GSelector and Selector 12 and 15 differ in a number of ways. For a full overview of the differences, see the GSelector and Selector compared topic.
This has a direct effect on a conversion from Selector databases to GSelector. Many GSelector screens (and the fields in them) are new or rethought; not all fields in Selector have a direct GSelector equivalent. So we will ask you to make some choices at different stages in the conversion process. If you have a very developed and detailed database, using a lot of fields to carry information, you many need to do some configuration work in your Selector database before converting up to GSelector. Your Selector database may be very complex, or it may be very straightforward. But we suggest you go through these notes in full before starting the import process.
The import process: an overview
Preparing your Selector database
The Selector - GSelector import tool reads your Selector Database, or your multiple Selector Databases in sequence, and asks you, one window at a time, to make decisions that affect how we handle your data. This is not a difficult process, but it does involve detail work. The more complex your Selector database, the more you may need to take a little time to work out your best options. However, you may not need to change any settings in these windows, as the default settings we provide are designed to suit the majority of formats.
The import tool will translate key Selector information - Clocks, Library, Category structures, Browse Requests. and Schedule History - from Selector to GSelector equivalents. We ask you to select your most important Priority List and apply that as the basis for Goal settings, and we also ask you to review your Category and Level settings to reflect the GSelector structure. Other settings like multiple Policies, Last Play window, and many others are simply superseded by GSelector's powerful built in spread tools.
TIP: If after completing the import procedure, you find your settings are horribly wrong, you can always start over. Follow the steps outlined here.
User Defined fields and Custom User Defined fields will need to be defined before the import process for the fields to show in the v12toGS field mapping window. Make sure your Selector data is present and correct. If Selector 12/15 song or link data is missing, those items are not imported, and are listed in a discrepancy list in the progress report pane. For most Selector users, the import process is straightforward.
However, be prepared copy or move data in the Conditional Changer/Changer window to a new source field. For example, many stations no longer use the Selector Album field for its original purpose. As it offers the ability to separate songs, this field is used in many innovative ways by Selector users. Moving this information to an unused Selector field (say Research Notes) and then importing from this source field lets your data be copied to a User-defined or Custom User Defined field in GSelector. It is recommended these fields be defined in the GSelector database prior to import. Once in GSelector, songs with this information can be browsed, and a new Sound Code or Attribute can be applied as required.
Specifying Selector ID source fields for GSelector Media ID fields
Specifying Selector fields to GSelector User-defined fields
Station Name, Research, Alternate Category and Scalar options
Assigning Categories to Groups
I already have a GSelector database - where does data go?
GSelector uses a single global Media ID for Songs in all stations in the GSelector database, and also allows a Local ID for each station if you need this.
Here, you select the Selector source field for data to ID data to copy to the GSelector global ID field. We list the most commonly used Selector ID fields. If you use other Selector 12/15 fields, use the Selector 12/15 Conditional Changer Copy or Move tool to transfer this data to one of the fields below, and then import from that field. See the notes on preparing your Selector database in this topic.
NOTE: If you are importing Selector songs into an existing GSelector database and you want you import a Selector database with different ID attributes, you will be asked to change your Selector parameters, or the settings in Setup section Station - Media IDs window. See the notes on this topic on working with existing Selector Databases.
GSelector offers 10 User-defined fields and up to 89 Custom User Defined fields in the Song and Link Additional Information windows. They share common names and functions in both windows, but you define what data these fields can hold. Custom User Defined fields must be defined in the new GSelector database to show in this window.
In this conversion window you pick supplementary Selector 12/15 fields to copy their contents to the GSelector user defined fields; the selected fields are also renamed in GSelector, unless you set the associated field to blank. This process is library-wide, not station-specific. In this window we suggest the most-used supplementary fields in Selector.
TIP: If you already use User-Defined fields in the GSelector target database, you can protect these. Click the drop down arrow in any User-defined field to see the Selector 12/15 fields list, and scroll up so that the entry for this field is blank. This will prevent original GSelector data from being overwritten.
TIP: For more information on this and other areas, see the GSelector and Selector compared topic.
In Selector 12/15, you can have a maximum of four Artists per song, and you can convert all of Artist fields, or just the Artist fields you wish to convert into the Artist field in GSelector. In GSelector you can specify an unlimited number of Artists, called Participants, for any song. In GSelector, Participant roles are used to classify the contribution each Participant makes to the song. GSelector has Participant roles like Vocalist, Musician, Composer and more.
In GSelector a Participant can take on multiple roles: someone like John Mayer, for example, could have Vocalist, Musician, Producer and Composer roles. In the conversion process, you pick which Participant role should be assigned to the Artists in the four Selector Artist fields. In most Popular music formats, you will be categorizing just your Artist 1 and Artist 2 as Vocalists. Some users will opt to also Categorize Artist 3 and Artist 4 as well.
Any combination of the four Selector Artist fields can be combined into one GSelector Artist Name field.
The Station Song Attributes is used to map song attributes to be Global or Station specific attributes. If the attribute is set to Station, then the attribute can be set for the asset in the Station Song Attributes window from the Song Window for the station. If the attribute is set to Global, use the Song Coding window to set a Global attribute for the song.
This window allows you to select options for Station Name, Research and Alternate Categories areas. You can also set the scale range (5 or 9) you want in the Texture field.
Click any area in this pane for help
Click any area in this pane for help
Click one of the three options here to specific what information is copied into the Station Name field in GSelector. You can select basic information (the Selector Call Letters field) or more detailed information (the Selector Slogan field, the folder name), or a combination.
These two options allow you to decide how the information in the Selector rows is treated. If you always use the same score type (for example, you always do Auditorium research), then select the first option. But if you use different score types for one date (for example, Auditorium and Call-out), select the second option.
TIP: Selector Alternate Category uses, especially the hours used in the defining Selector Station Dayparts, can vary enormously. If the Selector Station Daypart stretches across all hours of the day - for example with a checkerboard pattern - it is possible that any Songs with this Daypart will not be assigned to their target Category at all, but instead to their Alternate Category, especially if you select the Any Hours option. If you are such a user of Dayparts when working with Selector Alternate Category, you might wish to consider reviewing your use of Dayparts before converting up.
In GSelector, you can have as many Alternate Categories as you have active Dayparts for any Song or Link. In Selector 12/15, you assign one Alternate Category to a Song or Link, in hours set by the Selector 12/15 Station Daypart (the equivalent of the GSelector Hour Restriction ) assigned to the song or link. So, in the import window, you decide where the existing Selector Alternate Category is to be allocated.
Select the default Majority of hours option to specify the Alternate Category in the GSelector Daypart that most closely matches the hours in the Selector Daypart. The other option is to allow Any Hour to be used. Here, the conversion program assigns the Selector Alternate Category in all GSelector Dayparts which have any hour assigned for the Selector Alternate Category.
Where your source Selector database is used with Master Control, check the box if you wish to use GSelector Master Control Integration, and enter details for the XML Server and 15 Database.
Scalar fields - Mood, Energy and others - are so called because they work on a scale of, say , 1 to 5. GSelector offers two options, to match those available in Selector - a scale of 1 to 5 or 1 to 9.
The final screen in the Convert process is Import. When satisfied with the selection made click the Import button.
TIP: This option is for advanced users. If you are installing for the first time, skip this section.
If you want to add new Selector stations to an existing GSelector library, you don't need to change your existing settings.
If you are importing Selector station databases to a new GSelector database, and you do not plan to share data between GSelector library databases, you must create one (or more) new GSelector databases. To do this:
GSelector uses Category Groups which can have as many Categories as you want. Selector 12 allows up to three Levels per Category; Selector 15 up to nine. So this window offers you the option to reassign your old Selector levels to existing or new GSelector Category Groups. In many cases, however, you won't need to change your existing Selector structure; the import process will simply convert this to GSelector Category Groups and Categories.
The final decision is to select a Priority list. We suggest you select a list associated with a major Gold or Recurrent category. If you do need to change things, follow the instructions below.
TIP: GSelector uses a very different method of prioritizing rules: Dayparts handle Policy Assignments, and you have complete flexibility in adjusting demand in every daypart.
Features in the Category Groups/Category Assignment window
Working in the Category Groups/Category Assignment window
Click any area in this image for help
Click any area in this image for help
In GSelector, Songs are organized into Categories, and Categories into Category Groups, which can hold as many Categories as you want.
The import process assigns the old Selector Categories to GSelector Category Groups, and the old Selector Category Levels into Categories within those Groups. The window shows how your Selector Category structure will be converted into the GSelector Category Group structure. Click any Category Group node to view all Categories assigned to that Category Group.
In many cases, you will not need to edit the structure. However, where you call for a Selector Category Level Clock position (see the 9/1, 9/2 and 9/3 Groups shown in the list in the image), the GSelector Import wizard treats these Category Levels as single-Category Groups. This allows your Clock Structures to be precisely duplicated, with GSelector Category Groups clock positions taking the place of Selector Category and Category Level clock positions in all cases.
NOTE: You can view the content of each Group, and reassign Categories to different or new Category Groups. However, if your Selector Clocks have Category Level positions, you might have to edit your GSelector Clocks after conversion if you reassign your Selector Categories and Levels. If you do not explicitly call for Category Level Clock positions, this is not an issue.
The Order list for Category Groups is taken from your Selector 12/15 Pass Orders, and is copied to the Category Group Importance window. You can edit the order by using the move Up and Down buttons.
GSelector does not use separate Priority Lists, as does Selector. In this window, we ask you to pick the Selector Priority list that you feel is most representative of the type of control you want, and the GSelector import process will do the rest. Many users select a Selector Priority List that is associated to a high pass order Category, where their most important rules are assigned.
This pane is used to move Categories between Groups, or to 'park' Categories that won't be imported; parked Categories do not copy across to GSelector during the import process.
Click to move a Category from its original group to the Category Group Edit pane, and to reassign this Category to a different group. See the notes on reassigning Categories in this topic for full details.
Click this button to create a new Category Group.
Select a Category Group and click the Up or Down move buttons to change that Category Group's priority.
Click this button to delete a selected Category Group. You cannot delete a Category Group with assigned Categories; they have to be moved to the Edit pane first.
Viewing Category Group Content
Changing a Category Group's priority
Once the import process is complete, a copy status box is displayed. This will show any discrepancies in the source Selector database. This data will not have been coped across to the new GSelector station. In the unfortunate event of the window displaying a huge list of discrepancies - none of which will have been copied over - then the best option is to delete the station in GSelector, and start again. You should re-enter the Selector database, correct all discrepancies and start over. If, as here, there are a small number of inaccuracies, you also have the option to research these in the Selector database, and then enter the songs manually in GSelector.
Once the import process is complete, launch GSelector and schedule a few days. Then look (and listen) to the results. You may wish, after a few days, to make one or two adjustments. If so, the Getting Started with GSelector and Key processes notes are a good place to start.
However, if you find that the conversion options you selected really aren't what you wanted, you can always start again from scratch.