WeatherStar 4000

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WeatherStar 4000
Manufactured:	Amirix
Family:	WeatherSTAR
Hardware:	Proprietary
OS:	None
Graphics:	Vector
Category:	Satellite Transponder Addressable Receiver
Status:	Used in select cable systems

The WeatherStar 4000 was the first graphic-capable model of the WeatherStar line from The Weather Channel. It was introduced around 1988 and was designed and manufactured by Canadian electronics company Amirix (then the Applied Microelectronics Institute). It had an improved display font over its predecessor, the WeatherSTAR 3000. The first 4000s that were placed in service were programmed to operate text only like its predecessors (using its improved font instead). However, the 4000 used slightly different flavors ^[1] (screen lineups) that included a graphical radar page at the end of the local forecast. During most of the 90s, the 4000 was widely used, but many cable companies began to replace the 4000 with the newer Weather Star XL in 1998 and 1999 and later the IntelliStar in the next decade. The Weather Channel has not discontinued the 4000 and it is still in use by some (mostly smaller)^{[citation needed]} cable companies today.

Contents 1 Standard Features 1.1 Segments found on the WeatherStar 4000 2 Weather Star 4000 timeline 2.1 1990 2.2 1991 2.3 1992 2.4 1993 2.5 1994 2.6 1995 2.7 1998 2.8 1999 2.9 2002 2.10 2005 3 Current Flavor Lineup on the 4000 4 WeatherStar 4000 Emulator 5 Cable Headends that still use the WeatherStar 4000 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Standard Features

When the WeatherStar 4000 was first introduced in 1990, it operated in a text-based, mixed-case format on a plain blue background similar to the WeatherStar 3000, but with a cleaner font and Current Radar image at the end of each flavor. The WeatherStar 4000 later received its first facelifts in mid 1990, with the first additions being an orange and blue background with gradient, The Weather Channel's logo, and icon-based Regional Forecast maps. In 1991, more changes were made, including the addition of a graphic-based Almanac segment featuring moon phases and the graphic-based Extended Forecast segment which feature a set of small icons, which later became part of the Regional Conditions, and Regional Forecast which replaced, and were replaced by more realistic icons featuring sun icons with ripples, as well as puffy white clouds with shades of gray. Rain storms were represented by slanted bars that have alternating shades of blue. The moon icons on the regional maps are represented as crescent moons on the Regional Conditions page. The text-based Regional Conditions list was replaced with the icon-based Regional Observations map in 1992. The radar segments are not available on the Weatherstar 4000 in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico or the United States Virgin Islands. In Alaska, a repeat of the Latest Observations segment is used in place of the radar segments^[2]. In Hawaii, there is a radar segment for Seattle, Washington displaying "Radar Data Temporarily Unavailable" ^[3]. The Extended Forecast displays the forecast for three days at a time.

[edit] Segments found on the WeatherStar 4000

Source: Product Guide for the WeatherStar 4000^[4]

• Marine Forecast - found only in select coastal areas (mainly New Orleans and points west) & displays wind and wave conditions on a purple/black gradient background. Also had the ability to display one marine advisory, ranging from "Caution" to "Hurricane Warning" as well as Dense Fog Advisories (Thunderstorm or Tornado watches were not displayed). Data comes direct from The Weather Channel meteorologists. Discontinued in spring of 2002.
• Air Quality for ________ (Sunday through Saturday) - Found only in Southern California.
• Radar
  • Current Radar (formerly "Your Local Radar") - An IATA radar map that displays the precipitation in your area.
  • Local Radar - An IATA radar map that shows movement of precipitation during the course of 90 minutes.
• National Weather Service Local Update - Displayed weather updates during a rapid change in conditions or during severe weather.
• Current Conditions - Displays the current weather, temperature, wind speed and direction, wind chill or heat index, visibility and ceiling, humidity, dew point and barometric pressure in your area.
• Latest Observations - The current conditions for seven different cities in your area. Text based.
• Regional Conditions (Regional Observations) - A regional map displaying the current forecasts. First appeared as a list, similar to the Latest Observations, and sometimes appears as a list when the icon-based maps fail to load.
• Regional Forecast - A regional map displaying the forecasts for the next day. Like the Regional Conditions before it, it started out as a list and sometimes reverts to a list when the icon-based map fails to upload.
• 36 Hour Forecast - Displays weather information for the next 36 hours. Data formerly came from the National Weather Service and as of 2002, the data now comes directly from The Weather Channel.
• Travel Cities Forecast/Travel Forecast for ________ (Sunday through Saturday) - A scrolling display of the forecasts for the next day for top 50 U.S. cities. Text-based, but later icon-based. The satellite version of this forecast segment was used in the mid to late 1990s and had a similar appearance to the cable TV local foreast version sans the time on te upper right-hand side and lower display line on the lower third of the screen. It was specifically designed to loop continuously until the local forecast was over. The satellite version often appeared when the WeatherStar at the cable headend failed to operate, and was sometimes accidentally shown instead of the newer map-based satellite forecasts from 1998 to 2000. Discontinued on WeatherStar 4000 in 1997.
• Regional Information - Special information for your area.
  • Tides - Tidal conditions for two tidal areas plus Sunrise and Sunset data.
  • Almanac - Displays moon phase data, sunrise, and sunset data.
• Extended Forecast - Weather for three days following the next. Example: If shown on Friday, it displays data for Sunday through Tuesday.

[edit] Weather Star 4000 timeline

All or part of this article may be confusing or unclear. Please help clarify the article. Suggestions may be on the talk page. (December 2006)

[edit] 1990

• Early- In these early days the 4000 was a replica of the WeatherStar 3000, only with a cleaner font and a "Current Radar" image at the end of each Local Forecast.^[5]

• July- WeatherStar 4000 gets new graphics featuring colorful orange and blue backgrounds matching TWC's national weather segments at the time. The Weather Channel's logo appears on the local forecast for the first time, and the "Regional Forecast" map debut with motionless weather icons. The time and date appear on the LDL (Lower Display Line).

[edit] 1991

• February 14- The L Flavor local forecast is born (Current Conditions, Local Observations, Regional Conditions, 36 Hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, Regional Forecast, Current Radar), the graphical version of "Extended Forecast" segment is created, replacing from the former NWS text based version, and "Almanac" (formerly "Regional Information") data is redesigned to show the moon phases. The E (36 Hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, Current Radar) and K flavors' (Current Condditions, Almanac, Regional Forecast, 36 Hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, Current Radar) screen line-ups are re-timed now that the "Extended Forecast" segment is 1 graphical page instead of 2 text-based pages. Because of this, the narration of TWC staff announcer Dan Chandler is discontinued on these two flavors. The regional weather icons became animated. The current radar is updated to include major roads. The time and date are moved to the top right from the LDL.

• April 17- Weather icons make the way to the "Current Conditions" segment, however, they are very large.

• May- The "Current Conditions" segment is finalized.

• July- Chandler re-records the narration for the WeatherStar 4000; the E and K flavors' narration is once again restored.

• Late- The Regional Conditions map was created replacing the text-based page of the same name. The "Regional Forecast" map is cleaned up so that no city's information runs off screen. The icons used on the Regional Conditions and the Extended Forecast pages make their way to the regional map products. The Current Radar map is updated to include county boundaries.

[edit] 1992

• Summer- The fade effect transitioning to and from the Regional Forecast product is removed. A second, more opaque dark blue to orange gradient background begins to appear layered over the existing dark blue to orange gradient background to smooth out the color transitions.

• Fall- The icons originally used on the regional maps returns, fully revamped and Dan Chandler does one last set of narration for the WeatherStar 4000. The "36 Hour Forecast" segment is now narrated to say the forecast comes from The National Weather Service.

• November- All local forecast flavors' screen line-ups are revamped. The "Local Radar" map is added, showing any precipitation in the area and its movement over 90 minutes. The "Travel Cities Forecast" segment becomes icon-based with a blue to grayish blue gradient background and the NOAA logo is added to the "36 Hour Forecast" product.

[edit] 1993

• August- Reporting stations in most locales nationwide are simplified. For example, "N Orleans Int'l" became "New Orleans", and "M'napolis-St. Paul" became "Minneapolis Metro".^{[citation needed]}

• October- The Regional Conditions map replaces the "Regional Forecast" during the K Flavor and Dan Chandler updates the narration on the flavor.

• Early November- The date and time are nudged further downward to make better room for the local forecast screen segment titles.

• Late- The reporting station titles nationwide, and the "Latest Observations" segment began appearing in mixed case letters (it previously used all caps).

[edit] 1994

• Spring- The regional icons are updated so that the multi-layered icons are smaller in size; the upper layer cloud moved almost directly on top of its underlying weather graphic.

• August 4- "Travel Cities Forecast" background gradient is removed, and the Radar map screen becomes eight colors from its previous six-color graphics.

[edit] 1995

• Early- Some of the icons on the Regional Icon set are changed, such as "Snow" and others are added, such as "Sunny and Windy."

• April 1- Flavor line-ups are changed once again as the 30 Day Outlook is dropped and the Local Update segment is introduced from the National Weather Service as generated by WeatherStar, which took more than one screen. It gave a summary of what was occurring and what would occur over the next few hours. Dan Chandler's narration is discontinued.

[edit] 1998

• Early- The J Flavor (Current Conditions, Local Observations, Regional Conditions, 36 Hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, Almanac, Travel Cities Forecast, Regional Forecast, Local Radar) is discontinued when the Travel Cities Forecast is dropped (except on the WeatherStar Jr).

• September- The first signs of graphical system degradation are reported, with patchy reports from as early as 1997. Later signs of degradation reported consist of bit rot, including problems, such as the new moon graphic on the Almanac changing colors or the Local Radar's background becoming inverted, most signs of degradation appear to be some form of glitch.

[edit] 1999

• December- By this time, most cable headends have upgraded to the WeatherSTAR XL, however some companies still use the 4000.

• December- The Weather Channel logo is modernized, and the point size of the fonts in the Local and Current Radar screens become smaller.

[edit] 2002

• November- The NOAA logo is removed from the "36 Hour Forecast" segment and the NWS "Local Update" segment is discontinued, stabilizing the randomness of each flavor's screen line-ups. The "36 Hour Forecast" segment began appearing in mixed case letters and originate directly from The Weather Channel.

[edit] 2005

• Early- Text used on the Station ID became bolder and larger. Some of the old 4000 text are still in use up through August 2005.

[edit] Current Flavor Lineup on the 4000

Flavor	Length (Minutes and Seconds)	Segments Featured	Notes
DE	1:00	Current Conditions, 36-hour Forecast, Extended Forecast & Current Radar.	Used at :28 and :58 during special programs.
K	1:30	Current Conditions, Latest Observations, 36-hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, & Local Radar.	Used at :18 and :48 during normal programs.
LM	2:00	Current Conditions, Latest Observations, Regional Conditions, 36 Hour Forecast, Extended Forecast, Almanac, & Local Radar.	Used at :08, :28, :38, and :58 during normal programs.

[edit] WeatherStar 4000 Emulator

In 2002, a group of Weather Channel fans got together to create an emulated version of the WeatherStar 4000. The emulator is capable of displaying many of the same products that the real WeatherStar 4000 displayed. The emulator is available at http://www.taiganet.com/, and it requires a PC with the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 installed. Made by Taiganet.

[edit] Cable Headends that still use the WeatherStar 4000

Sources: ^[6][7]

City/Town	City displayed on the WeatherStar 4000	Cable company	Channel Number	ID	Notes
Ocracoke, North Carolina [8]	Cape Hatteras, North Carolina
Mexico Beach, Florida [9]	Panama City, Florida	Mediacom	27	1323
Fairfield Bay, Arkansas
Wautoma, Wisconsin		Charter Communications
Taos, New Mexico		Comcast
Kirksville, Missouri [10] [11]	Kirksville, Missouri	CableOne
Bennington, Vermont		Comcast			Most recently confirmed in 2006. Used to be Adelphia cable headend.
Bentleyville, Pennsylvania	Washington, Pennsylvania	Bentcom
Rochester, Pennsylvania
Perry/Lecompton, Kansas[12] [13]	Topeka, Kansas	SCI Cable Inc.	51
Eastland, Texas	Abilene, Texas	Western Broadband
Brookfield, Missouri
State College, Pennsylvania [14]	State College, Pennsylvania	D&E Communications, Inc.		6825	State College, Pennsylvania also has a WeatherStar Jr.
Westfield, Wisconsin		Charter Communications
Decatur, Texas	Dallas, Texas	Communicomm	33	7864
Springfield, Florida	Panama City, Florida	Springfield Cablevision
Forest City, Pennsylvania		NEP Datavision
Hampton, Virginia [15]	Hampton, Virginia	NASA Langley Research Center			The WeatherStar 4000 used here is a local feed direct from the NASA research facility.
Lakeville, Connecticut		Comcast			Last confirmed in 2007. Used to be Adelphia headend.
Litchfield, Illinois	Litchfield, Alton (backup)	Charter/NewWave Communications	20		Last confirmed as of January 2007
Yale, Michigan
Weedville, Pennsylvannia		Zito Media

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Photos of a WeatherStar 4000 system
• Amirix Systems Inc., the designer/manufacturer of the WeatherStar 4000
• WeatherStar 4000 support page at support.weather.com

v • d • e WeatherStar generations Discontinued systems WeatherStar I · WeatherStar II · Weather Star III (3000) Current systems WeatherStar 4000 · WeatherStar Jr. · WeatherStar XL · IntelliStar Future systems Unnamed system (due in 2008)