If you have an analog TV and analog Comcast cable service without a converter box, and you turn on WGBH-TV-2 right now, you're going to see something very wrong: video of normal WGBH programming, accompanied by audio of WGBH's continuously-looping Ready for Digital TV special.
The picture says "This TV is DTV Ready" while the sound says, from time to time, "This TV set is not ready for the switch to digital TV in February 2009". Also, the picture is shrunk down and enclosed in a black box.
WGBH says this is a "Comcast engineering problem", not a problem with WGBH's broadcast or with your TV set.
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Comments
Expired DTV converter box coupons
By theszak
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 11:46am
What can people do for DTV converter box coupons whose coupons expired before they could use them?... Coupons expired before the manufacturers improved the DTV converter boxes' technology.
The coupon program call center and website issues 90 day coupons one time only, see also
www.associatedcontent.com/pop_print.shtml?content_...
dallasnews.com/...061108dnbusdigitaltv.201c1f7.html
What does that have to do with Comcast?
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 11:50am
Seriously? The coupons are for OTA converters, this post was about cable. Are you really just a bot that searches for keywords and posts unrelated crap?
it is relevant, actually
By Ron Newman
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:16pm
This post was about today's DTV test. I'd say anything about converter boxes and coupons is relevant. The whole point of today's test is to reduce the number of folks who are surprised to find that their TVs stop working on February 17.
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By eeka
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 11:54am
I think someone might need to draw the line again.
http://1smootshort.blogspot.com
ADAM! EEKA BROKE UHUB
By Brett
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:02pm
That subject line broke the Recent comments box :)
Fixed
By adamg
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:12pm
That's the problem with narrow columns, I guess :-).
P-I-U
By SwirlyGrrl
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:04pm
My MIL says that when her kids were little, they very quickly figured out what P-I-E spelled. So they switched to P-I-U
I think Adam needs to do something similar with "Zak Triggers" - the words/phrases that trigger a Zak Attack.
Let's see
By Spatch
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:15pm
I recently went to the Boston Public Library to ask a librarian what I could do regarding the DTV conversion with my Comcast Digital television. The BPL employee directed me to the Boston City Council. Minutes later, I had my answers in a readable format. The moral of the story is ASCII and ye shall receive!
A hex on you!
By SwirlyGrrl
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:20pm
:-p
I'd do what my parents did
By adamg
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:16pm
Which was to speak Yiddish, but I'm thinking that wouldn't apply here because most people wouldn't get it except maybe Don because of his background.
Fortunately, I think there are only three phrases that trigger him/it, and the only one that we really use a lot is the synonym for that thing that's like the Boston Athenaeum, only public, and with a lot of branches.
OK, make that two things
By adamg
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 12:17pm
Fear, intimidation and the Deliberative Body of Which Rob Consalvo is a Member.
Is this Zak fellow one of
By ShadyMilkMan
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 1:15pm
Is this Zak fellow one of those semi intelligent robo crawlers? Ive come across them on aim where they just respond to certain phrases with pre packaged information. I took a look at his comment history and was hard pressed to find any intelligent direct responces to any comments made about his comments.
nope, he's Don Saklad
By Brett
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 2:14pm
Aka, an MIT grad who has devoted his life to being a pain in the side of BPL's ass.
http://derspatchel.livejournal.com/311032.html
HILARIOUS.
My TV says its not
By J
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 1:24pm
My TV says its not ready....but I get cable....so it shouldn't be an issue?
what cable system are you on?
By Ron Newman
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 1:37pm
and do you use a converter box? Does the Channel 2 video, the audio, or both say that your TV is not ready?
Im on a university cable
By J
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 7:26pm
Im on a university cable system, no boxes. The video said the TVw as not ready, the audio was talking about why DTV exists
then im sure
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 7:54pm
youre university system is not switching to digital yet. the mandatory conversion only applies to over the air broadcast.
the cable co should be
By anon
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 7:57pm
the cable co should be performing the conversion for everyone, cuz the signal that goes down the cable to your TV has nothing to do with the over the air signals (which are what's changing).
i think what you're seeing is that the cable provider is not configured for digital... but no doubt will be, by conversion day, or maybe the day after once the calls start pouring in
No.
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:02pm
There is no "conversion" for cable companies. Cable companies are switching to all-digital format on a voluntary basis so they can open up bandwidth to offer more channels. "conversion day" has nothing to do with cable. If your cable co is converting to digital, they will offer you cable boxes. If they don't offer boxes, sit back and enjoy being one of the few people who can still use an analog tv.
yes
By zbert
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:05pm
the cable company's headend has to convert the digital signal from the over-the-air TV station just as any television or converter box would, before it can rebroadcast it over cable (regardless of how the signal is encoded on the cable)
and
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:19pm
youre making my point. How the signal is received by the company and how it transmits it to your tv are not related.
your tv will still receive an analog signal unless they have converted their system to all-digital. There are two diferent things going on here where are somewhat independent. OTA broadcasts going all-digital in february. Cable companies using all-digital channels to free up bandwidth which has already happened on many systems and may not happen on some such as a college-run system. One really has nothing to do with the other except that going all digital will save them from having to alter the encoding of the signal.
but
By zbert
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:34pm
the original question concerned turning on a tv connected to a cable hose, and seeing a message about "not ready for digital"
i diagnosed this as a failing of the cable company to switch over to its digital receiver at that time, which caused it to send out the "not ready" thingy to customers.
i am making my point..
we are making the same point
By anon-a-mouse
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:51pm
i misunderstood, my reading skills are poor a lot of the time.
"the cable co should be performing the conversion for everyone" is confusing, esp to those who have no idea what this digital business even means. I assume you said this not logged in. I took that to mean the cable company would be converting to digital through their wires, I misread it apparently.
move along, nothing to see here.
exactly
By zbert
Tue, 12/09/2008 - 9:56pm
so why is cable so damned expensive?
:)