Mediacom Subscribers - Fox 17 KDSM scheduled to disapper Dec. 1st

**ISUAlum2002** · 10-27-2006, 11:30 AM

Mediacom is taking to the offensive on their broadcasts now. Just saw an ad from them while watching ESPN, they are making sure the cable customers know that KDSM/Sinclair's antics will end up costing all the subscribers more money and that they're still working to keep this from happening.

**CTAClone** · 10-27-2006, 12:16 PM

Just so everyone knows, Cable Sucks. Satelite is the only way to go, especially when you get an HD tv. Watching sports in HD is the best and you get a better picture with satelite and more HD channels. I also get almost every ISU basketball game and I live in LA. That's the most important thing to me. And it doesn't cost as much. I get every channel, I mean every channel they offer for around $85 a month. (That doesn't include the costs of the Sports PPV I order.) I get every movie channel, sports channel, all HD channels on two tv's. Plus it comes with a DVR so I can record live tv (I had to pay an extra $199 to get the receiver). Get rid of the monopoly that is cable and go to Satelite.

**ISUAlum2002** · 10-27-2006, 12:24 PM

Originally Posted by CTAClone

Just so everyone knows, Cable Sucks. Satelite is the only way to go, especially when you get an HD tv. Watching sports in HD is the best and you get a better picture with satelite and more HD channels. I also get almost every ISU basketball game and I live in LA. That's the most important thing to me. And it doesn't cost as much. I get every channel, I mean every channel they offer for around $85 a month. (That doesn't include the costs of the Sports PPV I order.) I get every movie channel, sports channel, all HD channels on two tv's. Plus it comes with a DVR so I can record live tv (I had to pay an extra $199 to get the receiver). Get rid of the monopoly that is cable and go to Satelite.

Meh. I get HD channels through the air and if I wanted to pay for them, I could get some through cable as well.

I have 5 TV's in my house and there's no way in hell that I'll jack around with getting 5 different satellite receivers hooked up. Add to that the fact that I want a fast, RELIABLE internet connection, and cable is the way to go for me. I'll be getting my own DVR so that doesn't matter to me.

Plus, I like the Mediacom Connections channel.

**CTAClone** · 10-27-2006, 12:35 PM

Originally Posted by ISUAlum2002

Meh. I get HD channels through the air and if I wanted to pay for them, I could get some through cable as well.

You can't get HD through the air, the data is to large, and yes you can get them through Cable, but the quality isn't as high.

How do you run 5 tvs without cable receivers? Do you just plug into the wall? You would only need 3 receivers for 5 tvs with satelite.

Can't argue with the internet thing though. I have cable wireless internet at my house that is separate than my satelite, costs me $20 a month.

**ISUAlum2002** · 10-27-2006, 12:41 PM

Originally Posted by CTAClone

You can't get HD through the air, the data is to large, and yes you can get them through Cable, but the quality isn't as high.

How do you run 5 tvs without cable receivers? Do you just plug into the wall? You would only need 3 receivers for 5 tvs with satelite.

Yes, you can get HD through the air, I do it every day and night.

All you have to do to get cable with all 5 TV's is to split it with splitters. Sometimes you will get reduction in picture quality, but not when you use high quality cable and splitters.

And yes, if I want to have 5 TV's with 5 different channels on with satellite, I'd have to have 5 different satellite receivers. I have considered running 3 receivers and just tying 2 TV's into 2 of the receivers and then my 61" HDTV into one of the receivers.

Someone at the satellite provider did a heck of a sales job on you. ;)

**CTAClone** · 10-27-2006, 12:59 PM

Originally Posted by ISUAlum2002

Yes, you can get HD through the air, I do it every day and night.

Never even heard of anyone broadcasting through the air in HD, and if anyone did, it's a compressed signal with all that data and you need to convert the signal. So, I don't know why you believe you get an HD signal through the air.

I used to split cable when I was in college. It's much easier to have someone come in set it up for free, have your cables in the wall, and receivers are just as simple as a splitter.

I just hate monopolies, that's why I'm anti-cable. Plus, satelite was the first to broadcast cyclone basketball games, that's when I switched.

Why are we arguing about Cable and Satelite?

I think I should work for a satelite company.

**thunderdave** · 10-27-2006, 01:11 PM

The very best possible HD signal available is OTA.
There is no argument, this is fact.

**ISUAlum2002** · 10-27-2006, 01:22 PM

Originally Posted by CTAClone

Never even heard of anyone broadcasting through the air in HD, and if anyone did, it's a compressed signal with all that data and you need to convert the signal. So, I don't know why you believe you get an HD signal through the air.

As thunderdave just said, HD signal is at its absolute best through the air, broadcasted from places such as KCCI, WHOTV, and WOI. KCCI's HD comes in the best for me.....perfect picture.

I used to split cable when I was in college. It's much easier to have someone come in set it up for free, have your cables in the wall, and receivers are just as simple as a splitter.

The people who come in and "set it up for free" do the exact same thing that I have done. Most of the wall outlets were already there when I got the house, I only had to put 1 more in myself.

I just hate monopolies, that's why I'm anti-cable. Plus, satelite was the first to broadcast cyclone basketball games, that's when I switched.

I absolutely despise monopolies. I keep hoping that another large cable provider (like Comcast) would come into this market and give Mediacom some competition, but it hasn't happened yet.

**jbhtexas** · 10-27-2006, 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by CTAClone

Never even heard of anyone broadcasting through the air in HD, and if anyone did, it's a compressed signal with all that data and you need to convert the signal. So, I don't know why you believe you get an HD signal through the air.

OK, if you say so. However, I'd be willing to bet that it will come as quite a surprise to the people who made my Samsung OTA HDTV tuner and the MyHD tuner card in my PC that nobody is broadcasting through the air in HD. Actually, it comes as quite a surprise to me, since I'm quite sure that I was watching the Cardinals/Tigers via OTA HD last evening.

You might want to check out www.avsforum.com. It should be very enligthening for you.

**thunderdave** · 10-27-2006, 02:07 PM

jbh- the avsforum is an awesome site for information.
The only problem i've found with recording HD shows on my computer is that 1 hour = almost 7gb of hard drive space.

**jbhtexas** · 10-27-2006, 02:16 PM

Originally Posted by thunderdave

jbh- the avsforum is an awesome site for information.
The only problem i've found with recording HD shows on my computer is that 1 hour = almost 7gb of hard drive space.

That's why they make those 500 GB USB and Firewire drives!

The recording software I use records the entire transport stream by default (which is about 7 GB/hr). For those channels that broadcast subchannels (which for the most part are weather radars around here), if If I only record the main channel, and not the subchannels, the size goes down.

**CTAClone** · 10-30-2006, 11:47 AM

So you can get an HD signal just by plugging in your HD TV? I always thought you needed a receiver to decompress and decrypt the signal. Guess I'm an idiot. Still hate cable though.

**ISUAlum2002** · 10-30-2006, 12:00 PM

Originally Posted by CTAClone

So you can get an HD signal just by plugging in your HD TV? I always thought you needed a receiver to decompress and decrypt the signal. Guess I'm an idiot. Still hate cable though.

As long as your HDTV has an on-board HD tuner, yes, you can just plug in a decent antenna and pull in the HD broadcasts from the air. If your TV is just "HD ready", then you need an HD receiver/tuner of some type. Either way, the local network stations are always broadcasting HD signal, whether the shows they are showing are actually in HD or not.

**C.John** · 10-30-2006, 12:02 PM

HDTV's with built in digital receivers can use either an OTA antenna or your basic cable to receive HD content. Both of ours have this feature and I merely use the cable from Charter to receive HD broadcasts of ABC,NBC,CBS and PBS at no extra cost.

**cyclonedcm** · 10-30-2006, 12:50 PM

Make a list of advertisers on KDSM... contact them and let them know that you won't buy their products or service if Sinclair broadcasting doesn't work with Mediacom...