GUEST AUTHOR Archives | Page 16 of 16 |

Getting TDR Functionality on In-Service Cable Lines

By Tom Williams – One of the tough decisions facing line technicians is deciding if suspected line damage is severe enough to warrant taking cable service down to shoot the line with a time domain reflectometer (TDR). This decision is no longer necessary as it is now possible to measure a standing wave on a block of digital signals, and accurately range the distance to a fault on in-service plant using live digital traffic as test signals.

Harshing My Buzz — Standards for Extreme Conditions

By Ray Thomas – take a look at ANSI/SCTE 158 2016 — Recommended Environmental Condition Ranges for Broadband Communications Equipment. If this standard was a bottle of wine, it would be described as “approachable.” ANSI/SCTE 158 2016 is free to download at scte.org.

Q&A with Karl Kapp

Reni Gorman, vice president, learning and development, SCTE•ISBE, with Karl Kapp, Ed.D., professor at Bloomsburg University, learning industry author and thought leader.

Smart Energy

By Daniel Howard – I’ve been writing a lot lately about how the Energy 2020 program and the associated SCTE Energy Management Subcommittee (EMS) of the SCTE standards program are game changers, helping the cable industry monitor, manage and reduce energy consumption across the entire cable footprint.

Stories… From Back in the Day

By Ray Thomas – During lunch with Carl and his wife Lola in January 2017 I asked him to share a cable story or maybe two. One incident burned into Carl’s brain was from the beginning of his cable career. An elderly lady had demanded immediate removal of a pole strand anchor

Epic Fail

By Ray Thomas – Car ignitions that jam and result in accidents and deaths. Hoverboards with batteries that catch fire. Automotive safety airbags that explode and send shrapnel into faces and throats. Electronic vaporizers with batteries that explode in the smoker’s face. Endless other product failures. Making stuff is hard.