Ok Steve you have answered a lot, I guess my final question is, when I enter in my zip code will it locate Portland police and fire and will I have to enter in the talk groups I want specifically?
If you are scanning using the main database and your location, you can set the service types your want to monitor, such as Law Dispatch, Fore Dispatch, etc, but you can't pick the
specific talk groups you want unless you are scanning from a Favorites list. Scanning using location
and the main database, you'll get all traffic (channels and talkgroups) for the service types you have enabled. You can lock out specific ones that come up, if you want. Using your location, service types, and a range, you'll likely get talkgroups (and conventional channels) for other agencies, in addition to Portland. For a more complete explanation of how location based scanning works, see
How it Works: Location, Location, Location
If, on the other hand, you are scanning using a Favorites list, then you can control exactly what you want. However, that does not mean that you have to manually enter every last system, department, frequency, and talkgroups. You can set your location in Sentinel. Specify a range. Make sure that you have your service types of interest enabled. Don't overlook the fact that much of the radio traffic is on talkgroups labeled other than 'Dispatch'. Also enable the
Tac and
Talk ones such as 'Law Talk', Fire Tac', etc, including the 'EMS' & 'Multi' prefix ones as well.
Ok, with your location, range, and talkgroups set, and the database updated of course, click on the
Edit drop down menu at the top of the screen in Sentinel. Select the item "Add channels in range". That will then pop up a window for you to verify that your range, location, and Service types are correct. Click OK, and it will bring up a box for you to either pick a Favorites list to add them to, or create a new Favorites list. Let's presume that you create a new one.
Now, that may will pull in some things that you don't care to monitor. That's ok, easy to change. Bear with me a minute here.
The other way to create a new Favorite is what I refer to as 'point & shoot'. Click on the USA under the Database in the upper left of the Sentinel screen. Under USA, scroll down & click on your state, Oregon.
Under Oregon, scroll down & select your county, Multnomah.
On the county level, click on the
'+' (plus sign) by County Systems.
That expands the list of systems in the county. Right click on the ones you want, and on the pop-up that appears, select "Append to Favorites List". That will then ask you which list to append to, or create a new one. Again, we'll assume it will be a new one.
Do that for each system you want. For some systems, such as a trunked system, that will append more than you likely want, like additional sites and departments. That's ok. We'll deal with that shortly. Append whatever count systems you want. Also look at the contents of the Statewide Systems and Nationwide Systems folders, and append any of those you want.
Depending on which method you used, you have a Favorites list that may have more than you really want. You can pare it down to size easily. Click on the Favorites list, then expand it to see the systems in the right hand pane of Sentinel. You can go through and click on the ones you DON'T want while holding down the <CTRL> (control) key, until you have a group of them selected. You can expand a system, so that you can then select individual departments or sites for removal, as well as expand a Department to trim out a few spurious talkgroups or channels.Then either Right click on one of the highlighted ones, and select "Remove from Favorites List" from the pop-up menu, or hit the Delete key. Repeat the process until you've whittled it down to size. Remember not to get carries away & also delete all the sites on a trunked system, leaving only the talkgroups. That'd disable scanning of the system.
Here's a more extensive set of
instructions on that process. That was put together for a system in my state, but the procedure works the same where ever.
