Killing Analog - Test Run in the New York Metro area
By Rab Bakari • Oct 24th, 2008 • Category: Events, Tech
This is only a test. October 28th, 2008
Don't ditch that roof antenna yet!
Analog television signals are being cut for two minutes on Tuesday, OCTOBER 28th and screens will go blank in New York City homes that are not equipped for digital television.
The test is a coordinated effort among broadcasters who will shut down their analog signals at different moments beginning at 5:58 p.m. and ending at 6:01 p.m. that evening. The trial in the city is the largest one so far to gauge how ready Americans are for the total transition to digital television coming Feb. 19. TV viewers who are not digital-ready will see a message during the interruption, informing them of the coming transition and what they need to do to prepare.
Go to www.dtv.org to get all the info you need to make the smooth transition. Oh yeah! If you primarily view TV through cable; satellite or computer, then you won’t even notice a blink.
A small population has already gone fully digital in Wilmington, N.C., but New York is a far bigger testing ground. Officials at ION Media, the organizer of the test, expect to field a number of calls from New Yorkers who are confused about losing their television signals.
Most New Yorkers, however, probably won’t notice. Nielsen has named New York the most-digital ready city with only about 3 percent of households unprepared.
Most new televisions are digital and all televisions hooked up to cable or satellite won’t be affected. However, if you are still using rabbit ears on an old set, you won’t even be picking up static. In that case you’ll need a digital converter.
Info courtesy of Garett Sloane
UPDATE: The verdict is in! What was the results of the test? The answer is here!
Rab Bakari is Tech; Africa; Politics & Culture; Djaying; Graffiti, Food; Sci-Fi and Music all make up me! :`)
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