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KickStarting AutoCast
While TuneTracker AutoCast is one of the world's most stable radio automation platforms, it is a computer program, and computer programs can fail, either due to operator error, failing hardware, or other unusual external factors that can't be anticipated. So in AutoCast 4.1, we've added one extra level of safety to our system.
"KickStart" is an option you can enable under System Prefs' "Reboot recovery options." In the uppper left corner of the Automation tab, you'll see a button that gives you three reboot choices:
Do not start CC
Start CC
Start and KickStart CC
If you choose the first option, AutoCast will not be launched when your computer is rebooted. If you choose the second, AutoCast will be started normally on reboot. If you choose the third, AutoCast will also start up on reboot, and a little critter named KickStart will be launched. KickStart runs quietly in the background, constantly checking AutoCast to see if it's still running. If it isn't, KickStart kills and restarts it. If it happens again, KickStart restarts TuneTracker again. If it happens a third time, KickStart says, "ok, it must be a system problem," and it reboots the computer automatically.
KickStart is a stubborn little elf. It doesn't want to give up. It will attempt to restart AutoCast again even if you closed AutoCast intentionally! So if you wish to be able to manually close AutoCast, you must disable KickStart in System Prefs by choosing one of the other two reboot recovery options, and then you must do a reboot, after which KickStart will no longer be active.
Unless you have a need to routinely close AutoCast manually, we recommend you engage the KickStart option, which is a wonderful "life insurance policy" to help assure things stay purring along, even when the last person has left the building.