My old amplified antenna in the attic has failed, and I don't think I
can fix it.

I would buy a new amplified antenna, but so far, the ones I see are
advertised iiuc like the digital age has not arrived. Maybe I
should wait until they are selling antennas that are really designed
for digital???

Two say, "Has FM trap so strong FM signals won't interfere with
channels 2 to 13. But iiuc, there's either no or no special
likelihood that channels 2 to 13 are anywhere near the FM frequencies
anymore, right?

In your area, channels 7, 8, 12, and 13 are indeed still transmitting
near the FM frequencies. These channels chose to put their digital
signals on their old analog frequencies, rather than moving up into
the UHF band.

The outdoor non-amp antennas have lots of elements and look just like
they used to, but aren't those elements tuned to old VHF channels,
whose frequencies aren't in use anymore?

In some areas of the country, digital TV is entirely in the UHF band.

In quite a few areas, digital TV also uses the VHF high-band
frequencies (the same frequencies formerly used for analog channels 7
through 13). You're in one such area.

In a few areas of the country, there are still some digital TV
stations operating in the VHF low-band (the frequencies formerly used
for analog channels 2 through 6).

You'll tend to find the VHF bands in use in urban areas (especially
the east coast) where there are a lot of channels operating, in
relatively close proximity, and there isn't enough spacing between
transmitters to allow everyone to operate in the UHF part of the band.

Before The Big Day, all of the digital TV channels were operating in
the UHF band (on the "transition" frequencies), and a UHF-only antenna
was sufficient to get all of the digital channels in any given area.
The multi-bay bowtie-and-reflector "digital TV" antennas were sold for
this sort of operting environment.

On The Big Day, some stations moved their digital signals down to the
VHF bands - typically, to the frequency on which they had previously
run their analog signal.

This meant that some people who had previously been getting channels
(on their "digital TV" UHF-only antennas) lost one or more channels,
because the signals had moved to lower frequencies on which the small
UHF antennas don't work very well.

Or am I confused and what they are selling now is as good as it will
get any time soon?

Well, what sort of antenna you want / need will depend on the channel
plan in your area. In some areas, you still need a full-sized VHF/UHF
antenna (e.g. a log-periodic) to get all local channels well. In
other areas, a UHF bowtie-and-reflector antenna has all the frequency
coverage you need.

The page at http://dtv.gov/stationlist.htm will give you a list of all
of the full-power stations in your area. The "virtual" channel number
is the one you see on the screen and in the guide. The "digital"
channel number is the actual frequency on which the transmission is
taking place. If any "digital" channel numbers for stations you want
to receive are 13 or below, you'll need at least some VHF sensitivity
in your antenna. If they're 6 or below you'll need VHF low-band (i.e.
a traditional full-aized antenna).

On a quick look, it appears that you'll want VHF high-band (one
Baltimore station and three DC stations are in the channels 7-13
range) but I don't see any VHF low-band.

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Friends of Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
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