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Members: Are you having difficulty in posting comments?
I've recently received some feedback that the comments system on the forum is giving a slow response at times - to the point that sometimes the website times out, giving the user an error message.
I would greatly appreciate feedback from all active members as to how this website performs. Can you please let me know how things are going for you by clicking on the Comments link at the bottom of this post and leaving any comments you have there.
I am currently working on a project that involves a new web server along with a new database server and a complete new website for Vintage Radio and I am looking forward to launching this at around Easter next year however in the meantime I want to be sure that there are no faults with the current site.
With that in mind I would appreciate your comments whether they be positive or constructive criticism. Whilst there are a lot of things that happen on the Internet that are outside the control of the humble webmaster there are many that he can control and the aim of this exercise is simply to make Vintage Radio a website that can be accessed and enjoyed by as many people as possible.
Written at 09:17 on 3 June 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 2
Inclusion of images in forum posts
One of the more common questions from members is how to include images in posts on the forums. To date this hasn't been possible - I've deliberately left this feature out due to some security concerns that used to exist with certain file types.
I am going on holidays for a week as of tomorrow but promise to return with a solution. In the next week or so I will enable [img]image-link[/img] tags on the forums and this will enable members to link directly to images they own on their own websites or image hosting services.
For those wanting their images embedded directly in their posts you will still need to e-mail your images to me for inclusion for the time-being. Many images that get submitted are far too large for inclusion and I need to re-size them before uploading them to the server. This remains the only real problem - if a member uploads an image that is too big for the forum template it will take the website out of its correct alignment. Once I work out a way around this I will be able to allow members to upload images directly and then link to them as they post comments.
I will see you all in about a week. 
Update: The inclusion of forum support for [img]Image Link[/img] tags is complete. Please remember that all formatting tags MUST be in lower case lettering, for example: [img] will work but [IMG] will not.
The format for the new tags is as follows: [img]http://url.to.your.image.goes.here/image.jpg[/img].
If you make a mistake do not panic. 
I check all new threads and comments almost daily and can edit things as needed. Soon all members will be able to edit mistakes in their own posts - that is the next task on the to-do list. 
Written at 23:25 on 13 May 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
Web slices come to Vintage Radio
Tonight I have added the ability to subscribe to individual front page articles via Microsoft web slices. Web slices work a little like RSS feeds in that they are a way of linking to a source of information that is constantly updating or changing.
I personally don't use RSS or web slice services although many other people certainly do. So if you have Internet Explorer 8 and use the web slice feature this web browser contains then Vintage Radio will now support it fully.
To subscribe to a web slice it is just a matter of hovering your mouse over the article, waiting for the little green logo to appear at the top left of the article and then clicking on that logo to receive further instructions on how to save the link to your web browser's favourites bar.
At this time only Internet Explorer 8 supports this feature.
Update: The webslice feature has been shifted from each thread to Vintage Radio Headlines and Radio of the Week as a permanent link to individual threads seems pointless in a function like this - where subscribers expect a single content resource to change rather than stay the same.
Written at 21:56 on 10 May 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
Vintage Radio live chat
For as long as this website has existed there has been an accompanying chat room where members and visitors can talk to each other in real time although I've never taken a moment to link to it because I've not been sure about how well it would be used.
However, as of tomorrow night; Sunday, 10th May, 2009; you will be able to enter the official Vintage Radio chat room at any time of the day and talk to anyone else in the room about your vintage radios or about anything worthwhile.
There is no software to download to use the chatroom. It will open up in your web browser just like this page is. To talk you just type and press enter. For the more tech-savvy, the use of IRC2-compatible chat programmes, like mIRC and X-Chat, is also possible.
Chat rooms run like chat forums and as such there will be a few things to remember:
1. Play nice - It's okay to think differently, we live in a democracy.
2. Keep foul language to an absolute minimum.
3. No advertising, unless your resource is vintage radio-related and requested by someone.
If the room gains popularity I will appoint some willing volunteers as hosts to manage the chatroom's affairs though we can discuss this at a later date. In the mean-time, please watch out for the new live chat link and enjoy this new free facility.
Update: The chatroom is now in operation and it can be accessed from the main links bar above, where the SHOP link used to be. Please note that this is at experimental stage at the moment and some refinements may be carried out at a later stage but for now, things are working well.
Written at 05:10 on 9 May 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
More site tweaks
You may now notice that the four new forums that were rolled out just on a week ago are back. This time they are working flawlessly and I hope they will come to benefit members as the original three did. There are now seven forums all up.
I have also got around to removing the old sign-in page. For a long time now, signing in has been a matter of filling in the form at the top of the sidebar. It is automatically hidden by the site once you have successfully logged in and re-appears automatically if you either log out or your session expires. With this form in the sidebar, the older login page was no longer needed.
Some minor visual changes have taken place, some too minor to mention though a few of these are that there is an arrow icon next to the links on the forum home page - these allow the links to each forum to stand out more without having to alter the colour or font type for these links. You will notice that in each forum there is a third column (actually a new first column) which currently has nothing in it apart from blank space. This column will soon be used to house icons that indicate things like when new posts have been made, and if a thread has been locked or not or made sticky, meaning that it would be stuck at the top of the list all the time. These are features found on most forum software distributions and will serve us well once they are introduced here.
I've detailed some other inclusions such as pagination of the thread lists and extra smileys (emoticons) and how to go about using them in the Forum Guidelines, which should be read in full at least once every three months by members so they remain familiar with updates and changes.
I have also made a big change to the front page forum (the forum you are on right now). The replies section now closely mimics that in the other forums and the features you find there are now also here too. This enhances the viewing and participation experience for members and also takes away the cheap-looking weblog feel that existed before.
The glossary is also back. For some reason I didn't link to it when I last replaced the website's template. It is a handy resource so it is back and a link to it is in the sidebar.
Vintage Radio is fast approaching the 500-member club and the more people that become members, the more incentive that I have to add more content and improve the useability of the forums.
Written at 09:06 on 19 April 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
Centre of attention
With a week of web development out of the road I turned my attention to restoring a recent purchase and as can be seen in the photo, things have turned out quite well.
The brown AWA Radiolette shown below is the result of a clean up, repolish and replacement of some defective components.
This is an R29 from 1935 and for its 73 years it is doing quite well. It will need some further component replacement soon though because I don't have a circuit diagram I have decided to leave this non-essential work until one becomes available.
If anyone can help me out with a circuit diagram for an R29 (with component values marked if possible) I would be pleased to hear from them.
Written at 15:28 on 11 April 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
Another two forums opened overnight
I think it is time that Vintage Radio started to expand to cater for other branches of vintage receiving equipment, including but not limited to vintage television, vintage military radio and vintage gramophones, phonographs and telephones.
Whilst my knowledge of these other things isn't as strong as for vintage domestic radios there is no real reason to hold back these other facets of vintage electronics and recognising the existance of these items along with their collectors will allow this website to grow at a faster rate.
Over this long weekend you will also notice a few visual changes to Vintage Radio, more small than large, but hopefully will add to the visual appeal of this website. I am also giving consideration to an eighth forum and will decide on that before the end of the weekend - they are fairly easy to roll out.
Written at 11:17 on 10 April 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
New forums coming soon
I have decided to introduce three new forums to Vintage Radio. One will be called Websites and Collections and will be there to give members an opportunity to promote their vintage radio-related website or to describe their collections and display photos of their radios if they so wish. This new forum will not be intented for the promotion of any website or activity not related to vintage radio though.
Whilst Vintage Radio has always dealt more with valve-powered domestic radios between 1922 and 1965, if you have a vintage transistor radio collection or your collection takes on a particular niche such as military radio, taxi/police/ambulance/fire radios, amateur radio or the like then this is also more than welcome.
The next new forum will be called Member Introductions and will solely be for those who are either new to Vintage Radio or new to collecting and wish to introduce themselves to the wider vintage radio community. If you offer services such as chassis restoration, cabinet refurbishment or the supply of components and spare parts then feel free to leave an e-mail address. In this forum you can also make a request to be added to the Services Directory which is elsewhere on this site. If doing this please leave accurate details about what you offer and how you may be contacted. I will then follow this up as soon as I can.
As for the third new forum, there are currently no plans as to what to use it for. If members have any ideas about what subject matter may prove to be popular please reply in this thread with your suggestion(s). The first two new forums will go live before the end of the weekend and the third will go live once it has a worthwhile use.
Update 1: The new forums have been completed and will be rolled out on Monday, 6th April at 18:30.
Update 2: Two more forums have been opened as of the 10th April. Please visit the forums home page using the link above to have a look.
Written at 10:18 on 4 April 2009 by Brad.
Comments: 0
Members Sidebar
Saturday, 16:02. (GMT + 10).
4th July, 2009.
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
174 days to Christmas!
Yahoo 7 Search
Tutorials
These tutorials contain a lot of worthwhile information relating to specific aspects of vintage radio. I recommend a read of these though some of them are quite large. You might need a cuppa tea and a few hours to get through them all in one hit.
Knowing how to date old radios
The listener's licence and the sealed set
Batteries used in valve radios
Safety with electricity
Valve radio model life cycles
The brands of antique radios
The survivors - Where are they now?
Replicas and outright pretenders
Restorations
Back by popular demand are a few articles of mine that deal with restoration of vintage radios. As I edit them for clarity they will be republished.
Glossary
Vintage Radio's glossary contains the definitions for dozens of words and phrases.
Older Threads
To view older threads please visit the Vintage Radio archive.
Outside links
On our free links page there are dozens of other vintage radio-related websites which may be of interest to you. Everything from national vintage radio clubs to personal and business websites is included. Outside links.
Sponsored links
The following links will lead you away from Vintage Radio and most of them contain material other than that pertaining to vintage radio. Some of the sites belong to associates of mine and others are links I am paid for displaying.
iServ
Schwoit
Directory owners forum
SEO friendly free directory list
Shintara
Vilesilencer
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Disclaimer: Valve radios contain voltages that can deliver lethal shocks. You should not attempt to work on a valve radio or other valve equipment unless you know exactly what you are doing and have gained some experience with electronics and working around high voltages. The owner, administrators and staff of Vintage Radio will accept no liability for any damage, injury or loss of life that comes as a result of your use or mis-use of information on this website. Please read our Safety Warning before using this website.