America's Public Television Stations (APTS)America's Public Television Stations (APTS) - a national membership organization that supports a strong financially sound public television system.

Audio bridge - ETV's telephone conferencing system that unites multiple combinations of phone lines for high-quality conference calls. Up to 48 lines can be used at one time.

Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) - the non-profit corporation authorized by the federal government in 1967 to develop non-commercial TV and radio services in America. CPB funds public television and radio stations directly with Community Service Grants.

Digital transmission - a compressed electronic signal where information is transmitted in the form of numbers so signals can be mathematically manipulated to eliminate redundant or unwanted information to occupy less bandwidth. ETV's 32-channel satellite capability is possible because of digital transmission.

Distance Education Learning Centers (formerly called Tape and Delay Centers) - the 28 sites located around the state where schools produce and transmit district-wide programming via the ITFS system tailored to the individual schools' needs for live interactive classes, meetings, staff development presentations and student projects. The centers also receive programming over the ETV satellite system that can be taped and broadcast for later use.

Downlink - to receive a signal from the satellite. These are the dishes ETV's users have on site.

ETV Endowment- the non-profit foundation located in Spartanburg that raises the funds to purchase most of ETV's evening program schedule. The Endowment also raised more than $3.2 million through a separate Capital Campaign to fund the purchase of the ETV technology complex.

Instructional Television (ITV) - programming delivered to the classroom through over-the-air broadcasts. Usually used as supplemental instructional materials.

Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS) - a point-to-multipoint microwave signal ETV uses statewide to distribute programming to schools and colleges. ETV operates both Local Area Transmitters (LAT) and Wide Area Transmitters (WAT).

Local Area Transmitter (LAT) - provides four channels of instructional television programming to schools district(s) within the coverage areas of the Tape and Delay Centers. Programming is scheduled locally by school district(s) involved using the ITFS system.

Microwave System - a line of sight signal from one small dish to another that is fixed and fairly inexpensive. Plans are underway to turn around ETV's microwave system so that many simultaneous signals can be transmitted back to Columbia and broadcast statewide through the satellite system.

National Public Radio (NPR) - a principal producer and distributor of national public radio programming.

Office of Instructional Technology (OIT) - part of the State Department of Education that is housed at ETV. They are responsible for the content and development of most in-school and staff development programs produced by ETV.

Open circuit television - over the air transmission of a television signal.

Origination site - the location from which a satellite signal is uplinked or a South Carolina site that can send programming back to ETV using the microwave system of fiber optic lines.

Public Services Network (PSN) - a service of ETV that provides teleconferencing services to South Carolina law enforcement, fire fighters, EMS and other public safety groups. More than 80 downlink sites are located around the state that allow for interactive and one-way training.

Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) - formed in 1969 to distribute public television programming nationally. It is currently comprised of about 325 members stations.

Receive site - location where a satellite signal is downlinked or where an ITFS signal can be received and displayed.

Regional stations - ETV has four stations around the state in Spartanburg, Sumter, Beaufort and Rock Hill that serve as local production facilities as well as origination sites for statewide satellite broadcasts.

Satellite - a high-tech "mirror" which reflects a signal back to earth. Telstar 401 is the AT&T satellite used by ETV and other educational entities to distribute programming and other services.

Satellite Educational Resources Consortium (SERC) - distance education project that uses satellite technology to bring live, interactive courses in math, science and foreign languages to underserved schools in 23 states including South Carolina. ETV produces programming for SERC.

Short Distance Learning (SDL) - using satellite and microwave technology, schools share a teacher's speciality with the entire district through live, lowcost interactive classes transmitted through the Tape and Delay Centers.

Teleconference (Videoconference) - point to multi-point "electronic meetings" transmitted by satellite where participants at multiple locations around the state or the country use two-way audio and one-way video to communicate.

Transmitter sites - locations where ETV antennae send out signals directly to homes. There are eight radio transmitters sites and 11 television transmitter sites in the ETV network that allow for statewide over-the-air coverage of the ETV signal.

Transponder - equipment on board a satellite including the antenna, receiver and transmitter that receives and retransmits a signal. ETV's transponder is located on the Telstar 401 satellite.

Uplink - to send a signal up to a satellite requiring a special dish and reservation of time on the satellite.

Video passthrough - a program where ETV acts as a conduit from an origination site to one or multiple receive sites.

Wide Area Transmitter (WAT) - provides two channels of instructional television programming to some middle and secondary schools and two channels of programming to higher education, law enforcement, tech schools, and medical users. Programming is scheduled on a common statewide schedule by ETV using the ITFS system.

World Wide Web (WWW) - a highly graphical computer-based information network. The ETV Web Site address is http://www.scetv.org/, and the ETV Radio Web Site is http://www.etvradio.org

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For more information, contact:
Catherine Christman, Vice President, Communications
Voice: (803) 737-3259
Fax: (803) 737-3417
E-mail:christman@scetv.org