Packets

From the Files menu, choose Packets.

Packets are used to group several titles together within a rotation. They enable you to rotate a group of titles within one slot in the music rotation category. Normally, the system simply attempts to schedule the "longest rested" title within a rotation. If the title is in a packet, it schedules it, then when it comes up again to be re-scheduled, the next title in the packet would be scheduled instead. Songs in a packet with two titles would rotate one-half as quickly as any normal title in the same rotation category; songs in a packet with three titles would rotate one-third as quickly and so forth. 

You may create up to 999 packets with up to 99 titles in each.

Some uses for packets:

• Place a number of titles by a profuse artist in a packet. There are loads of Elvis titles you wish to play. Putting them all in as individual Gold selections means that every time you turn on the radio, it's Elvis. Put them in a packet (or several packets) and Elvis comes up less often, but the variety of titles is still there.
• An artist releases a song, and then also releases a "dance-mix" or "unplugged" version. You want to play the original and the new mix. Put them in a packet, and the system rotates the two versions without changing the frequency of the title's play.
• Packets also give you a way to slow down the repetition on certain titles within a rotation category.

The packets screen has two windows: the upper lists packets, the lower lists titles in each packet. The active window is yellow.

Push Buttons...

Find:
Click Find to locate to a different packet.

Delete:
If the "Packets" (top) window is active, delete the entire packet and move each title within the packet to a normal, single slot in the packet's current rotation category.  If the "Titles" (bottom) window is active, remove the current title from the packet and move it to a normal, single slot in the packet's current rotation category.

Add:
If the "Packets" (top) window is active, create a new empty packet.  If the "Titles" (bottom) window is active, add a new title to the current packet.

To add a new packet, click Add while the upper Window is active. The system will assign the next available number and a generic name. You may change either. Next, enter a rotation code. All titles in the packet will schedule in format clock slots designated to this rotation.

To add titles to existing packets, activate the lower window and move the light bar to the title just before where you'd like the new title to appear and click Add.

Print:
List all titles in the current packet.

Packet Title Schedule Order:

Titles in the lower window are listed in the order that they will cycle through the packet as they rotate. The title scheduled to play next is marked with ">>>". You may double click on a blank in the Next? column to schedule a different title next.

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See Also: Packets (in Inventory), Scheduling Rules