Drive monitoring my SQL backup folder as soon as I take a backup it goes up to the fluffy cloud. Its so much easier when you have settings taken care of in the database because you can set and forget. Its also dead easy for you to transfer Radio DJ to a new machine Other well known radio automation software offerings have NO way of backing up the database which is quite some FLAW. Its just ano...

Falling Like Dominos (SAM Broadcaster Pro Users)

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ANOTHER long time SAM Broadcaster Pro has fallen out of favour with the software. He was suffering with the Memory Exhaustion Issue I do so LOVE it when I see long time SAM Broadcaster users switch to RadioDJ. SAM Broadcaster Pro is an AWFUL piece of software and has no place in a radio studio. When Long term users of a piece of software fall out of love with it Thats when you know theres a problem! I've watched a steady Torrent of users switching from Spacial Audio software over this past few years. Infact their user base has been falling like dominos with people fed up with Spacial Audio software. The download figures for RadioDJ speak absolute volumes. RadioDJ v2.0.0.6 has been downloaded OVER 230,000 times Lots of radio stations have discovered just how stable, reliable and USEFUL RadioDJ can be once Installed and up and running. RadioDJ doesn't suffer with any CPU issues and I have certainly never witnessed ...

My Huge Breweriana Collection (My Other Hobby)

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For the past 30 years I have been an Avid collector of Breweriana (Beer Memorabilia) Beermats is where I started when my brother gave me his beermat collection in the late 80s Tegestology is the definition of the practice of collecting beermats Everytime there was a new beermat it got picked up by my dad, I have sets amongst my collection some of which are really rare. I grew up around Public Houses and Clubs so I guess thats where my love of the subject comes from. I also Collect retro Bar Fonts because back in the day a good Font could be a thing of Beauty (Art in its own right) My pump head collection started out in the 1990s when I acquired a Mansfield Bitter & Holsten Export bar font. I've since refurbished the Mansfield Pump head with some Humbrol enamel paint as the original paint was scratched and patchy. Most of my collection has been picked up by being in the right ...

White Label Mailing Lists

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Back in March 1987 I started doing DJ work at a Youth club. A fellow DJ suggested I write letters to record companies to try and get a few freebie white label mixes. So I put pen to paper and wrote to at least 4 record labels NOT expecting to hear anything back but I did. I started getting records sent from the mailing list guy at PWL records called PitStop (Steve Pitstop) All I had to do was guage the audience reaction and fill in a form. Kylie Minogue always went down well... The Postie would bring at least 5/6 records a week at one point if we weren't in he would hide them in the coal shed. My Dad started getting annoyed at being woken up by the Postie when it was records for me... By 1990 I had ACCUMULATED a great collection of White Label Promo Only 12" mixes. I had to get help every week taking boxes and carrier bags to the Youth Centre thats how big & heavy my record collection was getting. ...

HeidiSQL A Simple Database Editor (MySQL/MariaDB)

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I love HeidiSQL as a database editing tool, It also allows me to do maintenance on my databases should the worst happen. MariaDB should automatically install Heidi SQL alongside the database engine Its taken me a few years to feel confident around editing MySQL databases but now I find it really easy to do. I have two instances of SQL servers on this PC I have Oracle MySQL 5.5.9 on Port 3306 and MariaDB 10.5.8 on Port 3007. MariaDB databases shouldn't require much housework once installed I rarely touch my databases but on the odd occasion I have to give them a quick repair. I can easily log onto to sort it with HeidiSQL and its easy to keep on top of your MySQL Server. I knew next to nothing about how to maintain an SQL server 12 years ago but I learned by reading tutorials on the Internet. HeidiSQL makes my life so much simpler I'm not having to rebuild my databases regularly like I was back...

Shoutcast DNAS Server Download (FREEWARE AGAIN)

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There has been a major update for Shoutcast DNAS Server Changes from 2.5.5 build 733 to 2.6.1 build 777: (30 jan 2022) Added SSL support for https streams (Linux only) Added support for 32-char GUID-style authhash (legacy 20-char authhash still supported) Added official & documented support for streambackupurl Added additional parameters for more detailed statistics in Radiomanager Changed all directory links to point to directory.shoutcast.com Changed internal links for old rmo to new radiomanager Fixed bitrate reporting accuracy issues Fixed intro/fallback dropping issue caused by an extra byte bug Fixed peak listeners reporting accuracy issue Improved: Always send public ip & port to YP to better accomodate ip changes Improved: flex-break support & pause handling for ad-breaks Improved: increase the overall timeout for YP requests Improved: Send aac & mp3 format version info to YP Improved info messagi...