Re: Battery power television

In article <c3qmj19hbm7i1jcvbjjamm976rqlsf0rlt@xxxxxxx>, Lawrence
Glickman <Lawrence_Glickman@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> On Wed, 28 Sep 2005 20:38:09 -0700, Tim May
> <timcmay@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Yes I did. I hope satellite has better programming than cable,
> because basic cable sucks!

Satellite has basically "basic" + "premium" (HBO, Showtime, Starz,
etc.) + "exotic" (sports, pay per view, Playboy, etc.).

Some cable systems carry most of these.

Whether these things are worth it to one is a matter of personal wishes
and financial status. I have had DirecTV since 1997.
>
> >(This obviously cannot refer to "since we now have the _potential_ to
> >have satellite," as full lower-48 coverage has existed with either
> >DirecTV or Dish Network for at least 8 years now.)
>
> Rooftop antennas have all but disappeared from my area, now replaced
> with dishes and cable boxes.
>
> I have lots of channels on basic cable, and they all suck. I wonder
> if satellite is better, or worth the investment. The dishes here are
> all aimed low at the horizon, meaning there is a lot of attenuation of
> the satellite signal going through the trees and buildings.

Either one can see the satellites or one cannot. The aiming details are
at the usual sites.

Atmospheric attenuation is pretty much a non-issue. These are digital
signals: with heavy error correction (Firecodes, etc.) on the
bitstream. Heavy snowstorms or rainstorms can cause brief
interruptions. Mere smog or whatever in the atmosphere cannot cause
these effects.

>
> If it were not for my cable modem, I would dump cable completely.
> Without *premium service* which costs plenty, it isn't worth any more
> than the free crap from the Major Networks.
>

If I could get a cablemodem at my house, I might pick cable as well.
Except I would sign up for the cablemodem and keep my satellite, which
is an offered option in most places.

Cable companies are often slaves to the local politics of a community,
in ways that satellite companies can just say "*** off" to. So if a
community wants "Fox News" kept out but "Televisio Nicaragua" put in,
it may happen. More likely is that the bluenoses will want Playboy-TV
kept out. Personally, I found it refreshing to be away from the
influence of local Santa Cruz lefties and Jews and fundies, who
constantly filed lawsuits to force certain networks off of Santa Cruz
Cable. They viewed "democratic input" as an excuse to be the Thought
Police.


--Tim May
.

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