As of January 2009, I am no longer supporting my Shareware programs. May I thank all those who use my products and I hope they continue to serve you well. Thanks to all those who have registered and made a donation to Radio Starlion. If you have registered any of my utilities, your username and code will be valid for all versions of that particular utility.

Here is a list of topics covered on this page:

Running under Windows Vista

A few users reported problems when running AO Showprep under Windows Vista. There appears to be a security/protection feature with the "Program Files" folder in Windows Vista which inhibits file access for my software applications. I have updated the install scripts for all my software applications. Rather than install to the "Program Files" folder, they should now install in "C:\AO_Shareware" by default. Ensure that the "Program Files" folder is NOT selected when installing.

When running under Windows Vista, Winamp does not have the appropriate permissions to dump it's playlist file in the Winamp directory/folder. This is due to the tightened control Vista forces upon it's Applications. To overcome this, I am recommending installing WInamp to a directory or folder outside of the Program Files directory, where it will have less strict permissions. I therefore suggest installing to C:\Winamp\.

Later versions of Winamp, specifically 5.541, try to overcome the above problem. They have been enhanced to dump the playlist files in the individual user's profile. Therefore different user's would have different playlist files. I can see why they've done this, but it makes the life of Marpos, Progplayer and tracklogger much harder, in that they would now have to check what version of Windows was in use and also determine the name of the user and find the playlist file in his or her profile. Winamp 5.23 uses the standard shared location, as long as it has not been installed in the Program Files directory (see above).

AO Shareware Registration Information

You may continue to use my programs without registering. However, as you may have noticed, there are certain restrictions built in to the programs which limit their use. By making a fixed donation to our hospital radio station, I will send you a Username and a code to unlock the program to enable you to use it without any restrictions at all.

Of course. As with all my software, you only need to register once. Your registration code is valid for all future versions of that software. The new versions can be installed over the old version and you will not even have to re-enter your details. However, as of January 2009, I have decided to cease work on my Shareware programs. May I thank all those who use my products and I hope they continue to serve you well. Thanks to all those who have registered and made a donation to Radio Starlion.

You may register via PAYPAL (a secure payment site) by clicking the PAYPAL DONATE button on the relevant page of this website. PAYPAL allows payment by credit/debit card and also handles the currency conversion. I don't see any credit card details etc. This is all handled by PAYPAL.

Paypal instantly send me an email to let me know that you have made a donation and let me know which program you are registering. I will generate a unique code number for you to enter into the shareware, and send you this information in an email. I try to reply promptly, but please allow a couple of days before getting concerned.

Alan Ovington,
Radio Starlion,
Stepping Hill Hospital,
Poplar Grove,
Stockport,
Cheshire,
SK2 7JE.

Unfortunately not. I am very wary of taking on too much, as I can't gaurantee much commitment. I have developed the shareware on offer on my website over a few years, really just as a means to keeping Radio Starlion up tp date and raising our profile within the hospital. I am more than happy to share my efforts with other stations so that they too can benefit from my work. In return we ask for a very small donation to lift the restrictions, just as a token gesture.

My intention has always been to keep the packages small and simple. If they grow too sophisticated or complicated then people are less likely to give them a try. If there are any bugs to report then I will want to fix them as a matter of pride. I will consider small amendments and changes and am always keen to hear new ideas -especially if they are likely to be of benefit to Radio Starlion. Everything I have produced has been in what little spare time I have, and I am reluctant to begin writing bespoke software for third parties.

I have never sent out notification emails of software updates. However, as of January 2009, I have decided to cease work on my Shareware programs. May I thank all those who use my products and I hope they continue to serve you well. Thanks to all those who have registered and made a donation to Radio Starlion.

Secure Payments through Paypal

Several of my work colleagues already have PayPal accounts as they have often used the eBay auction site. As I was having difficulties receiving overseas donations by post, I decided to open a PayPal account and try using the facility to collect donations from my web site. I have now been collecting donations via Paypal since March 2003 and have had no reports of any problems.

If you do not already have a Paypal account, you will be led through the procedure to create one. Paypal accounts are based on email addresses. You will be asked for your name and address and a credit card number. None of this information will be passed on to me, it will be kept secure at PayPal. I will only receive your email address (and name) along with a notification that a payment from you has been credited to our account. This email will also contain any information that you provide in an optional message when making the payment.

Just a word of warning to save you a little frustration, if you are outside the US, make sure you click on the OUTSIDE THE US link as you begin to fill in the form, otherwise you will find yourself being asked for your state and ZIP code information instead of your country information.

You will be charged $1.95 to set up the account but this will be refunded after making your first transaction. However, this may be subject to a 30 day delay. You will be asked to confirm the account by answering an email. You will also be asked to verify your credit card at a later date by supplying PayPal with a number which will appear on your credit card statement detailing the $1.95 to PayPal. (It may all sound a bit involved, but it's not; and it's extra security).

I know that I would feel uncomfortable supplying bank account or debit card details over the Internet. Therefore, I would like to point out that I pay a small fee to PayPal to enable me to receive payments from credit cards.

Yes. The following is copied from Paypal's website:

"PayPal lets any business or consumer with an email address to securely, conveniently, and cost-effectively send and receive payments online. Our network builds on the existing financial infrastructure of bank accounts and credit cards to create a global, real-time payment solution. We deliver a product ideally suited for small businesses, online merchants, individuals and others currently underserved by traditional payment mechanisms.

"We seek to become the global standard for online payments, offering our service to users in 38 countries including the United States. We have over 25 million registered users, including more than 3 million business accounts. Our account base is growing by an average of 28,000 accounts per day, with virtually no traditional sales or marketing.

"The size of our network and widening acceptance of our product have helped us become the leading payment network for online auction websites, including eBay. PayPal is also being increasingly used at other e-commerce sites, for the sale of goods such as electronics and household items, the sale of services such as web design and travel, and the sale of digital content. Offline businesses, including lawyers, contractors and physicians, have increasingly begun to receive payments online through PayPal. PayPal's service, which lets users send payments for free, can be used from PCs or Web-enabled mobile phones.

"PayPal was recently acquired by eBay, and is located in Mountain View, California. PayPal is the 2002 SIIA Codie Awards winner for Best eCommerce Solution and is recognized by PC Magazine as one of The Top 100 Web Sites."

AO SHOWPREP Software

Unfortunately not. The data files are all encrypted to protect the time and effort I have spent pulling all the facts together. I do try to keep the files up to date and plan to issue a new version at the start of every year.

MARPOS Software

PROGPLAYER Software

Normally, PROGPLAYER will startup with the latest schedule details used. However, a specific CSV file may be imported at start up by use of a start up parameter. You must specify the full path name of the CSV file (no spaces allowed), and start in the PROGPLAYER directory.
e.g. progplayer c:\schedules\test_01.csv

A time may be specified for the specified CSV file to be reloaded automatically every day, allowing daily changes to the schedule information to be made. This is done using run-time parameters. The first should specify the full path name of the CSV file (no spaces allowed). A second run-time parameter should specify the hour in 24 hour clock format, i.e. 0-23, at which the schedule should be re-loaded. You must also start in the PROGPLAYER directory.
e.g. progplayer c:\schedules\test_01.csv 22

This causes major problems if the length of a scheduled track is shorter than the crossfade buffer length, and this would either need an awful lot of error trapping in PROGPLAYER with a defined method of getting out of the mess. And also the user needs to understand this mechanism.

My design aim for PROGPLAYER was actually to play full pre-recorded radio programmes, which range from 15 minutes to 2.5 hours, and not for scheduling short jingles or announcements to the accuracy of seconds. Therefore I have no plans to include change.

A reasonable fix would be to reduce the crossfade buffer length, or even increase the length of the MP3 file, so that the track length is longer than the mixing buffer. However, I understand that this may not be feasible.

At Radio Starlion, we only use PROGPLAYER to schedule actual shows which are a minimum of fifteen minutes. Some of my users also schedule two-minute shows or newsfeeds. For sequencing jingles, liners and promos, we use my MARPOS software to generate a pseudo-random 'background' playlist and then use PROGPLAYER to schedule our full shows interrupting the background MARPOS-generated playlist.

There is a know problem with Progplayer when the first track is quite short. For instance if the first track in a playlist is a jingle, it may be loaded in to Winamp, played and then the second track loaded in and played before Proglayer has even noticed the first one. If Progplayer does not register that the first track of the scheduled playlist has started to be played, then the status of the playlist will remain as 'buffered' and will never actually get marked as 'playing'.

To be safe, I would suggest trying to avoid starting and finishing a playlist with tracks less than 30 seconds. As a workaround, the suggestion is to decrease the polling interval to one second. Also, if a crossfade plug-in is in use, the length of the buffer should also be adjusted to be less than that of the first and last tracks in the scheduled playlist.

This may be because of your 'Short Date Code'. ProgPlayer would like you to use dd/mm/yyyy (English style), or mm/dd/yyyy (American Style). Check your setting.

To find out:

XP: Start --> Control Panel --> Date, Time, Language and Regional options --> Change the Format of dates numbers and times --> Short Date = ?

NT/2000: Start --> Settings --> Regional Settings --> Date and Time --> Short Date = ?

MUSICLIB Software

The password is listed in the HELP file. I changed the default ADD password to "wetpaint" (lower case, no space). This was because I caused loads of confusion by making it "secret" in the earlier versions.

Yes, providing they agree to use different reference numbers. The two text files produced can be appended to each other (omiting the header line of the second) using any text editor or Word Processor. The file must be saved as plain text (*.txt).

My intention was that after a track had been added, the entry form (top half of the screen) would not clear down completely, but simply clear the TRACK TITLE from the entry box. (See note in HELP file). This is to allow a quick method of inputting a full CD or LP album, which is generally by the same artist, same album title, of the same type, and same year etc. as the previous track entered. All you simply need to do to add the next track is enter its title and press the ADD button (or use the short cut alt-A which I generally tend to do).

As confirmation that a track has been added, every time you press the ADD key, the track details will get listed in the lower half of the screen.

I hope that you can see my reasons for implementing it this way. It is simply to reduce the time taken in adding LPs and CDs at our hospital radio station.

If you need to clear all details to begin entering the next track, simply press the CLEAR key before doing so.