Mr. Moe, you might be on the right side of a god damned revolution.

Fucking Fox News. Buncha assholes.

do one needs to hear the audio from Happy Days while they're soaping up their junk...

was a faction of the chickens upset with the pecking order?

thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week, twice on saturday. tip your waitresses...

The government is giving everyone around 1200 bucks in May to do just that! Buy buy buy, spend spend spend! Commerce monkeys unite!

Check this link: www.sciencea gogo.com/news/200703152 15055data_trunc_sys.shtml

Now this is going to become an issue in the near future. Bees are a required part of agribusiness, which is an American staple. When this newly clear frequency becomes available, who is bidding for the newly-freed bandwidth?

Google.

What are they trying to get into? Cell phones. If they own the bandwidth that isn't operating at a bee-disrupting frequency, what happens when other providers have to move off the "beequency", do they have to pay fr it from Google? They are already offering huge amounts for it, should be interesting to see how this plays out.

Where did I leave my Phone scrambler...

$10 Billion huh? Always nice how our government is just giving away our national resources for micro-pennies on the dollar.

But while this is great fodder for conspiracy theorists, the fact is this simple: it's not the TVs that are becoming useless, it's the TUNERS in the TVs.

Just like how those old TVs with the UHF/VHF knobs couldn't get cable without a cable box to change channels, now non-digital TVs won't be able to pick up channels off the air without a tuner. I imagine that, after the changeover, every new product sold that will plug into your TV (DVD player, VCR, cable box, DVR) will have a built-in digital tuner. Chances are, if you bought a TV in the last several years, it has a digital tuner. Chances are this will affect almost nobody on this messageboard, since I imagine that most people either have cable or satellite, have a digital TV, or don't watch much TV.

And finally, in response to the question above about flat panel TVs, this is a separate issue. What's changing over is the broadcast frequency (related to the internal tuner that converts the over-the-air broadcast into picture and sound). This is unrelated to the difference between tube and flat-panel (although the switchover to flat-panel is almost complete now, since they are lighter and more desirable. But I still have my 34" Sony tube HDTV--it weighs more than I do, I can't lift it without two friends helping, but by god it has a beautiful picture).

HDTV and DIGITAL TV are not necessarily the same thing. HD is digital, but not all digital is HD.

You will STILL be able to use your old TV, and your old 6$ rabbit ears. You will just need a converter box (which the government is giving coupons for, so it won't break the bank) and you're good to go. You will be able to watch the same non-HD shows you've been watching all along, on the same NON-HD television you've been using since the Nixon administration.

Let me explain. The old signal was NTSC. They're selling that (and it will most likely be used by emergency services and big corporations for their projects) and when it's done, it's done. No more NTSC channels. What follows that is called ATSC. That does not mean "High Definition", but it does mean the signal is no longer an analog "code" but now a digital "code" for your TV to "decode" so you can watch TV. To "decode" the signal, you JUST NEED the converter box. You DO NOT NEED AN HDTV.

Got it? Your old TV and antenna WILL work. You will still be able to watch shows, but they won't be in HD. They'll look clearer and won't have ANY static or horizontal hold problems, because the signal is DIGITAL over-the-air. You'll have a better experience with your old P.O.S. TV, and all you'll need is one of these little boxes that goes between your antenna and the TV itself. Go get your coupons from the link above, and you're all set.

If you have a newer widescreen HDTV purchased within the last year, then you have a digital tuner built in (if you don't, you got screwed) and you won't need one of these converter boxes to pull in over-the-air digital signals. On top of that, if you have an HDTV with an ATSC tuner, you're equipped to watch these digital signals in HD, instead of in SD.

There will be no "pirate" TV stations. The FCC holds sway over the NTSC signals as before, it's just that they will be sold off to other entities with far more money than any little pirate operation could manage, and if they are pirated, they will still be policed as they are now. You won't get to hop on channel 5 with your homemade transmitter. Sorry.

So ONE MORE TIME:

"Digital" does not mean "HD", though digital signals do contain the HD information for those who do have an HDTV. If you do not have an HDTV, and don't use cable, you will still be able to watch TV as before with an almost-free converter box, and your plain old antenna (IGNORE "HD Antenna" sales. They're bullshit. It's just a regular antenna. There's no difference between them.)

If you pull in the digital signal with your antenna, and use a converter box to watch this signal on your old TV, it will NOT be High Definition. It will still look like it always did, with the exception that the signal is either there or it's not. There's no static, no snow, no ghosting-- You either have a full, clear, perfect image on the screen, or you have nothing. There's no "in-between" with digitial.

THAT is the only difference you'll see on your old TV.

Oh, and there will be MORE stations available, especially with local PBS stations who seem to be using the digital bandwidth to broadcast two or three stations of programming.

NOBODY has to get an HDTV to enjoy television once this goes into effect. NOBODY has to give up their rabbit ears. You just need to get your ass to that website and get a coupon to purchase a digital converter box.

And let me repeat this one more time: DIGITAL does not mean HD. It's just a different kind of signal. HD information is in that signal, but HD monitors are NOT required to enjoy digital television.

Democrats love to blame EVERYTHING on Bush (from terrorism to global warming to earthquakes) while they fail to see the reflection of their own arrogant ignorance in a looking glass of truth.

Liberals only tolerate themselves -- and those who agree with their far-left social extremism.

"(v) ADDITIONAL DEADLINES FOR RECOVERED ANALOG SPECTRUM.--Notwithstanding subparagraph (B), the Commission shall conduct the auction of the licenses for recovered analog spectrum by commencing the bidding not later than January 28, 2008, and shall deposit the proceeds of such auction in accordance with paragraph (8)(E)(ii) not later than June 30, 2008.
"(vi) RECOVERED ANALOG SPECTRUM.--For purposes of clause (v), the term 'recovered analog spectrum' means the spectrum between channels 52 and 69, inclusive (between frequencies 698 and 806 megahertz, inclusive) reclaimed from analog television service broadcasting under paragraph (14), other than--
"(I) the spectrum required by section 337 to be made available for public safety services; and
"(II) the spectrum auctioned prior to the date of enactment of the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005.

Section 337 (a) In general
Not later than January 1, 1998, the Commission shall allocate the electromagnetic spectrum between 746 megahertz and 806 megahertz, inclusive, as follows:
(1) 24 megahertz of that spectrum for public safety services according to the terms and conditions established by the Commission, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the Attorney General; and
(2) 36 megahertz of that spectrum for commercial use to be assigned by competitive bidding pursuant to section 309(j) of this title.

In case anyone is confused, the actual title section of the funding measure relates to both digital television transition and public safety. What I posted above is a tiny portion of some clauses that address where the analog spectrum is going. Also, the auctions are over, the results will be known by June.

I used to tune in locals on my ATSC tuner (which I currently don't have) with a pair of $19 amplified rabbit ears. If you have a house instead of an apartment, you can actually mount an antenna and get a LOT better signal than I did with rabbit ears in an apartment... So don't worry.

Unless you're out in the middle of nowhere. In that case you WILL need an outside antenna, but that's hardly a big deal. Stick an antenna on your roof and point it to the place with the most signals. You can use antennaweb.com to find out where to aim.

The "luddites" comment was said with tongue firmly in cheek, because there are so many people here saying "I can't afford an HDTV." -- Really, these days you can get an HDTV for about $300 if you look around, and if you're OK with having a smaller one, you can grab a computer monitor with component or DVI connection and use that with your cable or satellite instead. You can literally get into HD television for less than $300 if you just put some effort and research into it.

Nobody says you have to have a 50" HDTV. If you're fine with 19" then there's a shit-ton of monitors that will display in HD. All you need is a tuner and an antenna or source.

Yes. If your signal is below about 20% you probably won't get anything tuned in. But that can be boosted with a $20 device from Radio Shack.

There's no excuse here. They've made it as easy as possible, and people need to accept that it's happening, and be ready for it.

Think you can scrape up $300 in a year's time? Then you can watch HDTV.

Does cable have some benefits? Sure... but 90% of it is crap I can't be bothered to waste time with and usually disgusts me when I do.

And YES... I am grumpy when people mess with my TV! >:(

That said, this won't affect me one way or another, since analog hasn't worked in my area for over a decade, anyway. It just brings back bitter memories and makes me wish I were a kid back in the 70s still watching New Zoo Revenue and Marvel Superheroes on UHF, when TV was still good.

1. Xbox 360

2. Spinners

3. Hanna Montana tickets

4. clothes NOT from Salvation Army

Oh and who do we thank for this billion dollar handout so people can still watch TV? The Democratic Party. Thanks for taking my $40.00 and giving it to some crack-baby maker on welfare so she can still watch Maury while I'm at work.

So when studios abandon VHS tapes, will the government take another $40.00 from me so the same crack-baby maker can buy a Blu-Ray player? Democrats = experts at spending other people's money.

1. oh noes TV stops in 12 months

2. Eli Roth bought a theater

3. The MPAA censors stuff

Or one of Harry's much talked about giant HDTVs - that would be a big picture also.

By which I mean a country where people use the Internet for something other than discussing the TV shows they watched the night before.

At least that's how I understand it to work. The box won't turn digital signals into analog signals which you tune with your old tuner. It completely bypasses the tuner in your old TV and acts like a cable box, of sorts, which is used to tune in the new channels.

Think of it as a non-cable, cable box.

Once the changeover is complete, expect all the digital signals to get a pretty big boost in power, and your ability to tune them in will increase quite a bit.

You shouldn't have the issues you saw on the setup you were exposed to.

Bear in mind, also, that picking up a signal depends highly on antenna placement. If he did it wrong, and didn't research which direction his signal was coming from, your pal's OTA signal may have been compromised.

Really, it's going to be nice once the switch happens. All the station resources formerly used for NTSC will be put toward ATSC, and they'll make sure their signal is easy to get in their broadcast area. You shouldn't see anything below 70% signal strength in your local area once the changeover happens.

Of course, if you're trying to tune in stations from another broadcast area, they won't come in well or at all.

While I do agree that the majority of TV is crap, there are some good shows, and a lot of people apparently like the crap, too. For those people, watching digital signals on their analog TV with a converter box will be no major change.

This is ONLY a change in the broadcast technology.

HDTV is a change in the device you use to view what is being broadcast. Nobody's requiring people to have HDTV. They're only requiring them to prepare for a change to a different medium for broadcasting.

Incidentally, I don't watch much broadcast TV, either. I got used to watching shows commercial-free via downloads, and now I just cannot stand sitting through a regular broadcast because it keeps getting interrupted by commercials every few minutes. Frankly, I don't know how I ever stood that. With digital downloads, there are no station logos, no watermarks, no advertisements, and you can pause, rewind, and replay them, same as with a DVR.

That's why I only subscribe to basic cable (for things like news or local television) and then do the rest of my TV viewing via the Internet. Between Apple TV and XBox Marketplace I don't need cable. What's more, I don't have to subscribe to Showtime or HBO to get their shows uncensored. Why should I pay for Showtime to watch one or two shows on that channel? Why should I pay for HBO when I only watch a couple shows on there? I can do far better just subscribing to the shows I want, and skipping all the rest. I pay only for what I plan to watch.

This means I don't have to flip past the Jerry Springer Show, The Real World, and a dozen informercials to watch Weeds or LOST. I just pick the show I want and hit Play.

And I don't think viewership is down. I just think they're stupidly focusing on the Nielsons when they're no longer relevant. They need to track downloads, not Nielson ratings.

The industry should have done a better job explaining it.