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Path: utzoo!decvax!mcnc!philabs!ttidca!ttidcb!speaker
From: speaker@ttidcb.UUCP (Kenneth Speaker)
Newsgroups: net.video
Subject: Blinking dots
Message-ID: <583@ttidcb.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 18-Dec-85 16:05:16 EST
Article-I.D.: ttidcb.583
Posted: Wed Dec 18 16:05:16 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 21-Dec-85 00:49:26 EST
Reply-To: speaker@ttidcb.UUCP (Kenneth Speaker)
Distribution: na
Organization: Transaction Technology, Inc. (CitiCorp), Santa Monica
Lines: 14

What is happening?  If I place a blank tape into a VCR (any of 4, three
different models, all beta) and record black, rewind, and place into play-
back pause, I get a mostly black screen with a few "twinkling" spots which
are white.  I originally thought these might be dropouts, but doubt it now
as EVEN IN PAUSE mode, they twinkle and appear to be random.  Starting or
stopping the tape does NOT change their distribution or frequency.  It
appears to be a purely electronic phenomenon, not related to the tape
itself.  Is this video noise in the amplifiers themselves?  Are video
amplifiers really *that* noisey?  Note that it is not varying grey, but
a black background with a random pattern of ever moving and twinkling white
dots, maybe as many as 10-20 visible at any instant.

--Kne