http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5957172
Oh my.
If this happened to Pedro Picasso, this would cause Pedro Picasso to commit hari kari, losing much of his brain fodder.
Smarmie Doofus (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:02 AM
Original message
I lost 4 of my seven free tv stations in the digital "conversion".
I retain three of my old old stations ( PBS is one of the three... the gods be praised) and have two new Spanish language stations ( we're essentially monolingual English) and a 24 hour kiddie station that seems to have on the cartoon about the "big red dog" pretty much round the clock. Plus some kind of weather channel dealie. I know what the weather is in South Bend, Indiana ( and I know WHY!) but I live in NYC.
Boooo. Hisssssss.
On the plus side, I lost FOX ( Hah ! So long, suckers!) but in so doing lost The Simpsons ( waaaahhhhh!!).
Question: Is the conversion thing a scam to make everyone buy cable?
I must be out of the loop here.
I thought New Yorkers were cabled a long time ago.
Most of rural Nebraska was 100% cabled more than a generation and a half ago.
ingac70 (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:05 AM
Response to Original message
1. My mom claimed to pick up more channels....when my little nephew set up the TV in his room at her house he ended up with about 15 more channels to watch.
eShirl (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:13 AM
Response to Original message
2. we lost one CBS channel, but gained another from a different part of the state and we gained a CW channel that is owned by our new CBS channel
we also kept two channels we had before: PBS and FOX
MADem (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:13 AM
Original message
I lost three. Supposedly if I get a "booster" I will get 'em back.
I'm not getting cable at my seasonal home, so they can pound sand. I'll go to the library and get DVDs and tapes instead!
Hmmm. Another multi-home-owning primitive.
One wonders when Pa Kettle in the White House is going to take care of that.
davepc (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:13 AM
Response to Original message
3. Some elderly relatives i set up boxes for got more channels and much better reception
Then again, they're only 8 miles away from the transmitter towers in Manhattan. I'd imagine if you're further away the worse off you are.
Some stations have already petitioned the FCC to increase their power to regain lost coverage area.
meegbear (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:13 AM
Response to Original message
4. Have you done a channel scan?
Try doing it again and see what you get.
POAS (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:16 AM
Response to Reply #4
7. Your right, and
Changing the antenna position can also greatly effect reception of digital signals. Much more so than with the old analog signals.
POAS (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:14 AM
Response to Original message
5. You just need a better antenna....
Your probably in a marginal area for the stations you lost.
no_hypocrisy (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:15 AM
Response to Original message
6. Three-plus weeks w/o analog TV checking in.
Yes, but with unexpected consequences.
I do think cable has reaped a windfall with new customers who want uninterrupted television service even if they have to pay for it b/c of the digital "conversion".
OTOH, I don't think formers viewers like me were calculated into the equation. I'm doing all right w/o the option of television. (And no one is more shocked than I am. When I was 10, TV was my god.) What I really don't think was considered with the conversion is the extent of the demographic that would be without television service. All the advertising that wouldn't be seen and the products and services that wouldn't be sold. That's the lifeblood of television. And I think it's a larger segment than being reported if at all.
At the age of 50+ years, the boob-tube is still Pedro Picasso's god.
Lagomorph (103 posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:17 AM
Response to Original message
8. No, the conversion is a scam to...
....free up more frequencies to lease out to the big corporations.
alfredo (1000+ posts) Tue Jun-30-09 07:17 AM
Response to Original message
9. You may need a better antenna.
It still blows me away, that someone can live in New York City without cable.
DU AdBot (1000+ posts) Tue Jun 30th 2009, 07:19 AM
Response to Original message
What is Scientology?
You Are Not Your Name, Your Job Or
The Clothes You Wear. Scientology.