Automation systems
Most of this help says "your automation system", because the job is the same whichever one your station uses. This page covers particular products.
Products are named here only to describe what Cartwright works with. Cartwright is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by any of them, and all trademarks belong to their owners.
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StationPlaylist
In StationPlaylist, Creator builds the playlists and brings in the traffic log. Studio plays them and writes the as-run (the record of what really played).
Where things are
| What | Where |
|---|---|
| Traffic log goes in | Creator's watched import folder |
| Import result | C:\Program Files (x86)\StationPlaylist\Logs\TrafficImport.log |
| As-run comes from | SLog-yymmdd.csv in the playlists folder |
| Audio | The folder Creator has scanned as its library |
Verify import reads Creator's import result for you. It is the same text Creator shows on its own Details tab.
Reading the import result
A good result looks like this:
Importing Traffic Log File "D:\Playlists\110926t1.log" No traffic data found for 06:07 4 items inserted out of 4 total items
- "No traffic data found for hh:mm" is normal. It names a Commercial Break Note in the playlist with nothing sold into it. Expect one for each unsold break in each hour.
- "0 items inserted out of N total items" means the file was read, but there was no Commercial Break Note at that minute for the spots to go into. Creator places each spot at a break note, so with no note there, nothing lands. Check that the rotation has break notes at the times you are scheduling into.
- "The Traffic Log file structure is incorrect" means the columns were not what Creator expected. Call (707) 505-8885 or email hello@cartwright.fm and we will help.
New audio needs a library rescan
Creator finds audio by looking in its scanned library, not in the folder. Audio copied into the folder after Creator last scanned stays hidden from Creator until the library is scanned again.
This is worth knowing because the log can be perfect and the spot still not be found. If that happens, have Creator scan its library again, then rebuild the day. See Rebuilding a day in Creator.
Live reads and billboards
Live reads and billboards never go to Creator. They are left out of the traffic log, and the presenter marks each one read on Liners. See Live reads.
Leave Creator's own files alone
Cartwright places a log file in the watched folder and stops there. Creator picks it up on its own schedule. Keeping to that is what keeps your air signal safe.
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Streaming providers
If your stream carries network ads, your streaming provider owns some of your break time, and that time is not yours to sell. Cartwright takes it out before it schedules your spots. See Breaks, and why times move.
Set the reserved time in Settings.
Live365
Live365's With Ads package is owed two 120-second breaks an hour, so reserve 240 seconds per hour.
Reserve the full time it is owed, not the time it usually uses. It can use all of its time whenever it likes, and reserving less can leave you selling more time than the hour has.
Live365 also reads the labels (tags) on your audio files, so Cartwright adds them when it stages a spot, before the file lands.
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Using a different automation system
Cartwright's scheduling does not depend on one product. To work with another automation system, Cartwright needs:
- A folder it watches for incoming traffic logs.
- The row layout it expects. Cartwright writes fixed-width columns, which most traffic importers accept.
- Breaks in its playlists, so the spots have somewhere to go.
- An as-run file it writes afterward, so Cartwright can check what aired.
If your system is not listed here, those four things are all it takes, and none of them needs Cartwright to change your automation system's own files. To talk it through, call (707) 505-8885 or email hello@cartwright.fm.
Still stuck?
Email hello@cartwright.fm. One person reads it, and you will get a real answer rather than a ticket number.
What we can help with: exactly what Cartwright did, and what your automation system said back — we read its import log and put it in plain words.
What we cannot do is set up another company's software for you. If the fix is a setting inside your automation system, that is a question for its support desk, and we will tell you so rather than guess.