Radio Shack 12-261 Owner's Manual

Also see for 12-261: Quick start guide Owner's manual Owner's manual

Contents

3HOW YOURWEATHERADIOWORKSTraditional weather radios simplyreceive the National Oceanic andAtmospheric Administration (NOAA)weather broadcast, and then sound analarm if an emergency code istransmitted along with the broadcast.This means that people outside anaffected area are often alerted eventhough their area is not affected,causing some to ignore weatherwarnings that apply to their area.In 1994, NOAA began broadcastingsignals called FIPS (FederalInformation Processing System) codesalong with their standard weatherbroadcasts. These codes identify thetype of emergency and the specificgeographic area (such as a county)affected by the emergency. YourWeatheradio receives, interprets, anddisplays FIPS code information so youcan determine if the emergency affectsyour area. Only SAME-compatibleweather radios are able to takeadvantage of this technology.Each FIPS code identifies a specificgeographic area defined by theCONTENTSHow YourWeatheradio Works .......... 3Weather Alerts .............. 4Locking Out UndefinedWeather Descriptions ... 4UnderstandingFIPS Codes .................. 5Obtaining Your Area’sFIPS Code(s) ................ 6Preparation ....................... 6Connecting to AC Power 7Installing the BackupBattery .......................... 7Using the Antenna ........ 8Connecting anExternal Antenna .......... 9Choosing a Location .... 9Connecting to anExternal System ......... 10Testing theWeatheradio ............... 10Programming ................. 11Channel Setup ............ 12Alert Type Setup ......... 13Missed Alert Reminder 14Signal Loss Reminder 15Response Location ..... 15Tone Defeat ................ 18Operation ........................ 21Setting the Clockand Alarm ................... 22Listening to a WeatherBroadcast ................... 24Using the Alert ........... 24Setting Alert Tone Level 24Viewing Multiple Alerts 25Troubleshooting ............. 27The FCC WantsYou To Know .................. 28Specifications ................ 29NWS Alert Descriptions .. 30