"Can You Hear Me Now?"--Dead Spots Are Still A Problem Indoors

      There’s no doubt about it: the future of communicating will rely on wireless technology. Smartphones have become a necessity and their users expect the ability to stream video, e-mail, text and download everywhere they go. In fact, according to a recent Ball State Institute for Mobile Media Research study, 99.8% of all college students use some kind of mobile device or cell phone on campus, making colleges one of the most wireless communities in the United States. And while commercial carriers boast the ‘most coverage’ and the ‘largest networks’—their claims often aren’t providing reliable coverage inside buildings. For large buildings, venues and campuses, distributed antenna systems are the widely used platform in improving wireless coverage.     

Thanksgiving has grown near once again and what better way to celebrate the holiday than joining friends and family to support a good cause, right?! For the past 28 years the Dan Gibbon's Turkey Trot has strived to do just that, donating all of its proceeds to benefit organizations operating in and feeding those, in DuPage County. Last year's race hosted more than 7,600 attendees at the event, putting the predicted expectancy for this year over 8,000 people! The event has seen enormous growth each year since the 74 runners that participated in the very first 5k race. 

 As veteran's day approaches we'd like to take the time to pause and thank our Veterans! Let's salute and honor those for being American soldiers, Marines, and sailors, and Coast Guard members, and National Guard members — all those who have served and currently still serve our country—for we deeply appreciate the sacrifices they have made in serving to keep our freedom intact.

      One major point to keep in mind before we dive into LTE (Long Term Evolution) & LMR (Land Mobile Radio) is that it will be many years, maybe even a decade before the transition is made and convergence plans are rolled out completely. There are understandably many concerns about the latest technologies being introduced, ranging from costs to planning to integration—and there is not a simple answer to these concerns. The convergence options made possible will have a lot of different benefits for a lot of different users that will depend on the users in each community. Therefore every agency will have its own set of possible solutions. One thing we can all agree on though is the rise of expectations for first responders and the increasing demand for the tools that make it easier for public safety personnel to do their jobs. Now let's take a step back and break down the complex capabilities of both LTE & LMR.

How Technology Has Impacted 9-1-1 Dispatch Centers     

     Over the last thirty years, I have actually counted over 200 radio dispatch consoles that Chicago Communications has installed. A dispatch console is actually an interface for a dispatcher to talk to various radio systems. Similar to a 9-1-1 telephone system, the radio dispatch console acts as an audio switch to connect various people to various radios or telephones.

Last week the ETSB of DuPage County formerly announced the launch of their $30 million interoperable radio system made possible by a statewide radio network, STARCOM21.  STARCOM21 is Illinois’ statewide digital public safety radio system and provides coverage for over 98 percent of the State of Illinois. The network currently provides public safety communications for state and local public safety agencies. The STARCOM21 network is a public-private partnership between Motorola Solutions and the State of Illinois.

 Upcoming Public Safety Conference Preview from the President of ILAPCO 

  The 28^th annual Illinois Public Safety Telecommunications Association (IPSTA) Training and Conference will be held from October 21^st to October 24^th this year in Springfield.  This joint venture of the Illinois chapters of APCO and NENA is intended to provide excellent educational opportunities, the ability to meet with numerous vendors and a phenomenal networking experience.  Attendance at the conference typically exceeds 600 people and is considered one of the premier state conferences in the United States.

     Illinois APCO has been extremely busy this year.  Our efforts to educate public safety and beyond regarding narrowbanding has been highly successful and praised by chiefs, sheriffs and city management throughout the state.  A concept of video taping, editing and duplicating the narrowband presentation was brought to the association by Treasurer John Mostaccio.  His vision allowed over a thousand videos to be sold and distributed around the country and to attendees at the MABAS and ILEAS Conferences.

 Digital Radio Will Make Your Job Easier, Trust Me!

     There isn’t a day that goes by that I’m not looking for a communication puzzle to solve. I’ve got decades of technical expertise and I’ve got no problem telling you like it is. And for many, many years I would have told you to stick with analog radio, all the way. It’s always been the simple choice for reliable communication. But there’s a new technology in town, and it’s paving a path that’s here to stay.

     Whenever new products and technologies make an entrance in the market, I’m sure to do extensive investigating.  With technology moving as fast as it does these days, I’m not about to hop on a fad that’s about to be replaced next month. But the thing about digital radio is, that even though it seems like the smart phone equivalent of a radio (which it is) it’s got a reputation for solving communication problems that speaks for itself. Sure there are several new flashy  features, such as texting or it’s capablity to hold dozens of newly developed applications like both GPS tracking and work ticket entry/update, which is enough to grab my attention. But the important consensus I’ve come to with digital radio, is that it solves just about all the common issues you hear from radio users. 

 The Importance of a Proper Installation 

What happens when you attempt to install high tech equipment on your own or by inexperienced technicians? Installations can go wrong and end up costing more than you bargained for. There are 2 common scenarios I've seen happen more than once that are worth sharing.