i got home from my parent's house and i couldn't get online... then i noticed none of my tv's worked. i called the local cable company and no one else was having trouble, so they scheduled a visit for 16 hours later.
but last night was a little rough on me, i needed a night in - but with no internet or tv, it was going to suck a lot with no tv or interwebs... luckily, i had a backup plan.
some time ago, i put an antenna on my roof, the cost wasn't terrible. digital tv reception at my house isn't perfect, but it works enough to get me many channels.
the coax feed runs into my basement and just dangles there unused, having it connected to the cable system is only going to bleed off the cable signal. but when the cable is out, i can use a barrel connector to directly connect the antenna to the TV of choice (in my case, in my bedroom), or replace the incoming cable feed with the antenna.
my tv's are older, i'm someone who doesn't really see the need to spend money on new flat panels unless i need them. i took advantage of the discount cards that were available during the Dtv changeover, but there are many converter boxes available fairly inexpensively.
by simply reconnecting the feed to my bedroom tv to the converter i have in there, i had tv.
from there, i try to keep a phone around that can tether. tethering is where you have a way to get your computer online via your cell phone. you can pay for the service from most cell providers, but i dont pay for the service. however, i am technically inclined, so i have in the past hacked my iphone and currently keep an Android based phone in my arsenal that allows for this.
keeping this stuff around isn't difficult or terribly expensive, and truly beats the shit out of not being able to stay connected.
in the end, i went over to a friend's house anyway - and when i came home the cable connection was fixed (though the wire is still across all the yards). but, i love knowing i'm prepared to avoid hassle or annoyance.
but last night was a little rough on me, i needed a night in - but with no internet or tv, it was going to suck a lot with no tv or interwebs... luckily, i had a backup plan.
some time ago, i put an antenna on my roof, the cost wasn't terrible. digital tv reception at my house isn't perfect, but it works enough to get me many channels.
the coax feed runs into my basement and just dangles there unused, having it connected to the cable system is only going to bleed off the cable signal. but when the cable is out, i can use a barrel connector to directly connect the antenna to the TV of choice (in my case, in my bedroom), or replace the incoming cable feed with the antenna.
my tv's are older, i'm someone who doesn't really see the need to spend money on new flat panels unless i need them. i took advantage of the discount cards that were available during the Dtv changeover, but there are many converter boxes available fairly inexpensively.
by simply reconnecting the feed to my bedroom tv to the converter i have in there, i had tv.
from there, i try to keep a phone around that can tether. tethering is where you have a way to get your computer online via your cell phone. you can pay for the service from most cell providers, but i dont pay for the service. however, i am technically inclined, so i have in the past hacked my iphone and currently keep an Android based phone in my arsenal that allows for this.
keeping this stuff around isn't difficult or terribly expensive, and truly beats the shit out of not being able to stay connected.
in the end, i went over to a friend's house anyway - and when i came home the cable connection was fixed (though the wire is still across all the yards). but, i love knowing i'm prepared to avoid hassle or annoyance.
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