o.k., i have seen about a MILLION "crawls" at the bottom of my t.v. screen (or at the top) as well as the many, many, many commercials informing me that i am screwed when analog t.v. signals convert to digital.
I GET IT ALREADY!
so, for those of you (and/or your friends) who need a coupon for the damned boxes (if you don't already have cable or satellite), this is the link for the damned coupons: https://www.dtv2009.gov/ApplyCoupon.aspx
how the government gets to determine how i receive my television shows is beyond me ( i sure as hell didn't vote for that crap - and yes, if you couldn't already tell, this really pisses me off).
whatever.
enjoy.
Wednesday, August 20
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Well, there is an even bigger problem with those people who like their free, over the air waves, rabbit ear (or rooftop attenna) TV... It's called the "Cliff Effect"
When analog signals are disturbed, the picture gradually degrades. But digital signals are much more sensitive to disturbance, and screens can suddenly break into pixels or freeze, or just be blank. There's no way to fix this, except to re-aim an antenna, upgrade to a more expensive and stronger one – probably on the roof – or subscribe to cable or satellite (www.antennaweb.org can help viewers select an antenna).
This problem is not featured in public service announcements and is buried on government websites. Centris, a media market-research firm, estimates that 9 million households could have their TVs cliff diving when they convert to digital. A third of these households won't receive any channel signal at all, or will only get one channel. Disturbance will be worse in urban areas. The government says digital signals will improve when broadcasters move digital equipment to the tops of towers in February.
Everyone needs to get on the ball here, and quickly. Those households keeping their over-the-air analog TV sets should buy their converter boxes now – and not wait until February to experiment with antenna placement.
The federal government must do a better job of explaining digital signal weakness and warning of possible costly antenna upgrades, or, in some areas with no signal, a need to buy cable or satellite.
And that is a damn shame!!
i had not even heard about the "cliff effect", so thanks for the comment!
and i actually don't think that the government cares all that much. people without the means will ultimately be left without a television signal. why more people aren't outraged is beyond me ... perhaps they don't matter?
i mean, the box should really be free, seeing as how you are pretty much forced into either that or paying for cable/satellite service (b/c they dont' make ENOUGH money already).
No, I'm not sure the government cares ..because it sounds to me like they put some serious thought into how to placate the average consumer (the box) which it turns out probably won't work for a lot of people without some serious upgrade equipment. And, I bet most of these consumers are not only not outraged, but grateful for the (2) coupons for the box and the opportunity for a better way to get their T.V. I am curious about those people who, unlike me, only watch an hour or so of TV a day...like the news in the morning..etc. I wonder if they will even get the box?
Now having said that, I will play devil's advocate and tell you that the word on the street as to why the Federal government is forcing the switch to digital is so the FCC can free up some airwaves to make bandwidth available for all the extra stuff we're doing over wireless. Cell phone networks are expanding at an increasing rate and we're demanding more and more speed out of them. We're communicating over wireless so much more that we've simply run out of electromagnetic spectrum to cram everything.
Digital transmission is more efficient. It's not prone to the major interference analog transmission is and you can fit more in a digital signal than you can in an analog signal.(this from Jay Moore, some techno geek)
So, if you buy all that it all sounds like it's in our best interest..I don't know, I've been hurt before, it's just too soon to trust again.
i suppose my problem is that i just see this as big business winning out over the common man (or maybe the poor man).
the boxes should be free - especially if they might not work all that well for all that long ...
and yes, the whole "digital age" is nice. VERY nice. i very much enjoy the internet and cellphones, etc. and although i have heard the argument that this conversion is in "our" best interests, i think the REAL winners are ultimately the cable companies and the satellite companies (most peole aren't going to fool around with the "box" when it's easier to just buy an overpriced service - or better yet -- a BUNDLE of services).
and quite frankly, i'm just so freakin' tired of feeling nickle and dimed at every turn.
and i absolutely HATE our cable company. they take you for granted and treat you like crap b/c they're the only game in town, which is why i got rid of them altogether - and since i have trees in my yard that seemingly interfere with a satellite signal, i just said "screw it" and now use the antenna on the roof.
so, i guess i'll have to get a service and shut the hell up.
Just FYI...
I bundled and it is the best move I made. I got rid of Time Warner Cable, which was the top cable company here in our parts. I was paying almost 300 a month with Time Warner for just internet and cable. I switched to AT&T's Uverse service...I LOVE IT. I had cable, hi-speed internet, and phone for about 250. Money got a little tight...not to mention the 10 flesh channels.. so I cancelled all of the movie channels and just got basic cable I now pay $120/mo. YEAH!! I don't really miss the movie channels so I'm happy. Also, Uverse is not HD but it is a much sharper picture than I had before. If AT&T offers Uverse there I strongly recommend it. You get to preview channels with a small picture of what's on while watching another show and DVR-which is the bomb! F--- TIVO!
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