Mailbox
This week in Mailbox: problems with accessing Radio Prague's website, weather extremes in the Czech Republic, Radio Prague podcast service, the fifty-heller coin. Listeners quoted: Christopher Lewis, Umesh Kumar Yadav, Michel Solis, Trevor Ayson.
Christopher Lewis who listens to Radio Prague in England has recently been experiencing problems with our website:
"Dear RP, a few days ago I tried to access the www.radio.cz web site, and it would not work. I phoned to enquire about this, and found out that the servers were being changed. I tried accessing the site a couple minutes ago, and it was up and running. All except the audio service. I tried to listen to Mailbox, but I got a message saying 'gateway timed out'. The same happened with Magazine. I would appreciate any help with this."
Indeed, our website was not working for several hours last Thursday as the whole Radio Prague internet service complete with the server was being moved to a different building - due to the upcoming renovation of the historic Czech Radio building on Vinohradska Street. Temporary problems may still occur in the coming days in connection with the relocation - we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience.
Our regular listener from India, Umesh Kumar Yadav sent us this e-mail:
"I used to listen to your programme via WRN. I tuned in to you on 9 August 2007 at 1600 hrs UTC. I really liked the topic of the day's Talking Point. In India we are also facing heat [as a result] of global warming. It's a fact that the whole world is going to face drastic weather changes in the coming future. I had come to know about floods in Prague through your programmes. Experts say that Czechs should be ready to face such problems in the near future. I think that the time has come for the whole world to take steps to protect the ozone layer. Otherwise mankind may face danger from nature."
Good old short wave is one of a number of ways of tuning in to Radio Prague programmes. Michel Solis who normally listens to the early morning FM rebroadcasts in Canada wanted to let us know that he is still listening - but using a different medium.
"Hi from Canada! As it is summer, work days are shorter and rush hour traffic is not as tight, I do not wake up at 5.00 am... so I don't listen to you on the CBC... However, I have just remembered, silly me, that I can download your program and listen at the time of my choice on my MP3 player. I guess that when you are older than 40, MP3 players don't come to mind as automatically... Thanks for your good work."
And thanks for letting us know that you are out there listening to our broadcasts.
Trevor Ayson from New Zealand who is currently based in the Czech Republic is responding to a report on the planned withdrawal of the smallest Czech coin.
"I hear, with interest, that the fifty-heller coin is to be withdrawn, which I think is a good move. Quite frankly I find the coin not much use at all, I can't buy tram or bus tickets with it. Actually at the gymnazium I teach at the only use we have for the fifty-heller coin is for game counters! I'm from New Zealand, and our smallest two coins, the one and two cent coins, were withdrawn in the 1990s, while last year the five cent coin was withdrawn. They are not missed by New Zealanders as they, like the fifty-heller coin, had become a nuisance in that you couldn't buy much with them and were heavy. But one good thing about the hellers, at least they are light, and some bank employees in New Zealand were amazed at how light the heller coin was when I showed them!"
And let me just add that the fifty-heller coin is still bigger and heavier than the twenty and ten-heller coins that were withdrawn four years ago, not mentioning the five-heller coin which was even tinier.
Thank you for your comments as well as your reception reports and answers to our competition question. This month's quiz question is short and simple:
This month we would like you to tell us who the first official world chess champion was.
As usual we await your answers at [email protected] or Radio Prague, 12099, Prague by the end of the month. Until next week, good-bye.
