NIU’s TV-8 television station is the recipient of a computer graphics system worth over $20,000, which projects animated graphics images onto the television screen.

The hardware was donated last fall by Commodore computers. The software was donated by Weather Connect, a company owned by weatherman Jerry Taft, that specializes in weather graphics.

Brendan Larson, a broadcast meteorology student, said it took about eight months to convince Commodore Computers to donate the system. Letters from professors and a genuine student interest showed a need for the system in the station.

Larson said he worked with Taft to implement the new system, which includes a computer work station used for graphic production at TV-8. It projects weather images and other types of designs that are commonly seen over the shoulder of newscasters and weathermen.

The new system will allow the meteorology students to design their own weather maps by using computer graphics. The old method forced the students to draw their maps by hand, which they had done since the station opened 16 years ago.

Larson said students spent most of the day drawing maps by hand so the old method required them to have a minimal amount of artistic talent.

“There’s no reason why you should have to be an artist to put together weather maps,” he said.

Laura Ries, TV-8 producer, said the system allows the artist who draws the other images to be more creative. The computer creates images that move across the screen and has 4,096 different colors to manipulate.

Larson said the system “improves the entire look of the overall program drastically.”

David Blodgett, a broadcast meteorology student, said the system gives the audience a better feel for what is happening in the weather because there are more symbols and it is easier to create images.

The program is new on the market and is considered a “silent surprise” because it is a revolutionary product that is not very well known, Larson said.

Blodgett said the system is a “great advantage that has revolutionized television meteorology at TV-8” because many major TV stations do not have the system.

Ries said the computer system is “very true to life” because if the computer malfunctions, the weathermen do not have handwritten maps to fall back on, only their talent.

The rapid rate of technology may cause the hardware to be outdated in about 10 years, Larson said. He added that, in his opinion, “the software will never be outdated.”