I'm A Spice Girl!
by The Sage
Note: The publisher would like our readers to know that The Sage is a demented old gossip who enjoys ranting in the public forum. No rationale person could possibly take the advice or gossip seriously, even though The Sage claims to be someone who "knows all and tells all." Also, the visage of The Sage shown here is only representative. In fact, we have no idea if The Sage actually has a beard or appears contemplative in person.
©1997 911 Dispatch Services, Inc.
Good Graph: Beg, borrow or steal yourself a copy of the April, 1997 issue of Wired magazine and turn to page 142, where a 4-page fold-out provides the most comprehensive explanation of the current radio spectrum that I've ever seen. It shows all of the future-tech communications frequency assignments and elegantly demonstrates why public safety is in for the fight of its life to gain new spectrum. If you don't understand why the FCC is a big deal to public safety, then read this article.
Dear Sage,
What's the weirdest traffic stop you've ever heard of?
Iseta
Dear Iseta,
Well, I've seen officers pull over two and three cars at once, which is
difficult. I've seen'em stop tow trucks on the way to other officers!
But the strangest was when an officer pulled a stop on an Oscar-Meyer Wienermobile
as it pulled into Wienerschnitzel for lunch. Seems the tires were too plump.
Swear to God, it really happened!
Sage
Dear Sage,
I just read a magazine story claiming that one-half of the world's population
has never made a telephone call. Is this accurate?
A.G.B.
Dear Mr. B.,
Since you were there at the beginning, it shouldn't be a surprise that,
yes, most people haven't used a telephone. Of course, this includes lots
of people in rural parts of the world and children, who presumably haven't
made their first telephone call. On the hand, simply everyone in
my city has called me, and on 911, it seems. Go figure.
Sage
Forget helicopters! I'm saving my budget for a blimp! Well, that's what American Blimp Co. wants you to do, so it's attending the major law enforcement trade shows to drum up business. Advantages include long up-time (24+ hours) and low operating cost (<$120 per hour). But, hey, it doesn't exactly fit in the back parking lot of the police station, does it?
Dear Sage,
What's your advice when it comes to running CAD? Should it run on individual
computers or one, large mainframe?
Chugging Along
Dear Chugging,
Well, it's not that easy. Your computer is entirely dictated by the software
you purchase. In almost all cases, software written for one platform won't
run on another platform. So the answer is: consider the software and its
features first, and then the platform. Don't let excellent software convince
you to accept poor hardware, and vice-versa. Speaking of dictate, I had
one computer guru tell me that New World Systems likes 10-year contracts
(yikes!) and that it's AS400 platform can be excruciatingly s-l-o-w. Adding
to that insult are the weekly backups, which this guy claims take forever.
Hey, it beats IBM cards and a conveyor belt.
Sage
Jobs Available: Speaking of software, the folks at Tiburon are advertising for a CAD programmer. Are they exploring new programming horizons with C++? Are they working on client-server wonders? All I can say it, their ad says, "At least 4 years professional experience with strong Cobol and Unix skills." Ouch! Sounds like the `50s! Okay, they do want applicants to "familiarity with C/C++, Windows NT, TCP/IP," etc. But the future-focus is definitely not there. Oh, "Masters preferred." Rules me out.
Dear Sage,
I've heard a lot about mentoring, but have no idea what it is. Can you help
explain it?
Searching
Dear S.,
In the corporate world, there's a larger percentage of employees who are
looking to rise to higher ranks. In order to ratchet themselves up, they
need the help of persons above them, or even at the same level, who can
help them reach their goal. For government workers who are stuck in a dead-end
position (dispatcher?!), it's not so applicable. Even so, is there someone
at your agency that you admire, respect and depend upon? Is there someone
willing to give you informal advice, insights and help to reach goals that
you've set for yourself--without expecting any professional payback? That
person is your mentor. Of course, you can also look back the other
way, to see co-workers or others that you are mentoring--it's a very rewarding
experience and a great way to develop exceptional and motivated employees.
Sage
Kudos: To Ericsson for including some negative comments about digital radio voice quality in its corporate newsletter. In two separate stories they point out that "there will be a difference in voice quality," and "we (police officers) don't necessarily like the sound difference on digital radios." They do point out that it's the natural result of chopping up the voice digitally, and not their product. But still, it's refreshingly candid for such a big company that's in the business of selling.
Seniority: Lastly, I salute the Jamestown (NY) police and fire comm center, who have nine dispatchers, and six of them have 17 years or more with the center. To those who believe that dispatchers are just a bunch of in-and-out hacks, this should be proof that the job is a profession, and one from which many of us plan to retire gracefully.
