This chapter discussed the basic building blocks of digital audio. It also stressed that only our creativity and imagination can limit what we can do with these building blocks. For example, there was a time when production people carried around reels of tape and cassettes from studio to studio and archived things on large 10-inch diameter reels of tape. That changed to storing audio on computer servers and burning everything to CD. Today we archive on CDs and carry our audio from studio to studio around our necks or a keychain using a flash drive. With the right keychain drive it is possible to be walking around with 100 commercials or projects on your neck on in your pocket!

The chapter talked about using web sites for the posting and retrieval of commercials and production. This is not only popular with commercial production houses but with stations as well. Some stations now use secure web sites for the posting of production work orders and projects so that everyone connected with the production of a commercial, from the sales person to the production director, can access the project and monitor its progress.

News people also make extensive use of digital opportunities with flash card recorders and wireless-capable laptop computers loaded with scriptwriting and audio-recording software. Even a PDA (personal digital assistant) can serve as a quality digital recorder with just a few minor modifications.

These creative applications are developing because people are seeking a solution to a problem. I am reminded of one of my graduates who went to work for a small regional group of stations that routinely transferred commercials from one station to another either by mailing or driving a CD from station to station. The group had thought about connecting the stations together with a computer network, but it could not afford to cover such a wide geographical area. The graduate suggested using file transfer protocol over the Internet (discussed in depth in chapter 13) to move the commercial audio files from one station to another, avoiding both the postal service and the driving mileage. Problem solved; dollars saved.

With all of the tech talk, I would emphasize again that you remain focused on the message and communicating with your listeners. It is not the technology, but rather the message the technology delivers to the listeners, that requires you focus.