[QuadList] Microwave and early TV (was History - what is the REAL story-

[Ted Langdell]

On Apr 28, 2009, at 8:21 AM, C. Park Seward wrote:
> http://long-lines.net/tech-equip/radio/RTVN1148/p035.html


Thanks for pulling that item up.  The long-lines website is a cool  
place.  There are a few other sites that document the early coax and  
microwave paths.

IIRC my past reading... some of the paths were in part military  
related... and had some funding (and protection specs) from the  
federal government.  The AUTOVON system comes to mind.  A little  
googling will bring them up.  Reading them causes me to see

Back to TV uses, based on the linked article's rate of $35 per month  
per airline mile, a circuit from NYC to LA cost around $86,870 a  
month for eight consecutive hours of transmission per day, and  
additional consecutive hours at $2 per hour per month would cost  
$4,964 per month.

Not exactly chump change back in 1948... and not chump change today,  
either.

Had to chuckle when noting from the attached map that back in 1948,  
where I live—Marysville—was part of the coax line from Sacramento  
to Portland (wonder whether the SP railroad tracks were used?) while  
other parts of the state... notably LA to SF didn't have that luxury.

It'd be interesting to discover whether any of the old coax is still  
in place and/or in use... and what TV signals were carried at any  
time. North of here, here were (and are) CBS affiliates in Chico and  
Medford.



At one time, the Marysville Central office had the old "horn" type  
microwave antennas atop a tower.

When Ma Bell and the Baby Bells were broken up (cue Neil Sedaka) the  
antennas were removed and the tower was bare for a number of years.

There's now a parabolic dish on the tower.  Can't recall where it  
points.

Ted

Ted Langdell
Secretary

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