The DTV Marathon

I've avoided much comment on DTV (digital television) transition issues, partly because I wear the hat as chair of RTNDA and it might be construed any of my snarky observations represent the Association. For the record, here's what my own experience reflects on just one person's digital dealings.

I have a DTV converter for the 20-year old tube we have in the basement, which Nature Girl and I call the tornado TV. When the winds get really bad we exercise the option to pick a corner of the basement resembling a bomb shelter and follow the news via the combination of ol' reliable and a battery-powered radio.

Unfortunately, Tornado TV won't work much longer because we don't have it hooked up to cable; the feeling is if cable goes down at least we still might have a way to watch local forecasters track a storm using Double Doppler Viper Triple XXX Monster radar.

I'm no engineer but hooking it up was pretty simple...rabbit ears here, wire to TV there, and plug it in. It worked OK except it won't pick up WOIO, so no 19ActionNews nor side channels but it does pick up Akron/Canton's Channel 17 (all five subchannels) and 3, 3.2, 5, 8, both 43's (including the Tube Channel that has no Tube), both 49's, 55 and 61.

But if I weren't a young whipper-snapper of 53 I'd be more like this woman --



Thanks to my sister Donna for sharing and, in the process, probably breaking hundreds of copyright laws.

Oh, and now some stations will be digital this month, some won't, and all are supposed to be in June (with some exceptions) while Uncle Sam figures out how to get the converter boxes to viewers who won't notice now until they can't watch American Idol.

Change is coming...