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Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed?

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On 2026/9/14 14:37:41, NY wrote:
> On 14/09/2026 10:55, Richard Tobin wrote:
>> In article <118702e$u449$1@dont-email.me>, NY  <me@privacy.net> wrote:
>>
>>> Mainstream channels such as BBC1 and ITV broadcast everything as 16:9,
>>> so 4:3 programmes occupy the centre of the 16:9 frame and hence only a
>>> proportion of the 720 pixels are used: the rest is used for the black
>>> border. This means that the horizontal resolution of the picture is crap
>>> (to use a technical term!).
>>
>> Do they use the same bitrate as for 16:9 programs?  If so, there
>> should be less compression which will to some extent compensate
>> for the lower resolution.

And, if there is compression, the side black bits should compress almost
to nothing, which should also add to the available bits.

> Very true. Except... Old 4:3 programmes were made using analogue cameras 
> and stored on analogue videotape. This introduces noise that doesn't 
> compress well. BBC channels often increase the bitrate of 
> made-on-analogue archive programmes to compensate for this. Some other 
> broadcasters don't bother - and the picture quality is worse.

I didn't know that. Though professional-quality VTRs would have pretty
low noise.
-- 
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()ALIS-Ch++(p)Ar++T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"Farc gorillas who live in the plains of the undies ..."
- automatic subtitling seen on BBC one o'clock news, 2016-8-25,
by Cynthia Hollingworth.

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Thread

Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-07 21:28 +0100
  Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? NY <me@privacy.net> - 2026-09-13 21:11 +0100
    Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-13 22:39 +0100
    Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-13 23:39 +0100
      Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-14 03:12 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-18 22:50 +0100
          Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-19 00:36 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-18 22:57 +0100
          Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-19 00:38 +0100
            Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-19 05:03 +0100
              Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-19 22:01 +0100
    Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? richard@cogsci.ed.ac.uk (Richard Tobin) - 2026-09-14 09:55 +0000
      Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? NY <me@privacy.net> - 2026-09-14 14:37 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-14 19:15 +0100
    Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? wolfgang s <see@sig.nature> - 2026-09-18 09:19 +0000
      Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? NY <me@privacy.net> - 2026-09-18 13:09 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-18 22:13 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-18 22:42 +0100
        Re: Has the way the 4:3 flag is broadcast been changed? wolfgang s <see@sig.nature> - 2026-09-20 19:03 +0000

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