The DRS 2006 On Air Editor (03/25/2002)
The On Air Editor as the name implies, it is an editor that allows you to edit a studio while the studio is On The Air. If you need to insert an item while the studio is on the air, you just select the studio you want to edit and insert, move or remove an item. From a single location you can manage several remote studio's with just a simple selection using the On Air Editor.

The On Air Editor can edit up to twenty separate studio's. You can have one studio set up to be playing on the air and a different studio set up to be playing a entirely different program either to the air or to the internet. You edit each studio remotely using the On Air Editor.

If you are using Windows 95™, Windows 98™ or Windows Me™, you will not be able to open up more than two modules at the same time on the same computer. If you have both the Launcher and the On Air Studio modules open at the same time you will not be able to open the On Air Editor as well. To see the actions that occur with the On Air Editor you will need to have the On Air Studio running on one machine and the On Air Editor running on a different machine. This is a resource limitation in the Win95™, Win98™ and WinMe™ operating systems not DRS 2006.

If you are running Windows 2000™ or Windows XP™ you will be able to open all three modules on the same machine and at the same time.

Setting the On Air Studio
We are assuming that the On Air Studio is running on one computer and the On Air Editor on another (it can be run on the same machine and at the same time using Windows 2000™ or Windows XP™ though).
In practice this would not be necessary since the On Air Editor is available in the On Air Studio as well. Additionally if the On Air Editor module is opened for a particular On Air Editor the button inside that On Air Studio labeled 'On Air Editor' (shortcut F6) will become inactive until the remote On Air Editor module is closed for that studio.


Setting the Studio I.D.
To set the studio I.D. open the On Air Studio and click on the 'On Air Setup' button. A new window will open up where you can see several settings that effect how the On Air Studio handles the items to be played. For now, we are only interested in the 'Studio number'. In the upper left hand corner of the window you can find the label 'This Is On Air Studio' and a number (consisting of two digits) right beside it. Use the left or right arrow to assign the studio number. In this example we will set the studio number to '01'.

Note: the On Air Editor will not be able to edit a particular studio, if the studio is not available. The changes you make only take effect after the On Air Studio loads the next item. At this point you should load a playlist and then start the On Air Studio.

On Air Editor
Now open the On Air Editor. Don't be concerned when a list briefly appears and disappears, you will be able to view the list once we get connected to the correct studio.

In the On Air Editor locate the button 'Editor Setup' and click it once. A window will pop open giving you the option to select the number of the 'On Air Studio' you want to edit.
In this example select number '01' and close the window (click on the button 'Save and Exit').

Now look at the status box in the lower portion of the On Air Editor screen just below the slider: the red indicator should be active and the message 'On Air Studio ready for changes, Connected to On Air Studio No.1' should be displayed.

Now go to the On Air Studio. Here you should see the message 'On Air Editor No.1 Online' and the red indicator should also be illuminated.

Back in the On Air Editor look at the very top left portion of the On Air Editor screen and note that you are able to view what is presently playing at the remote On Air Studio. The center screen display's those items scheduled to play in the remote On Air Studio.

Editing the On Air Studio Playlist
Once you have connected to the studio, you can begin editing the list. Obviously, we cannot edit a song that is currently playing, but we can change everything else. For example, insert an item to play in the remote On Air Studio. Be sure you have enough time to get it inserted before the next item starts.

Use the mouse to select the position in the playlist where you want the item to be inserted and click once. It will highlight in dark blue when selected. Now locate the 'Insert New Item' button near the bottom of the screen. Click the button and your database will open. You can search for an item or just select one from the list.
Click the item you want to insert and then click the 'Select' button. When you are back in the 'On Air Editor' take a look at your play list. You should see the item you selected placed in the playlist at the exact position you selected earlier.

If you want to move the item to a different position all you have to do is click on the button 'Move Up Item' or 'Move Down Item'.
You can also remove an item from the playlist entirely if you select it with your mouse and then click on the button 'Remove Item'.

To see the status of the On Air Studio that you are connected to, click on the button marked 'Go To Current' and the playlist screen will jump to the currently playing item in the playlist.

To insert a 'DJ Break' you first have to set the slider in the middle of the lower portion of the screen to the lenght of the DJ Break you want to insert. Then click on the button marked 'Insert DJ Break' to add the break to the list.
Remember that once a DJ Break has been inserted into the list, the current item once finished will fade down and the system will stop and wait for the DJ.

A window will pop open allowing you to enter a comment for the DJ break. This should be something descriptive as a reminder to the DJ.

Important: Once DRS 2006 detects a DJ break it will stop and not resume, until the DJ hits the 'Start' Button. Once the 'Start' button has been clicked, the program will resume from the point it was stopped and begin playing the next item in the list. It will continue in the same mode it was in before the DJ break. If you were in 'Shuffle mode' then DRS 2006 would continue to shuffle using the same parameters you set up for the Shuffle pattern. If you were using a 'Playlist' DRS 2006 would continue using the playlist you have loaded.

Remember: If you make any changes in the On Air Editor you have to send it to the studio using the 'Send On Air' button before any change will take effect in the studio. Once the studio loads the next item it will see the change in the list and adjust the list to the new change. Since the Playlist will only get updated when the next item to be played gets loaded, you may not see the change appear in the list right away.


Other Controls In the On Air Editor
'Reset & Refresh': Clicking on the 'Reset & Refresh' button updates the list to its current status based on where the On Air Studio is at the moment you refresh.

'Audio Plugin': If you have the Audio Plugin installed you will be able to open the plugin by clicking on this button.


The next items are associated with the play functions of the On Air Editor.

Note: Inside the On Air Editor you can play any item in the list without effecting the On Air Studio. The function is to let you to listen to an item and edit it using the On Air Editor. In order to speed you along, especially with music items, there is a special function available:
The 'Stop' and 'Start' button's will start an item playing or stop the item playing, there is no fade and the selection starts and stops as soon as you click the buttons.


Jump to End
Locate the box titled 'Jumps to End' just to the left of the large 'Stop' button.
This is a terrific editing tool. To manage the playlist you need to listen to the items to best decide how things will work together in the playlist. It would be too time consuming to have to sit and listen to every song just to see how it sounds or ends.

Note: The Playlist Editor supplies similar functions as the On Air Editor. But although they share similar functions, they do not operate exactly the same way. The Playlist Editor will play the first few seconds of a song, then jump to the last few seconds of the song, and then start the next item in the list. The On Air Editor on the contrary jumps to a point near the end of the song and then stops without starting the next item.

The On Air Editor will start playing the song once the 'Start' button is clicked and will continue to play until you click the 'Jump to End' button (shortcut F10). This will take you to the point in the song that is close to the end. How close to the end you get depends on where you adjust the slider. A larger number will play more of the item, while a smaller number takes you closer to the end of it.
The default setting is 10. The left arrow increases the number while the right arrow decrease the number. The number setting is equal to the approximate amount of time in seconds.

The last item of the On Air Editor not yet explained is the blue box with a large 'D' on it located right above the 'Jump to End' button. This box will illuminate when there is a 'Dynamic Type' item placed in the list. Since 'Dynamic Type' items don't have a defined time length the 'D' will show activity when the total time is recalculated for the entire Playlist.


Summary:
The On Air Editor is a common editor that permits you to connect to any of twenty different studio locations and change the playlist while the studio is on the air. The playlist at each individual studio does not have to be the same and they can be sending different programs to different places.

It is possible for a station to send one program to the A.M. transmitter and have a totally different format for the FM transmitter. Additionally a third system could provide another feed for the internet and yet another for music on hold.
The editor just provides a central location to access each studio without the need to visit each one to make the changes.

Changes can easily be made on the fly from a single location without interrupting the program and with no noticeable indication to the listening audience that anything was happening.