There is no escaping from software, it is everywhere (the car, the washing machine, the tax monolith) and broadcasting is no exception. The software can be embedded in a micro-controller, like the RDS generator, embedded in a DSP like the stereo generator or run on a PC like the RDS configuration software. Here we are going to look some functions, componenet, applications that are intresting to know about.
SNTP stands for Simple Network Time Protocol (implying there is a CNTP as well!). Very usefull for esuring devices are correctly timed. It is alright having a crystal clock, either explicit (Maxim DS1308) or implicit (the CPU with a real time clock) but unless the clock is held in a temperature controlled oven (very expensive) it will loose/gain time.
However there is a very easy way of keeping the time correct, assuming there access to Internet, that is to poll a time server periodically to get the real time and update the clock of the device in question. Time servers are special servers, located all over the web, (Normally several per country) that provide a time service for any one who cares to launch a time request. That request is made by sending a SNTP formated request to the server and if politely made the time server will send back the current universal time. ie: the time received is not dependent ofn the location of the server or the location of the request. Though as to seen later it is convenient to us a server located in the same country as the petition source
SNMP stands for Simple Network Management Protocol (Is there a CNMP as well?). This is a universal protocol for management of network devices and that means any type of network not just IP, LAN but serial, CAN, microwave, radio, in fact anything that has bi-directional communication.
SNMP works by assigning an octet based number (OID = object identifier), similar in format to an IP address, to a property of a piece of equipment. This number can be so large as to be sufficient to ask the properties of every electron in the universe. So it is unlikely that OID's will run out in the near future.
Components are small snippets of self contained code, usually items for display purposes and made up of more fundermental elements, such as a TextBox...