WeatherProducer
 Only known screenshot of WeatherProducer software. | |
| Other names | WEATHERproducer WxPro |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Weather Services International (WSI) |
| Initial release | Late 1990s |
| Operating system | IRIX 6.5.16f |
| Platform | SGI O2, possibly PC |
| Available in | English |
WeatherProducer (also formatted as WEATHERproducer and sometimes abbreviated as WxPro) was a software platform developed by Weather Services International (WSI) for the development of television weather graphics.
Overview
WeatherProducer was used by television news networks throughout the United States from roughly the late 1990s through early 2010s. The most famous use case of the software was by The Weather Channel (TWC) until the network’s high definition transition in June 2008. Images produced using WeatherProducer were also used to supply radar and forecast image products for TWC's website, weather.com.
WeatherProducer was known to have run on the Silicon Graphics O2 platform, the same platform The Weather Channel utilized for its Weather Star XL local forecast presentation system. The O2-based WxPro setup utilized three separate machines[1], each with their own software, performing different functions, but working together under the broader WxPro software suite. For example. one of the only major documented software components was ShowFX, which appears to have been the suite's playback and animation component. There is at least one source of evidence that WeatherProducer was upgraded to work on a PC-based platform by late 2002.[2]
Hardware specifications for the O2 machines running WeatherProducer varied. A Commerce Business Daily listing requesting a WeatherProducer upgrade for the Department of Defense in 2000 noted a 300MHz R1200 CPU, 256GB memory, and a 9GB hard drive.[3] According to one user who sold a machine with the software in 2008, later hardware (an SGI O2+) featured a 300MHz RM5200 CPU, 1GB memory, a 9GB primary hard drive, a 4 GB secondary hard drive, and Silicon Graphics Video Capture Module.[4]
Discontinuation and current status
Videos on YouTube suggest that WeatherProducer was in use through the mid-2010s prior to being retired. Despite various attempts to locate the software, a complete copy of WeatherProducer has not been recovered and is considered lost media. Complicating the archival of the WxPro suite is the distribution of the software across more than one machine.
References
- ↑ This information was sourced from meteorologists at WDAM-TV, (Hattiesburg-Laurel, MS), who recalled working with the software through the mid-to-late 2000s.
- ↑ Kerschbaumer, Ken (September 15, 2002). "Satisfying the Weather Junkie". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=qUNwT2VecHwC&pg=RA28-PA33&lpg=RA28-PA33&dq=%22wsi%22+showfx&source=bl&ots=4F2OkkQyr0&sig=ACfU3U2_1LSwLz72p1dEDIHrQEA7FeB2OA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjJq8736pGCAxWcm2oFHXCBCqE4HhDoAXoECAIQAw#v=onepage&q=weather&f=false
- ↑ "FA: O2+ 300MHz - 1GB RAM - DVD - A/V - Post-Production TV Studio System". Google Groups. September 10, 2008. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
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