Mototrbo Trunked good for Fire or Bad

[Jay911]

Look at NYC, most of the P.S.systems are still analog and conventional, that says something when the largest city in the U.S. has stayed analog and conventional.

At the risk of antagonizing New Yorkers, I wouldn't be too quick to champion them. It took decades for FDNY to switch to safe, fully-encapsulating bunker gear instead of long coats and roll-up boots, because that's the way they'd always done it.

Just because an agency chooses to stick with ancient technology doesn't mean it is a visionary, nor that that technology is right for every situation.

The fire service has a slogan: "200 years of tradition, unhindered by progress". It's not meant to be prideful.

 

[photoguy2]

At the risk of antagonizing New Yorkers, I wouldn't be too quick to champion them.

Just because an agency chooses to stick with ancient technology doesn't mean it is a visionary, nor that that technology is right for every situation.

Actually, I would champion them. They are one of the few government agencies I have seen that understand "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." While there is absolutely nothing wrong with innovation, (I live and work in Silicon Valley) upgrades should not be made for the sake of upgrading. Most governments agencies like to have the latest and greatest, just so they can say they have it.

Just like to OPs situation, his department had a conventional analog system that worked great, and now they are being forced into a system that they do not want, nor need.

To the OP, there is nothing wrong with DMR, you just need to make sure that you have analog interop frequency's that EVERYONE knows/has programmed.

Matt

 

[Jay911]

Actually, I would champion them. They are one of the few government agencies I have seen that understand "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." While there is absolutely nothing wrong with innovation, (I live and work in Silicon Valley) upgrades should not be made for the sake of upgrading. Most governments agencies like to have the latest and greatest, just so they can say they have it.

To continue the firefighting analogy started earlier, we should still be sucking on our moistened beards instead of wearing self-contained breathing apparatus, and not bothering with Nomex hoods under our helmets, instead going by the line a crusty old Jake once told me: "When the tips of my ears start to burn I know it's time to get out".

While it's true that "upgrades for the sake of upgrading" aren't worthwhile, it's hard to "upgrade" to something that's not the "latest and greatest".

Put it this way: Purchase a brand new, rotary dial, corded telephone for your home. Can you?

 

[The_B_Chief]

At the risk of antagonizing New Yorkers, I wouldn't be too quick to champion them. It took decades for FDNY to switch to safe, fully-encapsulating bunker gear instead of long coats and roll-up boots, because that's the way they'd always done it.

I would take my 3/4 boots and long coat over this bunker gear any day of the week. These kids that they are spitting out of the academy these days aren't going to jobs like we used to. When I was a rookie we went to three house fires my first tour and that was a slow day. Now they "encapsulate" our precious little Johnnies so they don't feel a damn thing until it's way too late. I'd rather take a few little "bee stings" or ear blisters than getting burned to death because I didn't feel or see it coming.

Same goes for analog radio on the fire ground. I would take my old Motorola or GE brick on an analog simplex frequency any day over these new fancy digital "made to kill firemen" radio systems. Unlike many departments these days, we go to jobs. Not as much as we once did but we still go to lots of fires. And to top it off we still go inside to put them out. The appointed upper management and elected officials will tell you the system works great but they aren't the ones riding the fire trucks. With all the noise and variables on the fire ground these radios just don't cut it. Sure they sound fine on the regular fire alarms, ems calls, and other daily milk-runs but on an actual fire there is always and issue with clear communication or lack thereof.

 

[DisasterGuy]

Another thought about Moto is that in applications like this it isn't even true DMR. If an agency really wanted to implement a Non-P25 or TETRA solution they would be wise to use true standards based Tier III DMR. There is nothing interoperable about CapacityPlus or ConnectPlus. I am not even familiar with an IP based gateway offered for either.


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