MusicMaster can randomly choose from a list of categories in a clock position when a Random element is set up.  In your clock, click in the Element Type field and select Random from the list.  Now you are able to check P as many categories as you wish for this position from which MusicMaster will select a song.  For our example, we’ll select categories E and F.

Now when you start the automatic scheduler, MusicMaster will choose which of those categories to schedule in that position.  It does this randomly…so you could get E or F to schedule there.

Let’s suppose that MusicMaster randomly chose to schedule an F in this position.  When the F category is being scheduled in the pass order (set under Dataset/Schedule/Schedule Properties) that position will be tested and filled.  If no song in the available search depth for F passes the unbreakable rules, the position will be left unscheduled.  Random positions work best for categories that have few rules associated with them or for categories whose rules are not exceptionally difficult to pass.

If you are looking for a “fallback” element, Random is not the way to go.  Rather you would want to use a Combo position.  Combo Elements were also covered in a past article.

There are a variety of element types available in your clocks.  Try them out and see what ones you like best!  Of course if you have questions make sure to contact your Music Scheduling Consultant for assistance.

88 Jamz/WHMH-FM - Turks and Caicos
KGLK-FM, KKBQ-FM, KTHT-FM – Houston, TX
KXBT-FM – Austin, TX
KZFW-FM – Dallas, TX
WPLZ-FM – Chattanooga, TN
The Reach FM Radio Network – Newark, DE
Radio Eins – Potsdam, Germany
Radio Fritz – Potsdam, Germany
Antenne Brandenburg – Potsdam, Germany
Liferadio Tirol – Innsbruck, Austria
Media-plan – Zagreb, Croatia
DRadio Wissen – Cologne, Germany
Antenne Thüringen – Weimar, Germany
Top40 – Weimar, Germany

NAB Show 2012

MusicMaster is making plans for the upcoming NAB Show in Las Vegas, April 14-18th. Our North American and International team will be there and would welcome the opportunity to spend a few minutes with you. If you would like a FREE VIP pass to the exhibit hall space, we would love to have you as our guest. Simply fill out the registration form and use the MusicMaster promo code LV2730. You’ll find us in the Central Hall, Booth #1131, near the west-side entrance.

Canadian Music Week

This year during Canadian Music Week, MusicMaster is pleased to host a Genius Workshop. Keith Hill will be doing a three-hour presentation on Thursday, March 22nd from 8am to 11am at the Intercontinental Toronto Centre, 225 Front Street West.

This event is free of charge, however space is limited. If you would like to attend, please contact Malcolm Sinclair at 905-665-1220 or malcolm@musicmaster.com.

Industry Event Calendar

If you are planning to attend any of these upcoming events let us know. We would love the opportunity to say hello, share a cup of coffee, or help with any questions you may be having.

• February 9: Media Solutions Lab – Scottsdale, AZ
• February 22-24: CRS 2011 – Nashville, TN
• February 26-March 1st: NRB Convention and Exposition – Nashville, TN
• March 9-16: SXSW – Austin, TX
• March 15-16: Radiodays Europe – Barcelona, Spain
• March 21-22: Hispanic Radio Conference – San Diego, CA
• March 21-25: Canadian Music Week – Toronto, ON
• April 14-19: NAB Show – Las Vegas, NV
• April 27-28: World Radio Summit – Los Angeles, CA

MusicMaster Pro-Team: Keith Hill

Keith Hill, The UnConsultant, has been successfully helping radio stations raise their ratings since 1992 when he teamed up with Moon Mullins of Pollack/Mullins Nashville as a consultant specializing in country. Keith now consults from his base in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and serves numerous formats, including 70s and adult contemporary as well as country, his specialty. Keith is well known as the world’s leading authority on music scheduling along with his well developed programming skills.

When asked what “UnConsultant” means, Keith replies, “I do it differently. I look at radio stations holistically, and all advice is custom. I never offer cookie cutter advice.” His client stations are consistent winners, frequently attaining the number one position in their market under his consultation. Keith has worked in radio for over 25 years and has held programming and operations positions at numerous stations including WMYI FM Greenville, SC where he brought the station from launch to number one in just two books. He has also successfully grown ratings at WOJY, Greensboro, NC; WKJY, Long Island, NY; WMID, Atlantic City, NJ; WMXN, Norfolk, VA; and, KHEY, El Paso, TX. Keith also was an air personality at the Legendary WFIL, Philadelphia as well as WXTU, Philadelphia and WYNY, New York. Keith holds a B.S. in TV/Radio and a B.A. in Political Science from Syracuse University. He and his wife Amy reside in Corolla, North Carolina.

Contact Keith Hill at (252) 453-8888 or unconsult@aol.com.

The MusicMaster Pro-Team is comprised of experienced broadcast consultants and programmers who are available to assist MusicMaster clients with programming advice. Their services are available under this cost effective program with no long term commitment required, and can be added to your existing software support plan. Information on each MusicMaster Pro-Team member is available below. If you would like to retain the services of one of the MusicMaster Pro-Team members or have questions about the specifics of the program contact Mark Bolke Vice President/COO at (651) 405-9119 or Mark@MusicMaster.com.

See the complete MusicMaster Pro-Team Roster.

Quick Tip: Category Groups

Category Groups are just what you’d expect, groups of categories.  With MusicMaster, though, you get to determine which categories are included and how many groups you have.  Go to Dataset, Library, Category and select Groups on the right side.  When the box opens, you’ll be able to select New and create a new group.  Check off as many categories as you like.  Continue to make new groups as needed.  You might consider making a group of your current categories or perhaps your gold or holiday music categories.  Once you save, these groups will appear at the bottom of the InfoBar for one-click access to multiple categories at once.

Recent Feature Articles from the MusicMaster Blog

Migrating Positions
By Paul Ziino

So many programmers use a static clock where the same category plays at the same time in the hour.  Wouldn’t it be great if you could vary it up while still maintaining control, adding an element of spontaneity to your station’s sound?  The answer to this question is to use Migrating Clock Elements. (Read more.)

Automating Tasks in MusicMaster
By Drew Bennett

Fridays can be tough on a music director or program director because you’re scheduling multiple days to get your logs in for the weekend and the beginning of the next week. Just scheduling and editing on Friday alone can take hours. Maintaining good music logs from day to day can sap up a lot of your time especially if you schedule and edit logs by yourself and without the help of an assistant. I’ll bet you’ve wished for an assistant at least a couple of times a week. I have good news. There is a way to automate tasks in MusicMaster using some fancy files and Windows Scheduled Tasks. Together, they can help automate tasks within the database. It will be like having extra hands to get some of the work done. (Read more.)

Music Master of the Month

Mimi Griswold
VP Programming
Galaxy Communications

“Using MusicMaster makes it possible for me to schedule market specific elements for my morning show which is simulcast on two of our stations. Some days they broadcast from here, some days they broadcast from there…two locations, two different stations that don’t share the same music. Our own mini network made possible with the Export to Affiliates feature! I can’t imagine trying to do this without MusicMaster.”

So, here it is…The end of the first month of 2012.  How are those New Year’s resolutions working out for you? Even if many (or all of them) have fallen by the wayside at this point, the way I look at it, it’s still not too late. Here is one completely achievable New Year’s goal, resolve to more fully utilize one of the most important tools in your programming arsenal…MusicMaster!

Perhaps you’ve seen or heard about some of the features and functionality I’ll touch upon here, but either you’ve never had the time (or the knowledge) to put them into practice or maybe you weren’t even aware they existed. Let’s resolve to change that today.

Format Scheduler

When you set up your Christmas music programming this past year, did you manually adjust your format clocks/assignment grid or “spike” in the tunes, gradually adding more as Christmas eve/Christmas day drew nearer?  Were you thinking at that time “gosh, there must be an easier way”?  There is…it’s called the Format Scheduler in MusicMaster.

Find it in your FORMAT CLOCK MAINTENANCE list or at DATASET-CLOCKS-FORMAT SCHEDULER:

This feature allows you to “preset” other programming assignment grids (or even individual clocks) into your future scheduling calendar that overrides the default grid/clocks for just the weeks/days/hours you specify.  Perfect for the holiday ramp up, to allow variations from day-to-day on what version of what clock is placed in a given hour from week-to-week, or if you know that this coming Thursday’s midday show will be voice tracked, instead of live.

Read more on the format scheduler so you’re ready for holiday programming 2012 (and beyond).

Backups

What is your backup routine? Do you make them daily, weekly or are you under the assumption that the database is backed up nightly on the server?  We’d suggest you resolve to find out and make sure you know exactly what is being done at your station to safeguard one of your most priceless programming assets.  Discuss this with your IT department, and build in redundancy where possible.  If the data is not backed up to the server nightly and only lives on your local machine, find out if you can make a daily backup to the programming allocated server space. What about making a duplicate of the dataset offsite in the “cloud”, or simply backing it up to a zip drive or other rewritable media? Email it to yourself each night before you leave the station for the day.  If you are only doing a STANDARD MusicMaster backup, we’d recommend you create CUSTOM profiles for the data that you can easily select when you are ready to back up.  Another advantage to creating custom profiles is the option to include additional files (like your reconciliation or traffic merge definitions) that were customized to your database and other connected applications.

ALWAYS make a verifiable backup of your database before you make wholesale music, clock, rule, or other extensive changes.

Read more on backups.

Reconcile

Have you been “old school” hand reconciling from the paper logs the adds, changes, and moves made in your automation system each day? If so, let’s resolve to make 2012 the year you connect your music scheduling software to that system. We’ve worked with most any vendor you can name to create the template definition file to allow MMWIN to “read” your automation systems past day “air” files. Let us know the system you are using and we can tweak the file to your specific MusicMaster databases.

For each reconcile run you do, a discrepancy report will generate showing what was added, deleted, or moved in the past aired hours.  It will also indicate what items are not found in MusicMaster for the targeted dates.

While Reconciliation is typically run on a previous day’s log, it can be run on the current log. MusicMaster will reconcile only through the previously completed hour. By not reconciling the current hour or any future hours, the log will not unschedule the remainder of the day.

Read more on setting up reconciliation.

Category Groups

Category groups are groups of categories in your database. To make a category group, go to Dataset-Library-Categories. When the Category Editor shows, choose the Groups button on the right hand side of the screen. Choose New to create a new group and give the group a name. Hit OK. Now put a check mark next to any category you want to include in this group and then choose OK again. You’ve successfully created a category group. Now you’ll find this group at the bottom of your category list in the info bar.

This handy feature allows you to create groups of music for quick reference in other parts of the program including the Auto Scheduler, queries and reports.

This can save you the time that you might regularly spend repetitively selecting categories to include in various routines in the application.

We’ve already created three defaults: all categories, music categories and non-music categories. You might further refine this by create a group that includes only those music categories that you rotate.

View category rule list

In the support department here at MusicMaster, we often receive calls from clients asking for us to look at the composition of the Rule Tree in a database. Usually, the questions focus around the user seeing rules that they believe are being broken that shouldn’t be, or rules that the user thought were in place, but appear to not being followed.  Here is a quick way to isolate just what rules are being tested on a category in question for a given day and time at a glance. Simply right click over the name of the category itself in the Rule Tree and select VIEW CATEGORY RULE LIST.

When opened, it will show you all of the rules, combining any All Categories rules with the rules applicable to the category. If you are using any Optimum Goal Scheduling, those rules will be listed at the bottom of the list. Should you wish to view the rules on a particular day and time, simply change that in the box and select “GO” to see the updated rule list.

Read more about View Category Rule List.

The MusicMaster Website

Visited there lately? We’ve “refreshed” the site recently and invite you to check it out. It is packed with valuable content to help you get the most out of MusicMaster in this New Year! Either access it directly via your favorite web browser at www.MusicMaster.com or directly inside the application itself from the Main Menu (HELP-MusicMaster Website).  Visiting via your browser will start you off on the “main page”, while launching it via the software will land you directly on the support page. The support page is your first stop if you need to download or install a fresh copy of the application onto the new laptop the IT department “gifted” you for Christmas. A super cool new option in this section is the ability to “self-service” a new or existing support case you have with us.  You can check the status here at any time; start a live chat with our support department, in addition to accessing a wealth of supplemental documentation, drivers, and accessories to whatever version of the application you are currently using.

On the main launch page for the website, check out the latest product news, catch up on back issues of our newsletter, read our blog (you’ll note that throughout this article I’ve provided hyperlinks to more details on the topics discussed directly from our blog archives), or jump via the Training link on the home page to the Walkthroughs page. Here you’ll find an incredible resource for the new user to the program (or for veterans to get quickly up to speed on a certain feature). The menu is broken out to include all the major sections of MusicMaster for Windows, and when you click on a topic a multimedia presentation of the topic of interest will launch. Each of these are brief summaries of how this corner of the software works, so you can quickly put what you’ve learned into practice.

For more complex and broad topics, you may wish to check out our recorded Webinars.

Customize your MusicMaster database(s)

Here’s a cool way to jazz up your MusicMaster database opening screen.  Add your station’s logo! Go to TOOLS-OPTIONS-DATASET IDENTIFICATION. You’ll want to select a .jpg of a reasonable size and configure to your preference in the Main Window Wallpaper settings.  Remember also to include that file under the ADDITIONAL FILES portion of your CUSTOM BACKUP PROFILE, so it follows you to each machine you install it on.

So, while we can’t help you with that New Year’s resolutions to eat better, get more exercise, or put more money into savings in the coming months, we hope this piece will help you more fully utilize the power of MusicMaster in 2012!  If you’d like to get started on implementing any of these features, get in touch.  We’d love to help!

MusicMaster is making plans for the upcoming NAB Show in Las Vegas, April 14-18th. Our North American and International team will be there and would welcome the opportunity to spend a few minutes with you. If you would like a FREE VIP pass to the exhibit hall space, we would love to have you as our guest. Simply fill out the registration form and use the MusicMaster promo code LV2730. You’ll find us in the Central Hall, Booth #1131, near the west-side entrance.

Fridays can be tough on a music director or program director because you’re scheduling multiple days to get your logs in for the weekend and the beginning of the next week. Just scheduling and editing on Friday alone can take hours. Maintaining good music logs from day to day can sap up a lot of your time especially if you schedule and edit logs by yourself and without the help of an assistant. I’ll bet you’ve wished for an assistant at least a couple of times a week. I have good news. There is a way to automate tasks in MusicMaster using some fancy files and Windows Scheduled Tasks. Together, they can help automate tasks within the database. It will be like having extra hands to get some of the work done.

Command files are files you create and place in the same directory as your database. They tell MusicMaster to open up and perform a task. Currently, four different tasks can be run automatically. You can export a log, reconcile, schedule a day or run a special history report. In this example, I’ll show you how to create a command file that opens a database and schedules a day.

The first section of the command file needs to define the name of the file and what kind of file it is.

[Description]
Name=WXYZ Log Scheduler
Type=Command

We called the file WXYZ Log Scheduler and we made sure to define the file as a command file.

Next we define some things about the command file itself.

[CommandProperties]
RunDaily=1
RunFilter=Instr(1, MM.DatasetLogo, “WXYZ”, 1) > 0

RunDaily is the value that defines the number of times this command is run in a day. 0 is default which means the command is run when it is specified. 1 could be used to define the number of times the command is allowed to run per day.

RunFilter is where a script command can be used to run against the database. In the example above this command can only run on a database where the database logo contains WXYZ.

Next, we will tell the file about the actual commands we want to run.

[Commands]
F1=Schedule[Numdays:1]

The section [Commands] is a subsection of our main section, [CommandFile]. The command is specified first. In this case it is Schedule. Then any necessary command properties are written. In this case that is [Numdays=1] specifies the number of days we will schedule when this command is run.

Once you have your file written, it should look like this:

[Description]
Name=WXYZ Log Scheduler
Type=Command

[Commands]
F1=Schedule[Numdays:1]

Now, save the file and call it WXYZ_Scheduler.DEF

In order to run this command and actually automate the task, you must place a command switch into a scheduled task in Windows Scheduled Task. To do that, go to Start in Windows, then Control Panel, Performance and Maintenance and finally, Scheduled Tasks. Choose to Add a Scheduled Task and go through the wizard of choosing the MusicMaster application, choosing the days and times to run the task, and any usernames and passwords that might be required to access the software. Finally, choose to Open Advanced Properties For This Task When I Click Finish. When Finish is chosen, a Task screen will appear. In the Run field, you should see C:\MMWin\MusicMaster.exe or something very similar. After the .exe type a space and then type your command:

N:/Path/To/WXYZ.MMD /STARTUP=WXYZ_SCHEDULER.DEF /AUTOEXIT

Where N:/Path/To/ is the path to the database file and WXYZ.MMD is the name of the actual database. Choose OK here and you’ve created your task.

Now, it’s up to Windows to perform your tasks when you schedule them. Be sure to have your computer on when the task is scheduled to perform!

Any of the four tasks that can be automated can be set up this way. You could set Windows and MusicMaster up to reconcile the data, schedule a day, export the log and print a report for you all without every having to touch the database. It’s like having an assistant there to handle tasks for you.

If you would like to set this up and save some serious time during your day, check the Help section in the software under Technical Reference, Definition Files, Command Files. You can always call your assigned Music Scheduling Consultant for one-on-one assistance with this as well.

Command files are a great way to automate tasks and save you a lot of time during the day to focus on log editing and other important day-to-day tasks. Happy scheduling!

So many programmers use a static clock where the same category plays at the same time in the hour.  Wouldn’t it be great if you could vary it up while still maintaining control, adding an element of spontaneity to your station’s sound?  The answer to this question is to use Migrating Clock Elements.

Let’s say you have two current categories, Heavy and Light.  You want two heavies per hour and one light.  You could make three separate clocks so that the light plays in the first current position of the hour, the second, or the third, then manually plug those three clocks into your assignment grid.  Or you could use Migrating positions and let MusicMaster do it for you.  Here’s how…

Instead of using a Fixed element type, schedule a Migrating position, then check both your Heavy and Light categories.

Once you click OK your clock screen will open a second window called FlexRules.  We’ll get to the FlexRules in just a moment.  Now create the other two migrating current clock positions at the appropriate points in your clock.

Now let’s look at the FlexRules.

At this point you will see that there are three migrating positions in the clock calling for Heavy and Light currents.  Here we can set the Minimum or Maximum of each of these in the hour or sweep, indicate minimum separation (in positions) between plays of the same category, as well as which categories are not allowed to segue with the migrating positions.

For this first example, we only need to establish Min/Max per Hour.  We’ll set it for minimums of two Heavy and one Light as well as maximums of two Heavy and one Light for this hour.

By doing so, we’re telling MusicMaster that we want two Heavy Currents in the hour and one Light Current per hour (amongst migrating positions only).

Now when we assign this clock to the active grid and launch the Automatic Scheduler, MusicMaster will follow those FlexRules and effectively randomize which of the three migrating positions in the hour will contain the light current as opposed to heavy current.

Let’s take this a step further.  We want to randomize where any of our music lands within the hour.  We know we need 14 music positions in the hour.  So start by creating 14 migrating positions, each calling for all of your active music categories.  Next, set up the flex rules as needed.

In the above example we have 14 migrating positions, all of which call for categories ABRX987.

Min/Hour and Max/Hour

We’ve set Minimums and Maximums per hour.  Notice that our minimum total is 10.  The total minimum cannot exceed the number of migrating positions in the hour.  If your minimum total is greater than the number of migrating positions in the hour, that number will appear in red.

Notice that our maximum total is 17.  The total maximum cannot be less than the number of migrating positions in the hour.  If the maximum total is less than the number of migrating positions in the hour, the number will appear in red.

Max/Sweep

We’ve also set up Max/Sweep settings.  This will only work if you are using Sweep Markers on your lognotes.  We’re telling MusicMaster to not allow more than one Heavy Current or 90s to occur between any two sweep markers.  We’re also requesting no more than two Recurrents or 2000s occur between any two sweep markers.

Min Sep

We’re requesting five positions between plays of Heavy Currents, four positions between 80s songs, and at least one position between songs from Recurrents, 2000s, 90s, and 80s.

No Segue

We’ve also requested that MusicMaster not play Heavy Currents next to Light Currents.

NOTE: If you are using Non-Music categories in MusicMaster, you’ll likely want to go to Tools/Options/Additional Properties, and under the Clocks header change FlexSkipNonMusic to 1.  Otherwise your non-music categories could interrupt the separation and segue protection set up in FlexRules.

You can use Migrating positions in combination with other element types in your clocks, just remember that the FlexRules are only dictating what happens with those Migrating positions.  You can have some positions migrate among one set of categories and other positions migrate among other categories, the positions don’t have to be consistent.  For instance instead of calling for every category in every position, you might dedicate some positions for your currents and some for your gold categories.  You’ll still have a randomizing effect, but you will have consistency in where the currents or golds play within the hour.  The possibilities are endless.

NOTE: Should you have an unscheduled migrating position in your schedule editor, replacing that position will not abide by the FlexRules as the replacement window (F9) only tests rules present in the Rule Tree.

Try out migrating positions and add some spontaneity to your sound!

MusicMaster welcomes Radio B2, Berlin, Germany to the MusicMaster family. Radio B2 is an oldies station that plays international and German Schlager oldies, a great mix. The music director Holger Wolgast was one of the first MusicMaster users in Germany in the early nineties and we are happy to have him back as a MusicMaster user, now on the Windows platform.

Jacobs Media Summit

MusicMaster was proud to sponsor the Jacobs Media Summit 16 at the Arbitron Client conference in Baltimore. Fred and Paul Jacobs assembled another informative afternoon of guests and topical discussion.

Jeff Anderson, Radio One’s Operations Manager in Richmond, Virginia, walked away with a new iPad 2 courtesy of MusicMaster. Merry Christmas, Jeff!

Spanish Speaking MusicMaster Support/Sales Wanted!

MusicMaster is expanding rapidly and in need of bilingual individuals who can provide sales and technical assistance in Spanish. U.S.-based, work from home, no relocation required! Must be a fluent speaker in both English and Spanish and capable of written translation. Previous music programming experience with scheduling and automation software preferred. Advanced computer aptitude helpful but not required. Cover letter, resume (including references), and salary requirements should be forwarded to Mark Bolke.

MusicMaster on Facebook and Twitter

We have a new Facebook page, and if you Like it or you’re following @MMWin on Twitter, you won’t miss a thing when it comes to the latest on MusciMaster. If Facebook or Twitter aren’t your thing, don’t forget you can still stay in the loop with our RSS feed.

Industry Event Calendar

If you are planning to attend any of these upcoming events let us know. We would love the opportunity to say hello, share a cup of coffee, or help with any questions you may be having.

• February 9: Media Solutions Lab – Scottsdale, AZ
• February 22-24: CRS 2011 – Nashville, TN
• February 26-March 1st: NRB Convention and Exposition – Nashville, TN
• March 9-16: SXSW – Austin, TX
• March 21-22: Hispanic Radio Conference – San Diego, CA
• April 14-19: NAB Show – Las Vegas, NV
• April 27-28: World Radio Summit – Los Angeles, CA

MusicMaster Pro-Team: Alan Burns

Alan Burns & Associates helps radio stations increase ratings by providing custom strategies, music plans, morning show development, marketing/promotion ideas, and the training of your staff. We consult all forms of AC and CHR: from Mainstream, Soft, Modern, Gold AC and Hot AC, to Mainstream and Rhythmic CHR.

Company principals are founder Alan Burns, and Sr. VP Jeff Johnson who has been with AB&A since 1987.

Alan Burns & Associates is a small firm that specializes in precise custom strategies and close, personal attention to our limited client list. Our task is to help each client formulate – then execute – the one strategy that will result in success. We help radio stations increase ratings by providing custom strategies, music plans, morning show development, marketing/promotion ideas, and the training of your staff. We consult all forms of AC and CHR: from Mainstream, Soft, Modern, Gold AC and Hot AC, to Mainstream and Rhythmic CHR.

Alan Burns & Associates is proud to have helped hundreds of AC and CHR stations succeed in even the toughest of market circumstances. The result of our accumulated knowledge, experience, and skills is successful clients. A few of the radio stations we have helped win include great stations like Z100 New York, WBMX Boston, and WSHH Pittsburgh.

Contact Alan Burns at 251-980-7070 or alan@burnsradio.com.

The MusicMaster Pro-Team is comprised of experienced broadcast consultants and programmers who are available to assist MusicMaster clients with programming advice. Their services are available under this cost effective program with no long term commitment required, and can be added to your existing software support plan. Information on each MusicMaster Pro-Team member is available below. If you would like to retain the services of one of the MusicMaster Pro-Team members or have questions about the specifics of the program contact Mark Bolke Vice President/COO at (651) 405-9119 or Mark@MusicMaster.com.

See the complete MusicMaster Pro-Team Roster.

Quick Tip: Selecting Clocks for Mass Changing

The clock Mass Changer is a great time-saver and here’s one more way to speed up your work when you want to just change the clocks on your active grid:  On the Format Clock Maintenance window, chose the Select option, pick Assigned Clocks and then your active grid.  These clocks should all now be checked off.  When you select the Changer option, only these clocks will be affected.  It’s a fast, easy way to update clocks on a specific grid.

Recent Feature Articles From the MusicMaster Blog

Song Highlight Filters in the Schedule Editor
by Paul Ziino

Too much slow music clumping together in the log?  Too many female artists in one hour and not enough in the next?  There’s a quick way to get a visual scan of any part of a log using Song Highlight Filters. (Read more.)

Good Rotations
By Marianne Burkett

I have many clients who call and ask why their song rotations aren’t what they want.  In most cases it is simply because the wrong rule is being used.  So, which rules should you use? (Read more.)

Music Master of the Month

Terry Voth
General Manager of Rogers Communications
Program Director of CJRX-FM
Rogers Communications
Lethbridge, AB

“I’ve been a big fan the MusicMaster for Windows system ever since our company, Rogers Broadcasting, decided to go with it for all our radio stations. We were moving from a competitors DOS based system and had a chance to look at multiple windows systems. MusicMaster has a great history on its ease of support for clients and aggressively improves the product frequently based on our feedback.

“What I like most about this system is the rule tree. It is so intuitive and flexible in its application. It simply seems limitless in its capabilities and very quick to apply. I love how I can come up with an idea on how to modify a rule and apply it on the fly and see the results within seconds.”