Are you ready for Feb. 17, 2009?

Still works as a radio antenna.

 

BOWL SEASON TAILGATES FROM MY SNOWY BACKYARD!

 

I'm guessing anyone who watches over the air television is not reading message boards on the internet.

 

And you would be wrong.

 

Wait until you switch from 8-track to cassette. It'll blow your mind.

 

Good picture of me, but we got cable now.

Dad watches the Hooters channel

 

I want to do very naughty things to your sister...

I just realized that the little desktop tv I have for watching the first two days of March Madness at the office is now going to be useless. Well, hell.

 

A couple weeks after the HR fiasco.

 

At least twice. Haven't had cable in several years, because I couldn't afford it and now realize I don't need it. When you work 4 to midnight, really, what's the point?

A coworker gave me a set of rabbit ears a while ago. I use them to watch football games, mostly. Can't be arsed to go out and get the converter box yet. I might. I might not.

 

Evidently, if you own an older tv, even if it's connected to cable, you will probably need to purchase a 'cable set-top box' -- which is different from a 'digital-to-analog converter box' -- in order to receive the digital signal...I think.

Will cable customers with analog TVs have to buy or rent a set-top box from their cable company? If so, how much will it cost?

First, it's important to know that the February 17, 2009 deadline for the digital television transition only applies to full-power broadcast stations. Cable companies are not required by the government to transition their systems to digital, and can continue to deliver channels to their customers in analog. Cable companies are actually required by FCC rules to continue offering local broadcast stations to their customers in analog as long as they offer any analog service. This requirement will continue for at least three years after February 17, 2009. The Commission will decide in 2011 whether the requirement should be continued beyond February 17, 2012. This means that customers who receive analog cable service (without a cable set-top box) will be able to continue to do so.

However, for business reasons (among other things, digital is much more efficient than analog), cable companies may be interested in transitioning their systems from analog delivery to digital delivery. If a cable company makes the business decision to go all-digital (meaning it will stop offering any channels to its customers in analog), it must ensure that its analog customers can continue to watch their local broadcast stations. This may require customers with analog televisions to get a set-top box. If the cable company provides the customer with a set-top box, any costs related to it will be determined by the cable company. Therefore, it is recommended that analog cable customers contact their cable company to ask if a set-top box will be needed, when it will be needed, and if there will be a cost.

It is also important to note that a cable set-top box is different from a digital-to-analog converter box. A digital-to-analog converter box is necessary only for analog televisions that receive their programming over-the-air using a rooftop antenna or "rabbit ears" connected to the set. A digital-to-analog converter box is not necessary for a TV connected to a paid television service such as a cable or satellite TV provider. Information on any set-top boxes needed for a paid service such as cable or satellite should be obtained from the service provider.

http://www.dtv.gov/consumercorner.html