Our service provider is changing the server software to a newer version and as a result users of the AC-SKYWARN and AC-EMWIN pages may see some funky things for a little while. Please bear with us. May take a little while to work out some kinks which may pop up.
Unbeatably affordable. We'll meet or beat local area storage prices.
Showing posts with label gainesville. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gainesville. Show all posts
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
New AC-EMWIN Server!
We now have a brand new web server!
The Alachua County EMWIN server was switched out with a newer, much faster one this afternoon and y'all didn't even know it! :) Not a beat was missed in the switchover and everything went perfectly and smoothly. In fact, I'm kinda nervous because I'm waiting for Murphy's Law to kick in at any moment. It was as simple as installing all the Windows Updates and then transferring the weather software over to the new machine. Hmm.
The old server was a chugging 1.6 GHz, 32-bit, 256 MB RAM, 20 GB HDD clunker that was completely adequate 8 years ago; but the EMWIN software was getting more complicated as it became continually upgraded over the years and we were starting to experience some occasional drags and lockups. So we went to TigerDirect and for $239 got a refurbished 3.4 GHz, dual core, 64-bit, 2 GB RAM, 400 GB HDD, 8 USB port monster-engined speedster. :) No more dragging or lockups, and everything works SO much faster.
The server serves both Alachua County SKYWARN and Alachua County EMWIN, and sends weather bulletins to email, pager, cellphone, and to listgroups at UF and on Yahoo, as well as to Twitter accounts, and to Facebook accounts - for FREE as a public service.
The old server will remain in inventory as a backup/standby server.
(Yer welcome!)
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Found source for 1-minute refresh for Twitter...
Thanks to Charles Roop for this...
One of my worries over Twitter being useful as a weather bulletin dissemination tool was the fact that you don't see new bulletins unless you manually refresh the screen, which kinda forces you to sit there at the computer.
Thanks to Charles Roop for mentioning TweetDeck, which is an application you can use to see new posts by setting the application to refresh up to once every minute.
To download the application, go to http://tweetdeck.com.
(Thanks, Charles.)
One of my worries over Twitter being useful as a weather bulletin dissemination tool was the fact that you don't see new bulletins unless you manually refresh the screen, which kinda forces you to sit there at the computer.
Thanks to Charles Roop for mentioning TweetDeck, which is an application you can use to see new posts by setting the application to refresh up to once every minute.
To download the application, go to http://tweetdeck.com.
(Thanks, Charles.)
AC-EMWIN Twitter Account Created
Created Twitter account for the Alachua County EMWIN Project. The hope is to be able to send severe weather-related bulletins to the AC-EMWIN Twitter acct so that people can make use of them there, too. Currently, we send bulletins to cellphones, pagers, and even web sites.
I've just set up the EMWIN software to send some bulletins there, now. I've set it up to receive the following "products": ZFPJAX (Zone Forecast Product), NOWJAX (Short Term Forecast or "NowCast"), DAY-ONE SEVERE and SPOTTER ACTIVATION statements from the HWOJAX (Hazardous Weather Outlook), SVRJAX, TORJAX, SPSJAX (Special Weather Statement), and SVSJAX. Bulletins will be sent using shorter abbreviated text to fit more on the screen at a time.
The DAYONE SEVERE statement is a line from the Hazardous Weather Outlook which gives spotters a heads-up as to what the day's expectations are for severe weather. The HWO gets sent out multiple times a day.
The SPOTTER ACTIVATION STATEMENT is another line from the HWO which let's spotters know whether or not spotter activation might be called for in your area. Again, being attached to the HWO, the notice is sent out multiple times a day, as thoughts change and are updated.
I sent a test message from Outlook last night. Twittermail received it okay. A few bulletins were sent by the EMWIN software, too, overnight. They were received, as well.
There is a 160 character text limit with Twitter. HOWEVER, the rest of the messages are not truncated and permanently lost. The rest of the message can still be viewed by simply clicking on a URL link right there. So that's a plus. Looks good so far. Seems to be working.
This IS an experiment, though. I'm doing it to test the usefullness of this idea. There ARE a few downsides so far that I am noticing:
1. Seems Twitter must be manually refreshed. Bulletins are time sensitive. To be useful viewers have to be able to see them as soon as they come in. I don't think Twitter has an auto-refresh on incoming bulletin. I think you have to do it yourself. Still researching...
2. There seems to be a delay of a number of minutes from time of issuance from our EMWIN software (which issues the bulletins often faster than the weather radio does). That could matter. Bulletins are distributed faster on the ACSKYWARN Email Alert List faster than they appear to be being issued, here. Then again, I may be being too critical. Ultimately, it's up to the end user and what HIS OR HER ideas are for the usefulness of this. Maybe they PREFER these kinds of things to email. Who knows.
Hopefully people will find some usefulness for this and if there appears to be enough interest then I will continue it. I'm already also entertaining ideas for doing this for all nearby counties surrounding us, as well.
I welcome user thoughts, comments, and ideas.
I've just set up the EMWIN software to send some bulletins there, now. I've set it up to receive the following "products": ZFPJAX (Zone Forecast Product), NOWJAX (Short Term Forecast or "NowCast"), DAY-ONE SEVERE and SPOTTER ACTIVATION statements from the HWOJAX (Hazardous Weather Outlook), SVRJAX, TORJAX, SPSJAX (Special Weather Statement), and SVSJAX. Bulletins will be sent using shorter abbreviated text to fit more on the screen at a time.
The DAYONE SEVERE statement is a line from the Hazardous Weather Outlook which gives spotters a heads-up as to what the day's expectations are for severe weather. The HWO gets sent out multiple times a day.
The SPOTTER ACTIVATION STATEMENT is another line from the HWO which let's spotters know whether or not spotter activation might be called for in your area. Again, being attached to the HWO, the notice is sent out multiple times a day, as thoughts change and are updated.
I sent a test message from Outlook last night. Twittermail received it okay. A few bulletins were sent by the EMWIN software, too, overnight. They were received, as well.
There is a 160 character text limit with Twitter. HOWEVER, the rest of the messages are not truncated and permanently lost. The rest of the message can still be viewed by simply clicking on a URL link right there. So that's a plus. Looks good so far. Seems to be working.
This IS an experiment, though. I'm doing it to test the usefullness of this idea. There ARE a few downsides so far that I am noticing:
1. Seems Twitter must be manually refreshed. Bulletins are time sensitive. To be useful viewers have to be able to see them as soon as they come in. I don't think Twitter has an auto-refresh on incoming bulletin. I think you have to do it yourself. Still researching...
2. There seems to be a delay of a number of minutes from time of issuance from our EMWIN software (which issues the bulletins often faster than the weather radio does). That could matter. Bulletins are distributed faster on the ACSKYWARN Email Alert List faster than they appear to be being issued, here. Then again, I may be being too critical. Ultimately, it's up to the end user and what HIS OR HER ideas are for the usefulness of this. Maybe they PREFER these kinds of things to email. Who knows.
Hopefully people will find some usefulness for this and if there appears to be enough interest then I will continue it. I'm already also entertaining ideas for doing this for all nearby counties surrounding us, as well.
I welcome user thoughts, comments, and ideas.
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