The Rural Voice, 2000-01, Page 50AgriTech
Agvision hooks into rural audience
By Janice Becker
It is step forward in linking a tele-
vision -addicted society to the Inter-
net. to get people involved in discus-
sions and make contact with leaders
in the agricultural field.
A month and a half ago. several
CHUM -owned Ontario television sta-
tions. in co-operation with
eharvest.com Inc. of London.
launched Agvision.
By using the Sunday afternoon
television broadcast of Agvision.
interfaced with ah Internet site at
www.eharvest.com/agvisiontv/.
viewers can preview topics weeks in
advance, pose questions which may
be discussed during the broadcast.
then go back on-line later to continue
dialogues with experts.
With a change in agricultural pro-
gramming on The New PL, WI, NX.
RO and CP24 last spring. manage-
ment began to look for an innovative
way to meet the needs of the rural
audience, said Program and Promo-
tion Manager Don Mumford. The
result was Agvision with farm show
host and producer Kevin Stewart.
The internet connection will allow
not only Southwestern
Ontario producers to
interact with guests,
but will provide an
opportunity for •
surfers around the
world to understand
components of
Canadian agricultural
concerns.
When checking out
the website. I was put off by the ini-
tial impression. One of my pet peeves
is sites that only use one-third of the
screen for active information while
the rest is used for logos.
Unfortunately, Agvision subscribes to
this type of design and scrolling is
need to find wanted material. This
definitely decreases its user-friendly
status.
One aspect I did like was the access
to previous programs via internet
video. My one recommendation
before trying to view earlier shows is
to give yourself lots of time. To view
Internet
allows
audience
interaction
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46 THE RURAL VOICE
a half hour show, it takes approxi-
mately the same time to download
using conventional phone lines. You
must also have a RealVideo player
add-on to be able to view the video.
To find the download link, scroll
down to choose the program, hit GO,
then scroll right where, in small print,
it says 28.2 / Tl. Click on the appro-
priate modem.
Though the wait seems excessive,
once the show is ready, it is a great
way to hear what the industry experts
have to say. And just like a video, the
image can be paused, rewound or
fast- forwarded to get to the points of
interest. It even has commercials just
like television, but these are geared
strictly to the agriculturalist audience
expected.
The video image is not clear on my
Pentium 133, so don't expect to read
broadcast print. However. the more
important aspect of audio is very
good.
Aside from suggesting questions to
the list of guests, visitors to can par-
ticipate in on-line polling and view
the results. One poll was of particular
interest to me as the writer of a tech-
nology column and I would be inter-
ested to hear from my readers on this
question as well. Do you think the
internet has made you a better
farmer?
With a result of 72 per cent saying
"yes" on-line, I would like to hear
why and how it has made you better
farmers.
Participants are welcome to post
comments on the show and respond
to others through eharvest's Agvision
TV chat forum. A list of links will
take participants to sites which cover
similar topics to those discussed by
the program guests.
While this site is not one I would
use frequently to' view previous
shows, mainly due to the download
time, it would be useful for that
missed show which was on the "must
watch" list.
Suggestions, feedback or interest-
ing websites can be emailed to beck-
er@wcl.on.ca.
Janice Becker is a computer enthusi-
ast and journalist living near Walton,
ON.