WeatherSTAR XL

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WeatherSTAR XL
General
Manufactured:	Silicon Graphics
Family:	WeatherSTAR
Hardware:	SGI O2 variant
OS:	IRIX
Graphics:	Vector/raster
Release Date:	1998
Category:	Satellite Transponder Addressable Receiver
Status:	Used in few cable systems

The WeatherSTAR XL was the fourth system designed for The Weather Channel's Local Forecast. It has more advanced graphics than previous WeatherSTARs, including moving icons and transitions in between each frame. It is also the first WeatherStar to feature a cloud wallpaper background (previous systems used a computer drawn background). The WeatherSTAR XL first appeared on select cable systems in the fall of 1998.

1 Features
2 Timeline
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Features

The WeatherSTAR XL is a modified rack-mount SGI Multimedia Server, containing the infamous O2 computer inside the 7 RU cabinet. The WeatherSTAR XL utilizes the SGI IRIX Operating System with custom written software for TWC. Because of the proprietary SGI hardware and software, the WeatherStar XL remains the most expensive STAR system. The WeatherSTAR XL is still in use today, however very few remain as many cable companies have replaced it with the IntelliStar.

[edit] Timeline

Late 1998

The WeatherSTAR XL first appears on select cable companies.

March 2000

Narration by Allen Jackson is heard on the XL. Current conditions and extended forecast information is read to the viewer for the first time. Not all XL systems have had this feature.

July 2001

The radar is updated to show more frames. It now shows approximately 30 frames instead of the previous 8-10 frames it used to be.
Weather icons such as Mostly Sunny, Few Showers, AM/PM Showers, and others were discontinued after a brief hiatus.

September 2001

The WeatherSTAR XL gets new graphics, including new title bars repositioning the date and time, and a new cloud wallpaper. weather.com is added underneath The Weather Channel's logo. Some headends, however, did not receive this upgrade until as late as March 2002.

March 2002

An hour-by-hour forecast and 7 day extended forecast is introduced. The 3-day extended forecast still displays during the 1:30 minute "flavor."
On the 1 minute flavor, the regional conditions map is replaced by the hour-by-hour forecast.
The radar has been repositioned from the end of the forecast to the middle right after the current conditions. This applys to all "flavors" except the 1 minute forecast.

April 2002

The forecasts on the system now come directlyfrom The Weather Channel, instead of the National Weather Service. As a result of this update, the "variably cloudy" icon is discontinued.
A "Weather Bulletin" page is created that shows weather watches, statements, and warnings for the area. Before this was introduced, the weather watches and statements were displayed on the detailed forecast screen.
The margins on the 3-day extended forecast page are widened slightly. As a result, phrases such as "Partly Cloudy" and "Mostly Cloudy" are now fit into one line, instead of two like how it was prior to this update.

Summer 2002

The regional conditions map, that shows the current weather conditions for the surrounding region, is discontinued.
In the top 50 TV markets, the regional forecast map, which shows the forecast for select cities throughout a region, is discontinued and is replaced by a metro forecast map. This shows forecast for select cities in a city's metropolitan area with a 75-100 mile.

Early 2003

The text that is used on the Station ID becomes bolder and slightly larger. Some of the old 1999 text is still in use on the station ID until later on in the year.

April 2003

The "AM," "PM," and "FEW" variations to the weather icons are introduced the forecast maps.
The "AM" and "PM" variations to the weather icons on the lower display line have been modified. They are now in lower-case white text. Previously, they were in uppercase in a white-to-light blue gradient.
The 36 hour forecast segment has been modified so it is easier to understand. Previously, if the forecast for a time period were to split into two pages (due to its length) it would split in a middle of a sentence. Now, whenever possible, it would split to two pages in between each sentence.

June 2003

On the 1 minute flavor, the daypart forecast and regional/metro forecast screens are replaced by a two page text-based forecast.

September 27, 2003

The lower display line (LDL) graphic that is shown on live national forecasts is redesigned. It is now black and opaque (previously transparent) and the logo appears on the bar for the first time.

October 2003

The lower display line is now shown for all national segments (except if there is a weather watch, warning, or statement in effect). Previously the LDL was only shown if there was no information on the bottom of the forecast maps that the LDL may block (with either red or orange).

September 2004

The 3-day "extended forecast" segment is discontinued.

August 15, 2005

The XL gets new graphics once again, now featuring a modernized TWC logo, a sunny background, and new title bars. "weather.com" is moved from underneath the TWC logo to a new position underneath the title bar of each screen's segment.

Late August-Early September 2005

On the regional and metro forecast maps, many cities are added and removed. This change was also made on the IntelliStar

February 2006

The 3-day extended forecast is brought back to the XL.

June 2006

The 3-day extended forecast is once again discontinued due to the 1:30 Flavor discontinuation.

December 2006

Although the icons in the IntelliStar were upgraded, the icons on the XL have yet to be upgraded and updated. This STAR continues to use its original icons, as with the Weather STAR 4000.

January 23, 2007

Although the winter precipitation were shown on Radar maps as with the IntelliStar, but the Radar indicators only shows the former "light/heavy" precipitation keys.