Nothing is getting written to log.txt

English General
1

I’m probably doing something really dumb, but I can’t get the logging to work.

I’ve set logging via configuration to log to c:\mairlist\logging\log.txt. I’ve ticked the option to overwrite the file. The start entry and stop entry format fields are empty.

Is there something else I need to do because nothing gets written to the file.

Regards

Andrew

2

Andrew: [Paxman voice] Ye-e-e-e-e-e-es …

Quick Logging tutorial:

The START Entry specifies WHAT you want in the line/row written to the log file/database when an item in the Playlist and/or Cartwall is STARTed; the Stop Entry specifies the text for the STOP line/row written when something STOPs (for faded out items, the time logged is the time when the Player/Cart ACTUALLY stops, so it includes the fadeout time.

What you type into those boxes is either text, or more usually, logging variables, which are described here: http://wiki.mairlist.com/index.php/Logging_Variables.

For example, my own Start Entry and Stop Entry are:

Start: %D-%M-%Y %h:%m:%s%tSTART%t%1%t%b%t%a%t%t%i{TALB}%t%i{TRCK}%t%i{TYER}
Stop: %D-%M-%Y %h:%m:%s%tSTOP%t%1%t%b%t%a%t%e%t%i{TALB}%t%i{TRCK}%t%i{TYER}

Copy/paste those into your mAirList Config as a starting point, then run mAirList for a while to see what they write out. The Wiki page cited above should explain everything. :wink: You can then decide WHY you need log files, WHAT you need in them, and then use the Wiki page to ‘modify, test, and implement’ the changed versions to your exact requirements. (Remember: this is mAirList, so ‘… you decide!’)

The resulting log text file from my settings loads very nicely as a Tab Delimited file into Excel (or Calc). :wink: I have an Excel template with macros, Word template, etc. designed to work with this (with documentation yet!!!), which I’d happily send to you if that’s of interest. Basically, the Excel template macro ‘converts’ those log entries into single lines per item, with the ‘actual broadcast duration’ of each. Since the log lines pick up the Artist, Album, Track Number, Title, and Year (if specified in the MP3 files’ tags), it makes PRS returns a bit of a doddle. ;D

I daresay that if the tags contain the Album Number and Label in some consistent form, and armed with a little knowledge of the fields in an MP3 tag, you could write those pieces of info. into the log as well.

PS: You can also use variables in the log file name. Mine is:
C:\Program Files\mAirList\Log%Y-%M-%D.LOG … which results in one log file per day.
(YMD is a better file naming system than DMY, because YMD sorts into the correct order in Windows Explorer ;).)

Hope that helps!

BFN
CAD

3

Thank you CAD. I’ll try that.

4

Worked perfectly, thank you.

5

Delighted to help, Andrew!

PS: When I started in radio, we had Garrard 301 turntables with Bang & Olufsen (!!!) pickup arms (this WAS hospital radio!). Gates turntables were VERY rarified and exotic kit as far as we were concerned. For playout of jingles etc, we used two (two?!!) Ferrograph tape recorders (again, too poor to buy cart players like Sonifexes). Mind you when I joined the BBC after leaving school, it turned out that THEIR standard studio turntables (other than for Radio 1, which DID use Gates) were basically Garrard 301s or 401s with a fancy ‘drop mat’ system designed and built by the Beeb. Oh, and Studer tape machines (LOVELY things!).

BFN
CAD

6

I also started with jingles on tape, but that was quickly followed by the first single slot cart machines.

The first BBC desk I worked on still had the vertical flat front with rotary pots (hence the expression to ‘pot’ some audio - cut it short). And yes, there were Studer tape machines, wonderful work horses that would just work day in day out, great machnes - but big!

The Gates turntables were great pieces of kit. Each one really was the size of a small washing machine. They had manual gears to change speed that would engage with a satisfying ‘clunk’ - no so great though if you had to change speed with the mic open.