SDS100/SDS200: Small Rant

[sallen07]

He lost his battle late December of 2019, he worked on and off as long as he could but he had plans for features to unlock in the SDS 100 using the second port. That was 5 years ago, if anyone in Uniden were capable of doing it, they would have by now.

Not trying to call anyone out (and I honestly don't remember or care who said it) but there was a recent post that implied that Paul was keeping things "close to the vest" so Uniden couldn't just replace him. I never met Paul in person, and obviously none of us will ever know, but that just doesn't seem like him. He was obviously passionate about the SDS scanners, was very excited about having the scanner community participate in the 'public beta' firmware updates, and had lots of other plans for them which sadly haven't been and probably never will be realized.

IMHO he just never had the chance to pass along those plans (or anyone to pass them along to) or perhaps he clung to the hope that he'd win his battle and get to implement them himself.

Most of the folks who have joined RR since his passing just do not understand how important he was to our hobby and how much was lost when he passed away.

 

[kc2asb]

I joined RR right after I purchased a 536HP. I remember him well from those days. Very hands on, passionate, and accessible. Reading his posts answered nearly any question or concern I had.

 

[trentbob]

Not trying to call anyone out (and I honestly don't remember or care who said it) but there was a recent post that implied that Paul was keeping things "close to the vest" so Uniden couldn't just replace him. I never met Paul in person, and obviously none of us will ever know, but that just doesn't seem like him. He was obviously passionate about the SDS scanners, was very excited about having the scanner community participate in the 'public beta' firmware updates, and had lots of other plans for them which sadly haven't been and probably never will be realized.

IMHO he just never had the chance to pass along those plans (or anyone to pass them along to) or perhaps he clung to the hope that he'd win his battle and get to implement them himself.

Most of the folks who have joined RR since his passing just do not understand how important he was to our hobby and how much was lost when he passed away.

I followed that period of time very carefully and read Paul's public blog where he was very candid about his prognosis and his experience with the SDS scanners.

He was actually in Good Humor even though it was a very rough time for him, there was no question as to the seriousness of his throat/ brain tumor, several surgeries, lost his voice box, received chemotherapy and radiation simultaneously. Even received leech therapy to reduce the swelling in his neck post op that he joked about. This was all public record for anyone to read.

He did stay involved with work as long as he could but kept suffering setbacks, including cancer metastasizing to his entire body. Towards the end his focus did convert just to his condition, chemo and radiation simultaneously is completely overwhelming and disabling.

Never heard any rumors or reference to what you speak of, I'm glad I didn't read that somewhere and I'm glad I don't know who is spreading that rumor but you're right. He was not that kind of person.

He did make reference to some disappointments that he had with the scanners but overall I believe he was proud of what he accomplished.

As far as who was going to replace him as unidens product manager.. there was no replacing him. No one could have replaced him, there was no one.

Whether he thought that or not I don't know but many of us feel that way here on RR.

 

[sallen07]

Never heard any rumors or reference to what you speak of, I'm glad I didn't read that somewhere and I'm glad I don't know who is spreading that rumor but you're right. He was not that kind of person.

Thanks ... you expressed my thoughts better than I did!

I think it boils down to the fact that there just WASN'T anyone to whom he could give his ideas and to the fact that towards the end things like a new scanner were understandably not important anymore. Paul was a one-man show, and single-handly convinced Uniden (in both the US and Japan) to bring out a new line of scanners. It's not like he was the head of a team of people working on the project.

As far as the comment, it was in another thread here on RR. Again, I'm not trying to call anyone out and I'm not going to go look for that post. I'm sure whoever made that statement was not involved with RR when Paul was still with us. I really don't think the post I'm referencing was made out of malice, but out of ignorance. We constantly see posts asking about the extra USB ports, or why this or that feature isn't in the SDS scanners, and why hasn't Uniden done something yet?

The answer is clear. Because Upman is gone.

Yes, we had another representative from Uniden here for a while. Perhaps he's still around. But he freely admitted that he wasn't Paul, and wasn't in the same position as Paul.

Paul can never be replaced.

 

[trentbob]

Thanks ... you expressed my thoughts better than I did!

I think it boils down to the fact that there just WASN'T anyone to whom he could give his ideas and to the fact that towards the end things like a new scanner were understandably not important anymore. Paul was a one-man show, and single-handly convinced Uniden (in both the US and Japan) to bring out a new line of scanners. It's not like he was the head of a team of people working on the project.

As far as the comment, it was in another thread here on RR. Again, I'm not trying to call anyone out and I'm not going to go look for that post. I'm sure whoever made that statement was not involved with RR when Paul was still with us. I really don't think the post I'm referencing was made out of malice, but out of ignorance. We constantly see posts asking about the extra USB ports, or why this or that feature isn't in the SDS scanners, and why hasn't Uniden done something yet?

The answer is clear. Because Upman is gone.

Yes, we had another representative from Uniden here for a while. Perhaps he's still around. But he freely admitted that he wasn't Paul, and wasn't in the same position as Paul.

Paul can never be replaced.

Keeping within the topic of the additional port I vaguely do remember Paul referring to that being for something down the line or in the future.

Again, the brightest minds in Uniden have had five years to unlock the potential of the SDS 100.. Paul was in communication with Japan and I can't imagine that he didn't speak of or share his ideas for the future, obviously, the bottom line is, Unidem doesn't have the talent.

Look how many years it took them just to make useful firmware updates.

Fate is fate.

 

[Unidener]

What the shame is the Designer of the SDS Scanners passed away. We are not sure but he had always stated that the SDS Scanners had several updates but passed away before any other details were released. I think Paul UPMan took the plans with him.

I can't believe they can't find someone who can use/read his notes....surely Paul was/IS NOT the only person that can work on these scanners

 

[sallen07]

obviously, the bottom line is, Unidem doesn't have the talent.

I really don't think it's talent ... it's PASSION. Obviously Paul was a talented designer but the SDS scanners were his babies. He willed them into existence in spite of the relucatance of his company to invest in a new scanner. There is obviously no one out there with that combination of characteristics who is in a position to do anything about it.

I can't believe they can't find someone who can use/read his notes....

You are also assuming that there ARE notes. The Uniden rep that came after Paul told us that all those good ideas were floating around in Paul's head, not on paper. Thus the discussion about "why didn't he just tell someone". My answer to that is because he thought he would recover and be able to see them implemented, and by the time it became obvious that wasn't the case it was understandably no longer a priority for him.

....surely Paul was/IS NOT the only person that can work on these scanners

Evidence would suggest otherwise. Paul's been gone 5 1/2 years, and all we've seen is a few firmware updates, which is certainly better than NO firmware updates, but I don't think we'll ever see all those extra features Paul had envisioned.

There is also the business aspect of the whole thing. Obviously Uniden didn't feel the need to hire someone for Paul's position, which tells us that without him as an advocate for the product the corporation decided it was no longer a priority.

 

[trentbob]

I really don't think it's talent ... it's PASSION. Obviously Paul was a talented designer but the SDS scanners were his babies. He willed them into existence in spite of the relucatance of his company to invest in a new scanner. There is obviously no one out there with that combination of characteristics who is in a position to do anything about it.


You are also assuming that there ARE notes. The Uniden rep that came after Paul told us that all those good ideas were floating around in Paul's head, not on paper. Thus the discussion about "why didn't he just tell someone". My answer to that is because he thought he would recover and be able to see them implemented, and by the time it became obvious that wasn't the case it was understandably no longer a priority for him.


Evidence would suggest otherwise. Paul's been gone 5 1/2 years, and all we've seen is a few firmware updates, which is certainly better than NO firmware updates, but I don't think we'll ever see all those extra features Paul had envisioned.

There is also the business aspect of the whole thing. Obviously Uniden didn't feel the need to hire someone for Paul's position, which tells us that without him as an advocate for the product the corporation decided it was no longer a priority.

Well circling back to the extra port and what Paul might have had in mind for the future.. I do think passion as you say is important but I still feel it breaks down to talent and abilities, vision.

An SDR scanner had to be made by somebody out of the two scanner makers, phase ll simulcast was on its way.

I always got the feeling that the extra port was for a remote head.. now we get into the politics and the business plan and the the willingness to spend money. So maybe it isn't a lack of talent, maybe it's the companies management not letting the talent do its job because they don't care, they thought they were stronger than the competition and then they didn't have any competition at all which is now changed.

The the first Whistler scanners expected to be delivered at the end of June, albeit, they will be the same scanners the old company sold.

For those who remember the Bearcat RH-96 remote head which I thought was one of the most useful and coolest accessories was discontinued by Uniden because they were not popular enough and they didn't sell enough. Huh?

Maybe Uniden knows exactly what Paul had in mind for the extra port, and maybe he did document everything because he was required by management, in case something.. was to happen to him?

 

[buddrousa]

I have stated several times that I did not think UPMan let Uniden in on all the plans for the SDS Scanners why would he it would be a way of seeing that you are a value to the company and would get paid for all your work.

 

[trentbob]

I have stated several times that I did not think UPMan let Uniden in on all the plans for the SDS Scanners why would he it would be a way of seeing that you are a value to the company and would get paid for all your work.

That's an interesting theory, at some point he was deeply embedded in the project and it was his product.

I'm sure there were features, especially future expansion that he had to talk to his bosses about. He had to explain what the second Port was for just so he could get the second port.

I think once the SDS 100 pulled together.. went into beta testing, I would think job security was the last thing Paul was thinking about. The key here is we don't know what he was thinking or if he held back information for whatever reason he chose to.

Uniden knew who and what they had in Paul. They really needed him once the radio was released, whether it was premature or not, secondary to accidental disclosure by a vendor. Then of course we had whistler's end run which is irrelevant here. But there was no way to know how that situation would eventually have played out LOL.

Do you remember firmware friday's? There were some issues in the beginning, I remember when the radio didn't work for me in simulcast hell in the Northeast. The firmware that slowed the system hold down just a little bit and addressed housekeeping issues, along with the firmware for the first set of basic filters solved my problem.. it was like a miracle.

This was before Paul was fully diagnosed, maybe some people remember he made a video for Uniden where his voice was hoarse and he could only whisper.

I vaguely remember him talking about it and at that time it was felt whatever the problem was, it was benign.

To your point.. who knows what he was thinking then. We also don't know what the inside scoop was and scuttlebutt as far as unidens business plan. Maybe he felt he needed to protect his job security. We don't know.

Even in May of 2019 when he said if anybody has any questions or needs to talk to me I am going to be going for a procedure in the hospital for a week or so.

It was supposed to be a lot more routine than it ended up.. being much more serious.. again who knows what he was thinking.

The question for thisll thread is, did Uniden know what the extra port was for in the future and that would mean that they know now.

Now looking back maybe there was information that wasn't totally transparent to management but was still a doable vision by Paul.

We don't know.. we also don't know what the radio would look like if Paul was still alive today😉.

 

[Unidener]

I really don't think it's talent ... it's PASSION. Obviously Paul was a talented designer but the SDS scanners were his babies. He willed them into existence in spite of the relucatance of his company to invest in a new scanner. There is obviously no one out there with that combination of characteristics who is in a position to do anything about it.


You are also assuming that there ARE notes. The Uniden rep that came after Paul told us that all those good ideas were floating around in Paul's head, not on paper. Thus the discussion about "why didn't he just tell someone". My answer to that is because he thought he would recover and be able to see them implemented, and by the time it became obvious that wasn't the case it was understandably no longer a priority for him.


Evidence would suggest otherwise. Paul's been gone 5 1/2 years, and all we've seen is a few firmware updates, which is certainly better than NO firmware updates, but I don't think we'll ever see all those extra features Paul had envisioned.

There is also the business aspect of the whole thing. Obviously Uniden didn't feel the need to hire someone for Paul's position, which tells us that without him as an advocate for the product the corporation decided it was no longer a priority.

Oh....I'm not knocking Paul....I just can't believe that Uniden would not have teams (especially years ago). Reminds me of one of my first IT jobs, my boss (she) was an Olympic and world champion in kick boxing so I listened to her (very pretty also) and she wold always ask me a question then she would say "were is your documentation".....It wasn't until years later that I really appreciated her nagging but it payed off.

It's a shame that he's gone but hopefully someone is trying to pick up where he left off.....

I was always a Radio Shack man until Uniden started making the best scanners.....wonder if that's when Paul got into the game?

 

[KE4ZNR]

I was always a Radio Shack man until Uniden started making the best scanners.....wonder if that's when Paul got into the game?

Paul worked for Radio Shack before he worked for Uniden.....so he was behind some Radio Shack models before he started at Uniden.

 

[buddrousa]

Paul had also posted here about his history and even posted a link to his old Radioshack scanner Email address.
We know that the SDS line was not his first scanner design.

 

[trentbob]

Paul had also posted here about his history and even posted a link to his old Radioshack scanner Email address.
We know that the SDS line was not his first scanner design.

Object oriented scanning?