DTV transition takes full effect today

Friday June 12, 2009 marks the end of all analog broadcasts from nearly all but a minority of television stations in the United States.
[ stock photo courtesy of: Doru Lupeanu ]

DTV day has finally arrived, after what seems like the longest ramp-up in history. Here’s what you can expect, and what you should do, as full-power TV stations pull the plug on analog broadcasts and go all-digital.

Watch the clock. Stations will be cutting off analog broadcasts at various times during the day. Some made the switch in the wee hours of the morning while we slept, as soon as the date rolled over to June 12. Most will be making the change sometime between noon and 11:59 p.m. tonight, according to the FCC. You can telephone your local stations to see when they'll be doing the deed.

Run a channel scan. This will pick up any new digital stations that just became available and stations that just increased their transmission strength. Because some stations might be changing over late in the day, rescan your channels again tomorrow, on June 13. For more help, check out our video guide to setting up and using a DTV converter box.

Check for new channels. You might find extra "side channels" with different programming from major networks. They should come up (as 2.1 or 2-1, for example) as you surf using the channel up/down button on the remote.

Get help. The FCC's toll-free help line, 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322) is currently up and running 24 hours a day. The 4,000 agents on duty can answer a question or tell you whether free, in-home local assistance is available in your area from a source such as AmeriCorps or your local fire department. You can also get hands-on help at one of the 600-plus walk-in centers set up nationwide. The FCC's online DTV hub has all this information and much more.

Look for analog holdovers. You might find that some stations in your area are still sending analog signals. There are thousands of stations (technically called low-power stations, Class A stations, and TV translator stations) that did not have to discontinue analog broadcasts as of today. Many operate in more remote areas. If you have a DTV converter box connected to your TV, you'll need to use the box's analog pass-through feature to get those analog stations in addition to the digital broadcasts you can now get. If the box you bought does not have this feature, you can connect the equipment in a way that will allow you to pull in both types of broadcasts. A diagram in the brochure DTV Made Easy shows how to connect your gear. (If you have Adobe Acrobat, you can download a copy of DTV Made Easy here. —Eileen McCooey

Comments

[weight-watch-blog]

That was actually a good reminder... I'll have to do that... I rescanned during the false start and picked up about 2 channels... I'll have to see what happens this time...