"I love the pictures.. but, um.. WHAT is it again that you're actually DOING there???"

During the past 13 busy days, I've been working to bring the Olympics from Vancouver to your couch at home.  Since the actual process is long and complicated, I'll break it down in some relatively simple terms:

1. video of the Olympic action (sports, ceremonies, commentary) is shot at the City and Mountain venues and then sent to the IBC via a fiber optic network (the IBC stands for: International Broadcast Centre.  you know.. where I work.  remember?)
2. the video is then transmitted within the IBC to all the Rights-Holding Broadcasters, RHBs -(NBC, CTV, etc.)
3. the RHBs package all the video with commentary and commercials, etc and send it to the world via their own TV fiber networks or by satellite.
4. the local networks get it from the RHBs and distribute to your house.  viola!

My job is to maintain the heath and welfare of the fiber optic network mentioned in bullet point #1.  I work for Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) - the Host Broadcaster.

if you still are scratching your head... here's a picture:

(it all happens Automagically)

so, seeing as I've been here for nearly a month, I suppose it's fitting that I finally show you some pictures of where I'm spending the majority of my time.   The CDT.  CDT stands for Contribution, Distribution & Transmission (it's in the middle of the IBC.. I know, too many acronyms)...  anyone that actually wants me to explain any of this in further detail can see me after class.

Just as a refresher, here's a picture of the IBC:

(sloped building on the right )

here are some shots of the CDT:

I attempted to stitch together a panoramic view of all the screens using an automatic program.  the result:

pretty neat looking..  but here's the real one (click):

here is my team, the Broadcast Telecom Crew - Vancouver 2010:

yes, we're all geeks.  so what?  I'm a cool geek, at least.

So, that's about it for now.  Just as long as you're seeing a nice, crisp, clear picture - you'll know that I'm doing my job.  If not, please call your local cable provider :)

In conclusion, here are some pretty trees I found: