System Setup and Overview

This system is designed as a computer application and your cell phone can't provide access to the full system. You will need a computer system with 2 monitors that show the same information (clones). Face one monitor towards you and the other towards the show host(s). You will communicate with them using the Broadcast Control and Communications screen.

System Access & Login

Two ways to log in:

1. 🔵 Google Sign-In (Recommended): Click the "Sign in with Google" button on the login screen. Use your existing Google/Gmail account — no new account needed. Your session is remembered so you won't need to sign in every time.
2. ✉️ Email / Password: Click the "Email / Password" tab, then "Register" to create a local account with your name, email, and a password (minimum 6 characters).

The first person to log on the computer becomes the permanent Administrator (★) — with access to all menus and the Administrator Panel showing all registered users.

30-day free trial: New accounts (other than the Administrator) start on a 30-day free trial. During the trial, the Reports and Contracts/Charges menus are locked; after 30 days the system will prompt for an annual or lifetime subscription to keep using those features. Everyday production features (Broadcasting, Bulletin Board, Modify Clients/Shows, Technical Associates, AI Episode Development) are available throughout the trial.

For AI-powered features (Interview Questions, Topic Information/Questions, and the "Let's Talk" AI Q&A tool), you will need a free Groq API key from console.groq.com. Paste it into the Groq API Key field on the Interview Questions or Topic Information screen and click "Save Key" — it only has to be entered once and is automatically shared by both AI tools.

☁️ Firebase Cloud Sync Setup

Firebase Setup — Step by Step

Step 1 — Create a Firebase Project

1. Go to console.firebase.google.com
2. Sign in with your Google account (this can be the same Google account you use to log in to The Broadcaster, or any other Google account)
3. Click "Add project" or "Create a project"
4. Enter a project name (e.g., "MyBroadcast" or your Company Name)
5. You can leave Google Analytics disabled — The Broadcaster does not use it
6. Click "Create project" and wait for it to finish (about 30 seconds)

Step 2 — Create a Firestore Database

1. In the left sidebar, click Build → Firestore Database
2. Click "Create database"
3. Leave the database name as (default) — no name needed
4. Choose a database location nearest to your production company
5. Click "Enable"
6. Once created, click the Rules tab and replace all existing text with the rules shown in Step 4 below, then click Publish
7. Important: Firebase will show a warning saying your rules are "public" — this is expected. Simply click "Publish anyway" to confirm. Your data is protected by the fact that your Firebase credentials (API Key, Project ID, App ID) are kept private.

Step 3 — Register The Broadcaster as a Web App

1. In Firebase Console, click the ⚙️ gear icon (Project Settings) in the left sidebar
2. Scroll down to "Your apps"
3. Click the </> Web icon to add a web app
4. Enter an app nickname (e.g., "MyBroadcast")
5. Do NOT check "Also set up Firebase Hosting" — this is not needed
6. Click "Register app"
7. You will see a configuration block like this:

const firebaseConfig = {
  apiKey: "AIzaSyXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX",
  authDomain: "your-project.firebaseapp.com",
  projectId: "your-project-id",
  storageBucket: "your-project.appspot.com",
  messagingSenderId: "123456789012",
  appId: "1:123456789012:web:abcdef1234567890"
};

You will need three values from this block:

• apiKey — the long string starting with "AIzaSy..."
• projectId — your project name (e.g., "MyBroadcast")
• appId — the string starting with "1:..."

Step 3b — Firestore Security Rules

In the Firestore Rules tab, paste the following rules exactly and click Publish:

rules_version = '2';
service cloud.firestore {
  match /databases/{database}/documents {
    match /{document=**} {
      allow read, write: if true;
    }
  }
}

Step 4 — Enter Credentials in The Broadcaster

1. Open The Broadcaster and log in
2. Go to User's Name (on the menu bar) → Cloud Sync Settings
3. Scroll down to the ☁️ Firebase Firestore - Cross Device Sync section
4. Enter your Firebase API Key, Project ID, and App ID
5. Click "💾 Save & Connect"
6. The status should change to 🟢 Connected & Syncing
7. Click "🔌 Test Connection" to confirm everything is working

Step 5 — Initial Data Sync

1. After connecting, click "☁️ Push to Cloud" in System Setup to upload all existing data
2. On any alternate computer or device, open The Broadcaster, connect the same Firebase credentials, then click "☁️ Pull from Cloud" to download all data
3. From this point on, all saves and deletions sync automatically in the background

Firebase Free Plan Limits

Resource	Free Limit	Typical Broadcaster Usage
Storage	1 GB	~0.01 GB for 1,000 members
Reads/day	50,000	~500 per session
Writes/day	20,000	~50 per session
Monthly active users (auth)	50,000	A few per day
Cost	$0.00 — Permanently Free

Registering Clients and Defining Shows

There are two requirements before starting your first broadcast. First: enter your Client's name in the system using the "Modify Clients/Shows" menu selection. Select the first choice "➕ Add Client & Show" from the Modify Clients/Shows window. Client Information is entered along the left side of the screen while Show Information is entered along the right side of the screen. Complete all information fields for both the Client and their Show and click the green "Save New Client & Show" button. Next close this window using the red "Close" button.

Show cost fields: each show's setup also has three cost fields that feed directly into Episode Cost/Billing and the Client Invoice, so it's worth filling these in accurately up front: Studio Cost ($/hr), Location Cost ($/hr), and Travel Cost (a flat amount per episode, not hourly). Nothing else needs to be entered per-episode for billing to work. If you ever rename a show, use the "↪ Extend to Past Shows" button afterward so past episodes logged under the old title stay linked to it — renaming alone does not update past episodes.

Second: if you have professionals working with you in the production, add them to the system so their time can be monitored and compensated. Click the "Technical Associates" menu choice. Enter your first associate's information into the Technical Associates window and click the green "Save Associate" button. When their name appears in the Associates List, establish their availability using the check boxes. When this is complete, click the red "Close" button.

Producing Your First Show

You are now ready to produce your first show. Click the "Broadcasting" menu selection and select the Show Name using the blue "Select" button from the list. Next, enter the title for the show's "Episode Title" in the Episode Title Screen and click the green "Save & Start This Episode" button.

Show Setup:

Check the information in the "Production Notes" column for accuracy. Add the associates that are participating in this show by selecting them using the black "Add Associate to Notes" drop-down box. Repeat this until all associates are stored in the Additional Notes field. Ensure that the Show Instructions accurately provide the format for the show. You can reset this schedule by clicking "Reset Format" and correcting the various time points. Remember to list any Urgent Notes in the Urgent Notes field as needed. If you are using phones for callers, enter their "Names" and "Call From" location along with any specific instructions in the "Caller Notes" field.

Start the Show:

Select the starting camera using the white (Camera 1), yellow (Camera 2), or green (Camera 3) camera buttons. Click the blue "Begin Show" button which starts the clock timer and places the "NOW BROADCASTING LIVE" warning on the screen (the same button relabels itself "End Show" while you're live). Remember to change the Camera assignments as appropriate. When the show nears a commercial break, use the 10-Mins, then 5-Mins buttons to show the flashing warnings. Now select a duration for the countdown clock (i.e., 10, 20, or 30 seconds). When it is time for the commercial, click the orange "Commercial Countdown" button to open the countdown window. The hosts should wrap up the show segment when the countdown clock hits 10 seconds in the countdown sequence. Pause the show during the commercial using the gray "Pause/Continue" button — the same button relabels itself "Continue"; click it again to resume.

Continue this process until the entire show is recorded or broadcast. At the end of the show, click "End Show". (Tip: the 📷 Camera Color Labels option under the Reports menu prints a color-coded label sheet for tagging Cameras 1–3.)

Last of all, click the red "Done/Exit" button to leave the "BROADCAST CONTROL AND COMMUNICATIONS" screen — the episode is logged automatically and will be available to Reports and Associate History.

Other Features

Bulletin Board:

The Bulletin Board menu gives you access to the Bulletin Board, a running notes area shared across all of your shows and sessions — production reminders, standing instructions, or any general information for your team. Edit it freely and click "Save Bulletin Board" to preserve your changes.

AI Episode Development:

The AI Episode Development menu has two tools, both powered by the free Groq API key described in the System Access & Login section above (get one at console.groq.com — do not use Google Gemini or Google AI Studio; this system uses Groq, not Gemini).

🎤 Interview Questions: pick the Show and Episode, enter as much information about the guest as possible, and click the orange "Generate Discussion Questions" button to have the AI draft up to 50 interview questions. Your work auto-saves as you go; the questions can also be explicitly saved (green "Save Guest Record" button) or printed/saved as a PDF (blue "Print / Save PDF" button).

📚 Topic Information / Questions: the same idea, for researching a subject rather than a guest — pick a Show and Episode, choose a category, describe what you need, and generate. Both AI screens have a "📂 Recall a Previous Search" drop-down so you can reload or continue an earlier search for that show and episode.

Let's Talk (AI Q&A):

Click the "💬 Let's Talk" button in the top-right header bar any time for a quick AI-answered question. It opens as a small floating window (drag it by its title bar, or minimize it) so you can keep working while it's open. Choose "🗣️ Spoken Question" (requires microphone access, and only works when the page is loaded over https://) or "⌨️ Written Question" (always works). It uses the same Groq key set up on the AI Episode Development screens — nothing extra to configure.

Reports:

Various reports are available using this menu — including a Monthly Production Summary, Associate Hours Report, Show History Report, and Export Crew Hours — as well as a Client Invoice tool (formerly called "Subscriber Invoice"). Reports are Producer-only (locked during the free trial, and not visible to a collaborating Partner — see Collaboration below).

Contracts/Charges:

Contracts are provided that can be modified to allow all parties to define the nature of their business relationships. Finally, "Episode Cost Billing" is available to support the financial documentation required in the broadcasting business. Like Reports, this menu is Producer-only and locked during the free trial.

🤝 Collaboration (Partners):

A Partner is an unpaid collaborator — a co-host or production assistant — who logs in with their own free account and works inside your data on one show you choose, without needing their own paid subscription. Cloud Sync (Firebase) must be connected first. Open the 🤝 Collaboration menu (or your account menu) → ⚙️ Collaboration Settings, pick the show, enter the Partner's email, optionally include your Groq key, and click "Create Invite." Then click "Copy Instructions" and send that text to your Partner yourself — the app does not email it automatically. A Partner sees only Interview Questions, Topic Information, Bulletin Board, and (while the show isn't live) Edit Episode Title; Broadcasting, Modify Clients/Shows, Reports, and Contracts/Billing remain Producer-only.