BoobleStubble wrote:
"HD Radio set to botch its first impression"

"It is patently stupid to tack on HD stations to existing analog
frequences (as in 98.5-1, 98.5-2, 98.5-3) and then put three
different
things on those frequencies... Furthermore, the names are so
incredibly clunky, moving newfangled digital radio strongly in the
direction of even clunkier HAM radio. It's a confusing mass of
digits,
decimals, and dashes. We would be better off reconceptualizing the
entire dial and taking this opportunity to simplify it across the
board. For example (and brace yourself), how about numbering our
stations 1 to 100? If this sounds like Satellite Radio, just remember
HD Radio was your idea, not mine."

http://www.hear2.com/2005/08/hd_radio_set_to.html

"RDS - The Radio Data System"

"RDS brings intelligence into the tuning of a radio. The autotuning
facility comes into its own on long journeys when the car moves from
the service area of one transmitter to the next. Without RDS the
radio
has to be manually tuned to the next station. This is not always easy
because it is difficult to reliably detect which is the strongest
station. An RDS set will look for the Programme Identification or PI
code. A national network will be broadcast from a large number of
different transmitters around the country. The station or network eg
Radio 4 will have its own PI code. When the radio moves out of the
range of one transmitter the radio will seek the strongest signal
which has the same PI code, allowing the radio to remain tuned to the
same programme. When radios fitted with RDS store a station
frequency,
they also store the PI code along side it. This has the advantage
that
when the radio is turned on in a place outside the coverage area for
the transmitter frequency which is stored then the radio will seek
the
strongest signal which has the correct PI code."

http://www.radio-electronics.com/inf...st/rds/rds.php

You could have nationalized HD Radio, just like SIRI, and not have to
worry so much about the 10db FM-HD power increase. You could have
picked 10 to 25 good formats and spaced them out in each market, so
when the HD channels started dropping out, programmed the autotuning
sensitivity to jump to a stronger signal with the same program! All
the user would to have to do is preprogram his HD Radio for his
favorite P1 formats!
The smart way to do it would be to used one tower and transmitter for
every station in a town. I'd use less compression than Sirius/XM, and
get maybe 60 channels between 76 and 88 MHz. Give the analog FM band to
the infomercials and yak channels, currently on MW. Make MW exclusively
50,000 Watt clear channel regional stations.