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Obama makes a decision .......oh yeah!!

Discussion in 'Fred's House of Pancakes' started by KK6PD, Jan 8, 2009.

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  1. KK6PD

    KK6PD _ . _ . / _ _ . _

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    Well, having worked in the television industry for the last 40 years, and hearing about this momentous transition to DIGITAL TELEVISION for the last decade, CNN has just reported that The Big "O" (No Not Oprah) is making a decision to DELAY THE FEB 11 DTV START DATE!!!!

    It seems that too many "Poor" folk have not taken the Federal Governments offer, which has been ongoing for the last 2 years, to get FREE $80 credit to buy 2 DTV Converter Boxes, and now the program has RUN OUT OF MONEY!!!

    The event that was supposedly SET IN STONE, has just crumbled!!!

    If this really is true and does occur ...you can bet...

    "The Feces Will Really Be A Hitten The Rotary Oscillator!!!

    This is going to be good!!

    73 de Pat KK6PD
     
    #1 KK6PD, Jan 8, 2009
  2. KK6PD

    KK6PD _ . _ . / _ _ . _

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    Damn I hate when I MISSPELL... decision
    How do I correct a error in a Thread title????
     
    #2 KK6PD, Jan 8, 2009
  3. donee

    donee New Member

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    Hi KK6PD,

    I am all set here with Digital TV and Digital SWL'g too. Never have bought cable or satellite TV.

    Do not think they should delay the switch over. Even if it takes a few months to get the funds replenished to finish the job. They can just pass a tax on TV advertizers and broadcasters to pay for the rest of the people who do not have converter boxes yet. And also have the converter box purchase partially refundable by Tax Credit as a way of minimizing transaction costs.
     
    #3 donee, Jan 8, 2009
  4. galaxee

    galaxee mostly benevolent

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    we requested a coupon AGES ago and it never came, but they took the credit off our household limit of 2. so we requested the second one several weeks ago. no sign yet.
     
    #4 galaxee, Jan 8, 2009
  5. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    I agree, at some point you just have to take the plunge and make the changes. I suspect the number of people affected will be tiny....and I'll also bet you can get a converter on e-bay for $10-15.
     
    #5 efusco, Jan 8, 2009
  6. Godiva

    Godiva AmeriKan Citizen

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    I thought the coupons were only good for $40 and the converters ran $60-$80 each.

    And they ran out of coupons. Not sure if there is a shortage of converters.

    Now....should Obama just let the conversion happen despite the lack of converters/coupons? Even though that responsibility was the previous administrations?
     
    #6 Godiva, Jan 8, 2009
  7. KK6PD

    KK6PD _ . _ . / _ _ . _

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    You are correct! You are allowed 2 coupons, the units vary from 39.99 to 75 bucks. Mine were $60 piece. But they were the model that had the better ATSC decoding chips in them.

    There are plenty of converters, and remember the ONLY people that are going to HAVE TO HAVE the converters are those who receive OFF AIR ONLY!

    If you have Cable, FIOS or Satellite, your cool and ready to rock! A majority of those services will still support NTSC!
    You might have to put up with some wrong Aspect ratio issues however, which will result in everything looking thinner!
    circles will look like vertical ovals!

    To top it off many of the VHF broadcasters who are now using UHF frequencies, will be switching back to their old VHF frequency, only with a Digital Signal. The coverage on VHF is MUCH better than any UHF could hope to cover without investing in massive amounts of extra RF wattage to achieve the same coverage footprint.

    As far as the Big "O", Stay out of it, you all got FAR bigger nuts to bust before to decide TV for the masses!!!

    But hey, can you imagine the TV Riots of 2009 ....it will make Dec 11 2012 look small!

    73 de Pat KK6PD
     
    #7 KK6PD, Jan 9, 2009
  8. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    My local station, and I'm sure most others, have been scrolling notices for over a year during all peak viewing hours.

    Anyone who doesn't have the box by now really has no excuse. The rebate cards have been around for a long time as well. I got one and don't really need it, but wanted a backup in case of emergency and my dish is out but I need to get reception.
     
    #8 efusco, Jan 9, 2009
  9. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    If you haven't got a converter box by now and you actually need a converter box to get a signal, then you don't deserve to watch TV. I am so tired of all the local TV stations running the "test" so you can see if you're ready for DTV. Bring it on already.
     
    #9 dogfriend, Jan 9, 2009
  10. Godiva

    Godiva AmeriKan Citizen

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    It's Digby!

    (But I miss Dingo's laughing smile.)
     
    #10 Godiva, Jan 9, 2009
  11. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    I decided to go with Digby's goofy mug for awhile. He kept trying to stick his nose on the lens when I took this one.
     
    #11 dogfriend, Jan 9, 2009
  12. perryma

    perryma New Member

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    so what will my non digital tv look like when I turn it on without a box?
     
    #12 perryma, Jan 9, 2009
  13. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    Snow.
     
    #13 dogfriend, Jan 9, 2009
  14. perryma

    perryma New Member

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    I love snow in the winter. I guess I better visit ebay before spring.
     
    #14 perryma, Jan 9, 2009
  15. effwitt

    effwitt Paparazzi Magnet

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    Both of my parents (who have cable) have asked what they need to do. A recent newspaper article stated that about 25% of the people don't understand what's coming. A bunch of people will be surprised when they go all digital.
     
    #15 effwitt, Jan 9, 2009
  16. dbermanmd

    dbermanmd New Member

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    who did you request the coupon from?
     
    #16 dbermanmd, Jan 9, 2009
  17. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    If you have cable, you don't have to do anything. It is just the people who are receiving old-fashioned broadcast through the "aether" TV with an outside antenna or rabbit ears that will get snow. Also, in our area, the local TV stations are running "tests" practically every day so you can determine if you will receive the new DTV signal. I am so tired of the tests now.
     
    #17 dogfriend, Jan 9, 2009
  18. dbermanmd

    dbermanmd New Member

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    i think you can only have one president at a time.
     
    #18 dbermanmd, Jan 9, 2009
  19. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    #19 efusco, Jan 9, 2009
  20. dbermanmd

    dbermanmd New Member

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    from the government - Hah :)

    another thing the govt cant do well....

    have a good weekend Evan
     
    #20 dbermanmd, Jan 9, 2009
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