When I started my Dish Network service a couple years ago, I paid the extra
fee for the equipment ($49.95) instead of being obligated to continue
service for a year.

A few months ago my Dish Network receiver broke, push the button and the
power light wouldn't come on. Didn't see a fuse on the back and didn't want
to take it apart.

Before the next bill was due I called Dish Network and they offered that I
could pay for equipment protection plans, etc and get the receiver replaced,
on an on, any option they offered had a significant cost. I wasn't
interested in increasing my monthly bill or paying much for a receiver
because I could switch to DirecTV and get free installation.

After that I told them that I wanted to cancel my Dish Network service, they
said something about they would leave it activated for a few days in case I
changed my mind. I figure it was so they wouldn't have to refund my partial
month. Then recently I get a bill from them for last months service and the
next months service. I couldn't tell that they didn't shut off my service
because my receiver doesn't work.

Anyway, after I contacted them for online chat, they offered to send me a
replacement receiver for free. I asked them why they didn't make that offer
when I called them, they didn't have an answer. Anyway but this time they
had me aggravated enough with them that I told them I wasn't interested, I
already was being charged for 2 months service I didn't get.

Now they are sending me a box to send the broken receiver back to them, I
have to pay $15 to ship it plus for the last month of service because they
didn't shut off my service the last time I asked them. When I went from
DirecTV to Dish Network I never had to send my equipment back to them, is it
true that my equipment, that I paid $49 for, is leased and I have to return
it? I don't feel I should pay for the last month of service because I
called when my balance due was $0.00 and told them I wanted to cancel the
service, now they want me to pay because they didn't cancel my service when
I asked.

RogerN

On 10/23/2010 07:03 AM, RogerN wrote:
When I started my Dish Network service a couple years ago, I paid the extra
fee for the equipment ($49.95) instead of being obligated to continue
service for a year.

A few months ago my Dish Network receiver broke, push the button and the
power light wouldn't come on. Didn't see a fuse on the back and didn't want
to take it apart.

Before the next bill was due I called Dish Network and they offered that I
could pay for equipment protection plans, etc and get the receiver replaced,
on an on, any option they offered had a significant cost. I wasn't
interested in increasing my monthly bill or paying much for a receiver
because I could switch to DirecTV and get free installation.

After that I told them that I wanted to cancel my Dish Network service, they
said something about they would leave it activated for a few days in case I
changed my mind. I figure it was so they wouldn't have to refund my partial
month. Then recently I get a bill from them for last months service and the
next months service. I couldn't tell that they didn't shut off my service
because my receiver doesn't work.

Anyway, after I contacted them for online chat, they offered to send me a
replacement receiver for free. I asked them why they didn't make that offer
when I called them, they didn't have an answer. Anyway but this time they
had me aggravated enough with them that I told them I wasn't interested, I
already was being charged for 2 months service I didn't get.

Now they are sending me a box to send the broken receiver back to them, I
have to pay $15 to ship it plus for the last month of service because they
didn't shut off my service the last time I asked them. When I went from
DirecTV to Dish Network I never had to send my equipment back to them, is it
true that my equipment, that I paid $49 for, is leased and I have to return
it? I don't feel I should pay for the last month of service because I
called when my balance due was $0.00 and told them I wanted to cancel the
service, now they want me to pay because they didn't cancel my service when
I asked.

Send them a nice letter, CC'd to your state's attorney general's office
(or consumer affairs div., if there is one), asking if you _really_ need
to pay all this money that you never contracted for?

Here in the PDX area our local paper has a consumer affairs column that
likes to tell stories about getting positive results just by asking --
they never publish the times that they **** a company off, of course.

At any rate, I'd review my paperwork from when I bought the receiver,
then if it doesn't say anything about a lease I'd send them a nice
friendly letter explaining how you don't owe them a plugged nickel,
you're not going to pay them one thin dime, and anything that shows up
on your credit report from them will be libelous. I would _seriously_
consider CC'ing it to your states AG office, if you live in a state that
hasn't been bought by big business yet.

(Note that the CC to the state AG isn't so the AG will help you -- it's
to put your friends at Dish Network on notice that you know that they're
out of line).

--

Tim Wescott
Wescott Design Services
http://www.wescottdesign.com

Do you need to implement control loops in software?
"Applied Control Theory for Embedded Systems" was written for you.
See details at http://www.wescottdesign.com/actfes/actfes.html

I've replaced for free three Direct TV receivers - all made in China.
The US made ones last and last. The tech said he only saw the Chinese
made units fail. The card that is put in with the ID code that IC
melts. I think it was a cooling design or power supply design that did
it. The bad ones were scrapped by myself. An old version that I had
in the shop went back. It could be rebuilt.

Dish was here when we bought the house, the seller thought it was about
to go under. Maybe the local company - which did. I had an offer from
a newspaper add and called that number - they dispatched a person from
120 miles away at the time. Now service people come 20 or so miles
here. Their area is decreasing as more people switch.

Martin

On 10/23/2010 9:03 AM, RogerN wrote:
When I started my Dish Network service a couple years ago, I paid the extra
fee for the equipment ($49.95) instead of being obligated to continue
service for a year.

A few months ago my Dish Network receiver broke, push the button and the
power light wouldn't come on. Didn't see a fuse on the back and didn't want
to take it apart.

Before the next bill was due I called Dish Network and they offered that I
could pay for equipment protection plans, etc and get the receiver replaced,
on an on, any option they offered had a significant cost. I wasn't
interested in increasing my monthly bill or paying much for a receiver
because I could switch to DirecTV and get free installation.

After that I told them that I wanted to cancel my Dish Network service, they
said something about they would leave it activated for a few days in case I
changed my mind. I figure it was so they wouldn't have to refund my partial
month. Then recently I get a bill from them for last months service and the
next months service. I couldn't tell that they didn't shut off my service
because my receiver doesn't work.

Anyway, after I contacted them for online chat, they offered to send me a
replacement receiver for free. I asked them why they didn't make that offer
when I called them, they didn't have an answer. Anyway but this time they
had me aggravated enough with them that I told them I wasn't interested, I
already was being charged for 2 months service I didn't get.

Now they are sending me a box to send the broken receiver back to them, I
have to pay $15 to ship it plus for the last month of service because they
didn't shut off my service the last time I asked them. When I went from
DirecTV to Dish Network I never had to send my equipment back to them, is it
true that my equipment, that I paid $49 for, is leased and I have to return
it? I don't feel I should pay for the last month of service because I
called when my balance due was $0.00 and told them I wanted to cancel the
service, now they want me to pay because they didn't cancel my service when
I asked.

RogerN

"Martin Eastburn" wrote in message
...
I've replaced for free three Direct TV receivers - all made in China.
The US made ones last and last. The tech said he only saw the Chinese
made units fail. The card that is put in with the ID code that IC
melts. I think it was a cooling design or power supply design that did it.
The bad ones were scrapped by myself. An old version that I had
in the shop went back. It could be rebuilt.

Dish was here when we bought the house, the seller thought it was about
to go under. Maybe the local company - which did. I had an offer from
a newspaper add and called that number - they dispatched a person from
120 miles away at the time. Now service people come 20 or so miles here.
Their area is decreasing as more people switch.

Martin

I did a search on "dish network sucks" and found a lot of people that were
happy with dish network until they needed customer service, that's my
situation. I wasn't interested in increasing my monthly payment of changing
to a different plan, I just wanted to replace my receiver for a reasonable
charge. I would have liked it replaced for free with commitment but a $25
or $50 one time fee and no commitment would have been OK.

RogerN

On Sun, 24 Oct 2010 13:47:04 -0500, RogerN wrote:
"Martin Eastburn" wrote in message
...
I've replaced for free three Direct TV receivers - all made in China.
The US made ones last and last. The tech said he only saw the Chinese
made units fail. The card that is put in with the ID code that IC
melts. I think it was a cooling design or power supply design that did it.
The bad ones were scrapped by myself. An old version that I had
in the shop went back. It could be rebuilt.

Dish was here when we bought the house, the seller thought it was about
to go under. Maybe the local company - which did. I had an offer from
a newspaper add and called that number - they dispatched a person from
120 miles away at the time. Now service people come 20 or so miles here.
Their area is decreasing as more people switch.

I did a search on "dish network sucks" and found a lot of people that were
happy with dish network until they needed customer service, that's my
situation. I wasn't interested in increasing my monthly payment of changing
to a different plan, I just wanted to replace my receiver for a reasonable
charge. I would have liked it replaced for free with commitment but a $25
or $50 one time fee and no commitment would have been OK.

It's probably like any other agreement - before you sign a contract, be
sure that you know what the contract says!

Good Luck!
Rich

I live in Du Quoin, IL and with a tower and good antenna I can get broadcast
channels from St Louis and should be able to reach Paducah. I was just
wondering with the Digital TV would it be worth putting up an antenna tower
and point one antenna toward St Louis, another toward Paducah, 2 antennas I
could switch between instead of a rotor. At least it would seem I could get
a good selection of local channels. It's been a long time since I used TV
antennas and not sure if there is much broadcasting going on or if they shut
transmitters down and work through cable and satellite. For what they want
for a monthly payment for TV these days it seems a new tower and antennas
are a reasonable option.

3 months without TV and I'm still alive!!! The Internet seems to have all
the local and worldwide news and I can access it anytime of day.

RogerN

On Oct 24, 2:58*pm, "RogerN" wrote:
I live in Du Quoin, IL and with a tower and good antenna I can get broadcast
channels from St Louis and should be able to reach Paducah. *I was just
wondering with the Digital TV would it be worth putting up an antenna tower
and point one antenna toward St Louis, another toward Paducah, 2 antennas I
could switch between instead of a rotor. *At least it would seem I could get
a good selection of local channels. *It's been a long time since I used TV
antennas and not sure if there is much broadcasting going on or if they shut
transmitters down and work through cable and satellite. *For what they want
for a monthly payment for TV these days it seems a new tower and antennas
are a reasonable option.

3 months without TV and I'm still alive!!! *The Internet seems to have all
the local and worldwide news and I can access it anytime of day.

RogerN

Over The Air TV works fine for me. I receive Boston clearly from
southern NH on an old patched-up antenna from the 1980's, with a home-
made UHF dipole element replacing the storm-damaged original. It's two
6" long aluminum rods stuck into the ends of a plastic tubing
insulator. Most of the patching was replacing rusty rivets with
stainless steel screws.

I put a USB tuner on a $100 surplus PC running Media Center to make a
Digital Video Recorder.

jsw

"Jim Wilkins" wrote in message
...
On Oct 24, 2:58 pm, "RogerN" wrote:
I live in Du Quoin, IL and with a tower and good antenna I can get
broadcast
channels from St Louis and should be able to reach Paducah. I was just
wondering with the Digital TV would it be worth putting up an antenna
tower
and point one antenna toward St Louis, another toward Paducah, 2 antennas
I
could switch between instead of a rotor. At least it would seem I could
get
a good selection of local channels. It's been a long time since I used TV
antennas and not sure if there is much broadcasting going on or if they
shut
transmitters down and work through cable and satellite. For what they want
for a monthly payment for TV these days it seems a new tower and antennas
are a reasonable option.

3 months without TV and I'm still alive!!! The Internet seems to have all
the local and worldwide news and I can access it anytime of day.

RogerN
\
\Over The Air TV works fine for me. I receive Boston clearly from
\southern NH on an old patched-up antenna from the 1980's, with a home-
\made UHF dipole element replacing the storm-damaged original. It's two
\6" long aluminum rods stuck into the ends of a plastic tubing
\insulator. Most of the patching was replacing rusty rivets with
\stainless steel screws.
\
\I put a USB tuner on a $100 surplus PC running Media Center to make a
\Digital Video Recorder.
\
\jsw

I bought one of those Hauppauge sp TV tuner boards for my PC and it makes
a neat DVR. I don't have media center edition so most of the neat features
like auto channel changing and the remote control doesn't work but it's
still nice for a DVR. Also nice for taking old video tapes and making
DVD's.

I'm interested in getting an economical surplus PC and dedicating it as a
media center though. I think I could buy some good antennas and have good
enough TV instead of the hassle with DN or DTV. I'm kind of interested in
trying to set it up where I have a small tower with multiple antennas aimed
at different stations and have the signals all on one cable. I'm guessing I
need notch channel filters and signal combiners, but then no rotors to
fiddle with to see what's on.

RogerN

On Oct 24, 7:48*pm, "RogerN" wrote:
"Jim Wilkins" wrote in message

...
On Oct 24, 2:58 pm, "RogerN" wrote:



I live in Du Quoin, IL and with a tower and good antenna I can get
broadcast
channels from St Louis and should be able to reach Paducah. I was just
wondering with the Digital TV would it be worth putting up an antenna
tower
and point one antenna toward St Louis, another toward Paducah, 2 antennas
I
could switch between instead of a rotor. At least it would seem I could
get
a good selection of local channels. It's been a long time since I used TV
antennas and not sure if there is much broadcasting going on or if they
shut
transmitters down and work through cable and satellite. For what they want
for a monthly payment for TV these days it seems a new tower and antennas
are a reasonable option.

3 months without TV and I'm still alive!!! The Internet seems to have all
the local and worldwide news and I can access it anytime of day.

RogerN

\
\Over The Air TV works fine for me. I receive Boston clearly from
\southern NH on an old patched-up antenna from the 1980's, with a home-
\made UHF dipole element replacing the storm-damaged original. It's two
\6" long aluminum rods stuck into the ends of a plastic tubing
\insulator. Most of the patching was replacing rusty rivets with
\stainless steel screws.
\
\I put a USB tuner on a $100 surplus PC running Media Center to make a
\Digital Video Recorder.
\
\jsw

I bought one of those Hauppauge sp TV tuner boards for my PC and it makes
a neat DVR. *I don't have media center edition so most of the neat features
like auto channel changing and the remote control doesn't work but it's
still nice for a DVR. *Also nice for taking old video tapes and making
DVD's.

I'm interested in getting an economical surplus PC and dedicating it as a
media center though. *I think I could buy some good antennas and have good
enough TV instead of the hassle with DN or DTV. *I'm kind of interested in
trying to set it up where I have a small tower with multiple antennas aimed
at different stations and have the signals all on one cable. *I'm guessing I
need notch channel filters and signal combiners, but then no rotors to
fiddle with to see what's on.

RogerN

Where I am the stations are in four directions and some are very
sensitive to precise aim. I bought a bucket of dead 1950's rotators
for $5 and fixed the most promising one by replacing the motor
capacitor and generally cleaning and oiling everything.

The rotator is at the bottom end of a long mast tube that slides up or
down a wooden post attached to the side of the house. When it's down I
can reach the antennas from the roof, full height when up is about 50
feet, braced at the top by guy lines. I couldn't aim fixed antennas at
the top unless the mast was strong enough to climb, and don't receive
many of the stations when it's lowered to within reach.

The guy lines go over pulleys on a ring hanging from a foot of cord,
to allow free rotation, and down the mast to rope cleats. It's nearly
impossible to adjust their tension properly from the outer ends, but
very easy when looking straight up the mast.

The biggest disadvantage is not being able to move the antenna
automatically for timed recordings. During the NTSC/ATSC transition
period I also had to manually patch the separate feeds from the UHF
and VHF antennas for some weaker stations that dropped out unless
connected directly to the tuner.

jsw