Cabless at last

[hrj]

So you know how back on March 17 I cancelled my cable TV service? They finally -- after almost three months -- disconnected me. (I've been getting it "free" for the last couple months.) Since my current tv set didn't come with an antenna, I now have to actually acquire one, which may be amusing since I suspect most electronics shops assume that everyone has either cable or satellite service. The most efficient thing will probably be to get something I can mount up on the roof and run a line down along the same path the cable service wires run. Hmm. It occurs to me that with a little ingenuity, I might be able to use the existing wire, if it's possible to splice the right sort of connector onto the end lying across the roof. I shall need to look into this.

Comments

[johno.livejournal.com]

Have you at least upgraded to a digital TV? Next Feb there will be no more analog broadcast TV.

You should be able to tap into your houses cable to distribute the antenna signal with simple tools and maybe some adapters.

[madfilkentist]

There's no need to buy a whole new TV. The feds are giving away coupons to subsidize the needy makers of D-to-A adapter boxes, and in many cases the coupon covers the whole price or close to it.

[hrj.livejournal.com]

I don't have any particular need to buy a digital TV, although this is probably a good time to look at digital converter boxes in combination with the antenna. My deep dark secret is that I've never bought a new tv in my life. I received one new as a present, I had one long-term loan that was eventually returned to its owner, my current main tv was the legacy of an ex-girlfriend who had been "storing" it at my house and decided she didn't want to bother retrieving it. The one tv set that I've actually bought was a small portable I got at a rummage sale so I could have a set in my bedroom (where I use it primarily as an insomnia treatment).