wrote:
On Sun, 28 Mar 2010 16:32:35 -0400, aemeijers
wrote:

Oren wrote:
On Sun, 28 Mar 2010 10:17:55 -0400, wrote:

Have you looked into internet TV outlets like HULU.COM?
They have a lot of those old TV shows for free along with a lot of
current TV. I really think the biggest change in TV will be internet
delivery.
From another group:

_120+ Sites to watch TV online_

http://blog.unixmen.com/2009/12/120-...tv-online.html

As a TV, a computer makes a pretty good computer. Yeah, I know, you can
plumb it all together, and pipe it up to the real television- yada yada
yada. I don't wanna buy another X hundred dollars worth of crap and
figure out how to wire it and operate it, and figure it out when it
stops working correctly- I just wanna lay on the couch and watch TV.
They have taken that away from me with the near-demise of OTA television
and simple analog cable, and I am still ****ed about it. If you can't
pull it off a roof antenna, you should at least be able to run 1 damn
wire from the wall outlet to the television, no stupid boxes or special
tuner cards, and plug it up and watch it that way. The satt or cable
system should present a feed to the TV that looks just like an OTA
antenna, IMHO.

You damn kids get offa my lawn!

If you have a fairly new TV it has a VGA port in the back that takes a
PC monitor plug directly. I have an old PC connected to my Samsung
40". It doesn't take much PC horsepower to stream internet video.
Hook up a wireless mouse and you have armchair convenience.
The other OPC I have hooked to a TV has a TV out card in it. They both
swap programs with my ReplayTV DVR over my network.

Most modern TVs are really computer monitors in disguise, with a tuner
and speakers crammed in there. (Installed enough of them on the office
walls for the bigshots at work.)

Nope- all my TVs (and computer monitors) are still glass, and they all
still work perfectly. (Damn Sony Trinitron quality). Until they die, or
the picture quality goes south, I can't justify replacing them with wide
flatscreens. (My eyes aren't HD any more, so not much point in HD
televisions....) And it may not take much PC horsepower, but it does
take an big internet pipe, for a good signal. Ma Bell doesn't do DSL out
here, so all I have is an overpriced 384 from another vendor. A fast
connection from this vendor would cost more than the satt dish does.

--
aem sends...

On Sun, 28 Mar 2010 21:47:46 -0400, aemeijers wrote:

wrote:
On Sun, 28 Mar 2010 16:32:35 -0400, aemeijers
wrote:

Oren wrote:
On Sun, 28 Mar 2010 10:17:55 -0400, wrote:

Have you looked into internet TV outlets like HULU.COM?
They have a lot of those old TV shows for free along with a lot of
current TV. I really think the biggest change in TV will be internet
delivery.
From another group:

_120+ Sites to watch TV online_

http://blog.unixmen.com/2009/12/120-...tv-online.html

As a TV, a computer makes a pretty good computer. Yeah, I know, you can
plumb it all together, and pipe it up to the real television- yada yada
yada. I don't wanna buy another X hundred dollars worth of crap and
figure out how to wire it and operate it, and figure it out when it
stops working correctly- I just wanna lay on the couch and watch TV.
They have taken that away from me with the near-demise of OTA television
and simple analog cable, and I am still ****ed about it. If you can't
pull it off a roof antenna, you should at least be able to run 1 damn
wire from the wall outlet to the television, no stupid boxes or special
tuner cards, and plug it up and watch it that way. The satt or cable
system should present a feed to the TV that looks just like an OTA
antenna, IMHO.

You damn kids get offa my lawn!

If you have a fairly new TV it has a VGA port in the back that takes a
PC monitor plug directly. I have an old PC connected to my Samsung
40". It doesn't take much PC horsepower to stream internet video.
Hook up a wireless mouse and you have armchair convenience.
The other OPC I have hooked to a TV has a TV out card in it. They both
swap programs with my ReplayTV DVR over my network.

Most modern TVs are really computer monitors in disguise, with a tuner
and speakers crammed in there. (Installed enough of them on the office
walls for the bigshots at work.)

Nope- all my TVs (and computer monitors) are still glass, and they all
still work perfectly. (Damn Sony Trinitron quality). Until they die, or
the picture quality goes south, I can't justify replacing them with wide
flatscreens. (My eyes aren't HD any more, so not much point in HD
televisions....) And it may not take much PC horsepower, but it does
take an big internet pipe, for a good signal. Ma Bell doesn't do DSL out
here, so all I have is an overpriced 384 from another vendor. A fast
connection from this vendor would cost more than the satt dish does.

Old eyes are a perfect excuse for large flat screens. I retired my last tube
(I still have one in the attic) four years ago and wasn't yet wearing glasses
(went from no glasses to bifocals in about six months).

aemeijers wrote:


-snip-
flatscreens. (My eyes aren't HD any more, so not much point in HD
televisions....)

That was my thought, too until a couple weeks ago. My parents got
an HD TV when they replaced their old analog TV with no remote. not
a huge one- I think it might be 21"diagonal.

I was at their house when an Olympic hockey game kicked off & I caught
a couple minutes of the game.

I have never been impressed with those huge monster sets on display in
malls and stores. I don't know if it is the size, the lighting, or if
they are all just set up wrong--- but now that I've seen a real one in
real-life use, an HD TV is now in my future.

My eyes are bad-- but the HD compensates for it.

Jim

On Sat, 27 Mar 2010 18:37:42 -0400, aemeijers
wrote:

Sam E wrote:
On Fri, 26 Mar 2010 07:55:51 -0700, "uncle K" wrote:

"MICHELLE H." wrote in message
...

...............................
Does anyone know if there is a way around this?
That's a simple one. Dump Comcast and get Dish Network. More channels,
less $, less BS.

HTH,

Unc

And NO channels available without one of their receivers. That's like
cable, but worse.

Sure there are. Use an antenna, and a converter box if needed. More
locals and better quality on those channels, than cable OR dish.

Notice the post I was replying to mentioned Dish Network. You can't
get anything from Dish Network with an antenna and not using their
receiver.

Carole wrote:
I have a similar issue.

Ever since we got the new Comcast digital converter boxes, I have been
unable to watch a program while taping another. How do I use a splitter (or
whatever i need) so I can do this?

The channels I want to tape are basically between 2 and 27, which
supposedly you don't need the converter box for.

Thanks,
Carole

The FCC requires most cable companies to carry local broadcast
television stations, and some others like public, educational, and
governmental access channels. That is what you get on 2-27. The FCC
requirement goes through 2012 (at which point the world ends anyway).
The channels have to be analog (which old TVs and VCRs can handle) or
the cable company has to provide a free converters. Comcast has said
they will be analog in almost all markets.

Since you have a "new digital converter boxes" you have probably gone
through "digital conversion", and the old analog channels (other than
those above), like Discovery, are only available as digital channels
through the converter.

You can connect a splitter on the incoming cable with one branch to the
digital converter, one branch to the VCR (and branches to other TVs
that just get channels 2-27). The VCR can record 2-27.

For the TV, you then have signals from the VCR and from the digital
converter. If your TV does not have 2 inputs that you can switch
between, you need an A-B switch.

If there a coax output (which is analog) from the converter, you could
also record that - would require a splitter on the converter output with
a branch going to the VCR input, and an A-B switch (converter-out or
direct-cable) at the VCR. But if you are recording the converter output,
you are limited to viewing the converter output unless you have an A-B-C
switch at the TV (direct-cable, converter, VCR), which allows you to
watch direct-cable (2-27). This paragraph is probably best ignored.

If not clear (but it is all written in English), ask.

--
bud--

wrote:
On Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:52:23 -0500, bud--
wrote:

Since you have a "new digital converter boxes" you have probably gone
through "digital conversion", and the old analog channels (other than
those above), like Discovery, are only available as digital channels
through the converter.

In my opinion Comcast has shot themselves in the foot. The only real
advantage cable had was that you could hook up all your cable ready
TVs and other devices without a box. Now that you need a box
everywhere anyway, satellite really looks attractive. Dish is going to
save me over $50 a month with the bundle I am getting through my phone
company, my existing DSL will be faster and I am getting a lot of new
features in my phone for that price. It will be very satisfying for me
to cut that cable and throw it out in the right of way although I
suspect a scrapper will have it before I can walk back into the
house..

I would get dish but it dies whenever there is a decent rainstorm.
I am in FL

wrote:
On Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:15:23 -0400, LouB wrote:

wrote:
On Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:52:23 -0500, bud--
wrote:

Since you have a "new digital converter boxes" you have probably gone
through "digital conversion", and the old analog channels (other than
those above), like Discovery, are only available as digital channels
through the converter.
In my opinion Comcast has shot themselves in the foot. The only real
advantage cable had was that you could hook up all your cable ready
TVs and other devices without a box. Now that you need a box
everywhere anyway, satellite really looks attractive. Dish is going to
save me over $50 a month with the bundle I am getting through my phone
company, my existing DSL will be faster and I am getting a lot of new
features in my phone for that price. It will be very satisfying for me
to cut that cable and throw it out in the right of way although I
suspect a scrapper will have it before I can walk back into the
house..
I would get dish but it dies whenever there is a decent rainstorm.
I am in FL

My neighbors have Dish and they say that after they had the
installation tuned up they don't lose the signal in the rain.
The dish may not be aimed right or it may be moving around in the
wind.

Thanks

On Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:15:23 -0400, LouB wrote:

wrote:
On Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:52:23 -0500, bud--
wrote:

Since you have a "new digital converter boxes" you have probably gone
through "digital conversion", and the old analog channels (other than
those above), like Discovery, are only available as digital channels
through the converter.

In my opinion Comcast has shot themselves in the foot. The only real
advantage cable had was that you could hook up all your cable ready
TVs and other devices without a box. Now that you need a box
everywhere anyway, satellite really looks attractive. Dish is going to
save me over $50 a month with the bundle I am getting through my phone
company, my existing DSL will be faster and I am getting a lot of new
features in my phone for that price. It will be very satisfying for me
to cut that cable and throw it out in the right of way although I
suspect a scrapper will have it before I can walk back into the
house..

I would get dish but it dies whenever there is a decent rainstorm.
I am in FL

I have Dish also. It's crap.

On Apr 23, 10:30*am, wrote:
On Thu, 22 Apr 2010 19:25:38 -0500, "



wrote:
On Thu, 22 Apr 2010 12:15:23 -0400, LouB wrote:

wrote:
On Wed, 21 Apr 2010 09:52:23 -0500, bud--
wrote:

Since you have a "new digital converter boxes" you have probably gone
through "digital conversion", and the old analog channels (other than
those above), like Discovery, are only available as digital channels
through the converter.

In my opinion Comcast has shot themselves in the foot. The only real
advantage cable had was that you could hook up all your cable ready
TVs and other devices without a box. Now that you need a box
everywhere anyway, satellite really looks attractive. Dish is going to
save me over $50 a month with the bundle I am getting through my phone
company, my existing DSL will be faster and I am getting a lot of new
features in my phone for that price. It will be very satisfying for me
to cut that cable and throw it out in the right of way although I
suspect a scrapper will have it before I can walk back into the
house..

I would get dish but it dies whenever there is a decent rainstorm.
I am in FL

I have Dish also. *It's crap.

TV is crap in general, what's your problem with Dish that makes it
worst than cable?

Screen freezes/drop outs, jerky scenes (lasting a minute or more),
really gross digial compression artifacts, sound gets out of sync with
video, set-top box crashes, thunderstorms...
My last two cable setups had some compression artifacts but none of
the other issues and Internet speeds were *many* times what I get now
(eight years ago I was getting 4Mb).

I just got my installation and I am still finding my way around the
hardware but it looks pretty interesting (one duo DVR, one duo
receiver for 4 outputs). If I understand this right I think I have a
lot more flexibility than I had with cable and so far the picture
looks as good, more channels and $50 a month cheaper adding a DVR
with the Telco bundle. I also get more stuff on my POTS line and my
DSL got faster in the bundle deal.

My DSL sucks (*best* it can to is 768K, and that's a outright lie) and
I have no POTS so I'm not ****ed about that.

On Apr 23, 12:27*pm, wrote:
On Fri, 23 Apr 2010 09:14:57 -0700 (PDT), keith
wrote:

I have Dish also. *It's crap.

TV is crap in general, what's your problem with Dish that makes it
worst than cable?

Screen freezes/drop outs, jerky scenes (lasting a minute or more),
really gross digial compression artifacts, sound gets out of sync with
video, set-top box crashes, thunderstorms...
My last two cable setups had some compression artifacts but none of
the other issues and Internet speeds were *many* times what I get now
(eight years ago I was getting 4Mb).

I get pretty horrible stuff like that on the digital Comcast channels
too. Analogs are OK but they are going away as fast as Comcast an
cajole the customers to accept digital.

I had Adelphia = Comcast when I lived in Vermont and Time Warner in
Ohio. Neither had the number or severity of problems I'm having with
Dish. Actually, they were pretty good, if expensive.

I just got my installation and I am still finding my way around the
hardware but it looks pretty interesting (one duo DVR, one duo
receiver for 4 outputs). If I understand this right I think I have a
lot more flexibility than I had with cable and so far the picture
looks as good, more channels and $50 a month cheaper adding a DVR
with the Telco bundle. I also get more stuff on my POTS line and my
DSL got faster in the bundle deal.

My DSL sucks (*best* it can to is 768K, and that's a outright lie) and
I have no POTS so I'm not ****ed about that.

My DSL has been fairly consistent at the 1.5mb I am paying for and
they are telling me I am being bumped up to 3mb. If it is not there,
they will have a Century Link truck in my driveway until it is. Phone
companies are more strictly regulated than cable companies. They
actually have to honor the claims they make.

They "downgraded" my DSL from 1.5Mb to .768Mb a couple of months ago
because somehow my house moved too far from the CO. I wasn't getting
1.5MB before and I'm certainly not getting 768K now. I think they
have a problem with name serving, or some such, too, because there is
a huge front-end delay when bringing up web pages. I'd go to cable in
a flash, were it available on my street. OTOH, the cable here
(Charter) is known to be even worse.

Cable modems are fast when they are running but mine was down a lot.

I had issues with Time Warner and I had a go-around with AT&T, but
Adelphia and Comcast (after Adelphia went tits-up) were very good.
None are/were nearly as bad as Dish, though.

keith wrote:
On Apr 23, 12:27 pm, wrote:
On Fri, 23 Apr 2010 09:14:57 -0700 (PDT), keith
wrote:

I have Dish also. It's crap.
TV is crap in general, what's your problem with Dish that makes it
worst than cable?
Screen freezes/drop outs, jerky scenes (lasting a minute or more),
really gross digial compression artifacts, sound gets out of sync with
video, set-top box crashes, thunderstorms...
(snip)
Dish ain't perfect, but your problems suggest a bad installation/aim job
or poor dish location, not anything inherently bad with the concept of
the dish downlink itself. May I suggest asking for advice on
alt.dbs.echostar, if you have not done so already? That is where the
Dish geeks hang out. Could be as simple as trimming some branches, or
dogging down the bolts on your mounting bracket so it flaps in the wind
less. Unless you have a good steady view of the bird, you will have
problems. I have an apple tree that I have to trim back around once a
year, to avoid dropouts in high winds. I only lose signal in heavy
storms, mostly.

Of course, if your dish was installed in winter, and a neighbor's tree
grew leaves since then, you may have to move the dish. Keep in mind it
does not have to be on the roof. Many people prefer it close to ground
level, for easy upkeep.

--
aem sends...

On Fri, 23 Apr 2010 18:16:52 -0400, aemeijers wrote:

keith wrote:
On Apr 23, 12:27 pm, wrote:
On Fri, 23 Apr 2010 09:14:57 -0700 (PDT), keith
wrote:

I have Dish also. It's crap.
TV is crap in general, what's your problem with Dish that makes it
worst than cable?
Screen freezes/drop outs, jerky scenes (lasting a minute or more),
really gross digial compression artifacts, sound gets out of sync with
video, set-top box crashes, thunderstorms...
(snip)
Dish ain't perfect, but your problems suggest a bad installation/aim job
or poor dish location, not anything inherently bad with the concept of
the dish downlink itself. May I suggest asking for advice on
alt.dbs.echostar, if you have not done so already? That is where the
Dish geeks hang out. Could be as simple as trimming some branches, or
dogging down the bolts on your mounting bracket so it flaps in the wind
less. Unless you have a good steady view of the bird, you will have
problems. I have an apple tree that I have to trim back around once a
year, to avoid dropouts in high winds. I only lose signal in heavy
storms, mostly.

Of course, if your dish was installed in winter, and a neighbor's tree
grew leaves since then, you may have to move the dish. Keep in mind it
does not have to be on the roof. Many people prefer it close to ground
level, for easy upkeep.

No trees within sight. It's new construction. Could be a lousy aiming job.
It was here when I moved in (builder put it in).

[snip]

Your Comcast system has gone through the digital conversion? (Everything
is digital except maybe the bottom 20 or so channels.)
The conversion is just rolling through this area.

Is that channels 2 - 22, and 94-99? These are in the VHF band.

[snip]

On 6/16/2010 8:23 PM, Gary H wrote:
[snip]

Your Comcast system has gone through the digital conversion? (Everything
is digital except maybe the bottom 20 or so channels.)
The conversion is just rolling through this area.

Is that channels 2 - 22, and 94-99? These are in the VHF band.

[snip]

Me? That's about it. Few channels above 21 like EWTN and CSPAN. Also
clipped the lower PBS channels here from New Jersey. Comcast gives 2
converters free except you will not get the upper subscription channels
like HBO.

Conversion was a pain as they were disorganized on availability of
boxes. Wife was told over phone to drive to distribution center but
they had no boxes when she got there. We finally got them through mail.
Remote sets on my old home strung cable with borderline reception needed
new wiring to get signal. Later we needed underground wiring upgrade
from street to house.

Then, for some unknown reason, Comcast sent me two more boxes which I
insisted they come get. It was a SNAFU.

A couple of days later, UPS showed up with another package from them
which I refused to accept. Been two weeks without any more screw ups.

Happy with TV and internet but dealing with Comcast is a nightmare.
I hear Verizon fios is worse.

On 6/17/2010 11:09 AM, wrote:
On Thu, 17 Jun 2010 07:53:48 -0400, Frank
wrote:

On 6/16/2010 8:23 PM, Gary H wrote:
[snip]

Your Comcast system has gone through the digital conversion? (Everything
is digital except maybe the bottom 20 or so channels.)
The conversion is just rolling through this area.

Is that channels 2 - 22, and 94-99? These are in the VHF band.

[snip]

Me? That's about it. Few channels above 21 like EWTN and CSPAN. Also
clipped the lower PBS channels here from New Jersey. Comcast gives 2
converters free except you will not get the upper subscription channels
like HBO.

Conversion was a pain as they were disorganized on availability of
boxes. Wife was told over phone to drive to distribution center but
they had no boxes when she got there. We finally got them through mail.
Remote sets on my old home strung cable with borderline reception needed
new wiring to get signal. Later we needed underground wiring upgrade
from street to house.

Then, for some unknown reason, Comcast sent me two more boxes which I
insisted they come get. It was a SNAFU.

A couple of days later, UPS showed up with another package from them
which I refused to accept. Been two weeks without any more screw ups.

Happy with TV and internet but dealing with Comcast is a nightmare.
I hear Verizon fios is worse.

It was the last straw with me. They chopped everything above 30. Most
of those below 30 are shopping channels and the locals.
I am using Dish and I really like the setup better. I get more
channels for less money. The hardware is a whole lot better. With 2
dual tuners, one has dual DVR. and my Replay TV I have 5 separate
channels to every TV in the house so any TV can watch any one of 5
selections. Way more than I will probably use. Did I say less money?

You have to compare long term prices and what you can negotiate. We
keep cable/internet down by getting introductory offers every 6 months.
Don't know if you can do this with the dish and I understand fios is
near impossible. Our Comcast bill yesterday was a pleasant surprise
with the credits we got along with the new introductory rate.

I have heard dish is good except for fading during storms but have also
heard dish internet is lousy. Next door neighbor has dish for TV and
fios for internet.