Android app for Tucson

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italiana

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My grandson has been listening to TPD, TFD and other agencies with an Android app named "Police Scanner" and developed by BEROBO.
It's free in the Google Play Store, first one on the list when "Tucson Police Scanner" is entered in the Google query box. He told me that the PCWIN changeover came, this radio app changed also. However, he can still hear calls from TPD and TFD, but not like previous scan.

I decided to download and listen because I lost all of my scanner with the arrival of PCWIN.

I did indeed hear radio traffic....of course not like my old scanner with all the channels, but at least some calls and chatter. It's not a tape loop, because the time checks are accurate from dispatchers. My grandson was out and heard a call, and cruised there to see if it was real, and it was. So for those of us who can't afford a new scanner, the app in the Google Play store helps with scanner withdrawals.
 

AZScanner

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I did indeed hear radio traffic....of course not like my old scanner with all the channels, but at least some calls and chatter. It's not a tape loop, because the time checks are accurate from dispatchers. My grandson was out and heard a call, and cruised there to see if it was real, and it was. So for those of us who can't afford a new scanner, the app in the Google Play store helps with scanner withdrawals.

Not trying to start anything, but it's exactly things like what I've bolded above that will make TPD encrypt their channels. Unless your grandson is part of the media or has some other reason to respond to calls, please ask him to not do that or else that free app could one day be playing nothing but dead air for Tucson. It's literally a couple of mouseclicks for them to lock down whatever they want - the capability to encrypt is already built in to the new system. If we want to be able to continue to monitor Tucson, we need to exercise a great deal of restraint with what we hear in order to keep the privilege of monitoring TPD.

-AZ
 

JPSan

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AZScanner... I've seen on 2 occasions here in Tucson individuals sitting at restaurants with there handheld scanners, not 1 but 3 of em blaring out TPD police calls. Loud enough to have attention drawn to themselves. Trust me these guys were very annoying. I've seen a number of incidents around town where people have handheld scanners watching and commenting on the operations at hand.
Going by YOUR criteria then Radio Reference is to play a big part causing encryption.
How?

1. They (RR) post a complete database of all the freq's, talkgroups and so on.

2. They (RR) SUPPORT broadcasting via THERE feeds, public safety operations. How many times on the news do you see incidents being reported on WITH the corresponding radio traffic with an attribution to RADIO REFERENCE.

3. Uniden and Whistler SELL openly scanners to anyone with programming as simple as punch in your zip code and your good to go. With prices of $500. or better criminals who need to hear public safety ops will do so. Whether it be on line of with a scanner. What's the difference.

4. Websites that in near real time will send you alerts (SMS) about public safety incidents, locations and more directly to your phone or other devices.

So as far as I can see your paranoia is definitely off the mark. If you want to find something to place blame on for encryption.....Then this website WOULD be the primary place to blame. Right?

From what I've heard so far on the online digital feed of TPD the quality of what was being rebroadcast here has been less listenable.

Yes, encryption can be activated with a "few mouse clicks"....If they, PCWIN opted for it.

 

AZScanner

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AZScanner... I've seen on 2 occasions here in Tucson individuals sitting at restaurants with there handheld scanners, not 1 but 3 of em blaring out TPD police calls. Loud enough to have attention drawn to themselves. Trust me these guys were very annoying. I've seen a number of incidents around town where people have handheld scanners watching and commenting on the operations at hand.

Yeah, I've seen that too up here in Phoenix. For the most part, my listening is done on earbuds with the scanner tucked under my shirt and away from prying eyes. I do my best to try to be part of the solution, not the problem.

Going by YOUR criteria then Radio Reference is to play a big part causing encryption.
How?

1. They (RR) post a complete database of all the freq's, talkgroups and so on.

2. They (RR) SUPPORT broadcasting via THERE feeds, public safety operations. How many times on the news do you see incidents being reported on WITH the corresponding radio traffic with an attribution to RADIO REFERENCE.

3. Uniden and Whistler SELL openly scanners to anyone with programming as simple as punch in your zip code and your good to go. With prices of $500. or better criminals who need to hear public safety ops will do so. Whether it be on line of with a scanner. What's the difference.

4. Websites that in near real time will send you alerts (SMS) about public safety incidents, locations and more directly to your phone or other devices.

So as far as I can see your paranoia is definitely off the mark. If you want to find something to place blame on for encryption.....Then this website WOULD be the primary place to blame. Right?

From what I've heard so far on the online digital feed of TPD the quality of what was being rebroadcast here has been less listenable.

Yes, encryption can be activated with a "few mouse clicks"....If they, PCWIN opted for it.

I have yet to find one single agency who has stated on the record that the reason they encrypted {insert channel(s) here} was because of people in restaurants with scanners, but plenty of them have stated to the media that the ability of anyone with a cell phone to hear their communications in near real time drove the decision to encrypt. We're lucky so far that the PCWIN system doesn't employ much encryption, but the RWC here in Phoenix certainly does, and lots of it. For every 1 open talkgroup there's about 10 that aren't. Scanners didn't make that happen. According to PPD, cell phones did - we know that's not true, but it's still the reason that was given. It just makes a convenient excuse for folks at these departments to flip the encryption switch and lock the community (and the media) out for good. All Tucson needs is another Jared Laughner who they find out later was listening to a RR feed while he was busy shooting at people. That would be the absolute end of scanning in Tucson forever. But if enough folks like the OP's grandson keep showing up at calls to looky-loo because they heard it on their phone then that too will put the nails in the coffin eventually. We need to stop streaming something just because we can and start thinking about whether or not we should stream certain channels.

Tucson has it good right now. I'm just asking that folks down there don't blow it for everyone else like what happened up here - it only took the actions of ONE PERSON here to lose Phoenix PD's C-Deck channels forever. The same (or worse) could easily happen anywhere else these new digital radio systems crop up.

-AZ
 

FLANO

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...
I have yet to find one single agency who has stated on the record that the reason they encrypted {insert channel(s) here} was because of people in restaurants with scanners, but plenty of them have stated to the media that the ability of anyone with a cell phone to hear their communications in near real time drove the decision to encrypt....
... But if enough folks like the OP's grandson keep showing up at calls to looky-loo because they heard it on their phone then that too will put the nails in the coffin eventually.
...
Tucson has it good right now. I'm just asking that folks down there don't blow it for everyone else like what happened up here - it only took the actions of ONE PERSON here to lose Phoenix PD's C-Deck channels forever. The same (or worse) could easily happen anywhere else these new digital radio systems crop up.

-AZ
AZ and John,

Perhaps John heard the scanners going at our SEARM scanner meeting, which is held in the open area, and all of us put our scanners on the table,but certainly not blaring. We do have the permission and blessing of the restaurant managers to demo things that we have for each other. I sure hope it wasn't one of our meetings that you observed, rather than participate :)

AZ, I can't agree with you any more. There are a lot of TG's yet to be identified, but clearly are not meant to be broadcast over the cellphone, i.e. surveillance. Clearly, some of the TG's are already encrypted, as those of us down here have already observed. Would be really nice for looky loo's not to travel to the "scene" as they heard it on the scanner. At the same token, regular patrol TG's and Fire dispatch working fire TG's seem to be acceptable in most realms.

Exercising good judgement and caution will help to keep away the encryption :)

Just my opinion...
 

JPSan

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No, it wasn't your club meeting.

I know where you hold your meetings. So unless you are now meeting at the Chinese restaurant on Monday afternoons at Speedway and Wilmot or the Pizza Hut on a Thursday on Speedway.








 

italiana

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Android app

A clarification on my post about my grandson using the Android app to monitor TPD.

Cruising by a call he heard on his phone app, was due to him being two blocks away and the
call itself was a minor 10-50. He went one block further, yet maintaining the two block distance,
and could see that it was a true incident.

He was testing to ascertain if the app worked as well as it did pre-PCWIN, or if it was a tape loop.

.My grandson has been raised in a law enforcement family, and he certainly knows the rules about
approaching a scene.

So please, don't jump to conclusions.

Thank you......
 

FLANO

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No, it wasn't your club meeting.

I know where you hold your meetings. So unless you are now meeting at the Chinese restaurant on Monday afternoons at Speedway and Wilmot or the Pizza Hut on a Thursday on Speedway.


Nope, that wasn't us, whew LOL :)
 

FLANO

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A clarification on my post about my grandson using the Android app to monitor TPD.

Cruising by a call he heard on his phone app, was due to him being two blocks away and the
call itself was a minor 10-50. He went one block further, yet maintaining the two block distance,
and could see that it was a true incident.

He was testing to ascertain if the app worked as well as it did pre-PCWIN, or if it was a tape loop.

.My grandson has been raised in a law enforcement family, and he certainly knows the rules about
approaching a scene.

So please, don't jump to conclusions.

Thank you......

Not jumping to conclusions, just responding to what was originally posted "My grandson was out and heard a call, and cruised there to see if it was real, and it was. " and the fact that the RWC saw a number of "interesting" talk groups go encrypted as a result of what was purported to be a news person going to the scene before the PD got there.

Just don't want to encourage drive bys of scenes as a result of the scanner. We like hearing what is happening, and we do have to use a bit of restraint. Even, when we are curious :)

Thank you for letting us know about the new application.
 

AZScanner

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.My grandson has been raised in a law enforcement family, and he certainly knows the rules about
approaching a scene.

So please, don't jump to conclusions.

Thank you......

Glad to hear that. I wasn't necessarily directing my post at your grandson specifically, but there are some out there (not just Tucson but every major city) who think that it's great fun to just show up at a scene to gawk and get in the way. My post was meant to discourage anyone reading this forum from doing that unless showing up is part of their job, such as media, etc. The media going all cowboy really screwed things up for us here in Phoenix and if I can in any way prevent that from happening in Tucson where I eventually intend to live, I'm going to try.

Thank you also, I appreciate the clarification of what he was doing out there. :)
-AZ
 
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