Analog TV Users, Get Antenna Help for Digital Switchover

If you have cable or satellite TV, the demise of analog TV probably doesn't interest you much. After all, you're already on digital TV. But if you're one of those folks who still has rabbit ears on the TV and an antenna on the roof, you may be wondering what you're going to do after the change.

If you have an analog TV you'll have to get a converter box that converts the new digital signals to analog. But! You don't have to get a cable or satellite subscription -- you can still get over-the-air TV. AntennaWeb, at http://antennaweb.org/ , is designed to help you determine what kind of outdoor antenna you'll need to get the most of these new over-the-air broadcasts.

I was very interested in this site as several members of my family still use only over-the-air TV, and if next February rolls around and they can't see the "Pet of the Day" on the noon news, there's going to be serious discontent.

The front page of AntennaWeb has a "Choose An Antenna" link. Click on it and you'll get a huge form that asks you for your name and e-mail address and physical address and phone number. IGNORE ALL THAT. The only thing you're required to fill out on this form is your zip code. (You can fill out more information if you want to; providing your full address will make the next couple step easier.)

When you provide a zip code then you'll get a map of the zip code -- you can click on the map or the map sides to move it around and then zoom it down to the approximate area of your address. Once you do that and click Continue, AntennaWeb will think for a minute and you'll get a list of channels.

I looked up Saint Mary's Street in Raleigh. AntennaWeb gave me a list of over thirty channels from the Triangle all the way to Greensboro, Greenville, and Rocky Mount. The channels are listed by the power of the antenna needed to get them, from yellow to violet. The listings also show the channel call sign, frequency assignment, and miles from your selected address.

The antenna colors are not for a brand name -- instead, they're standardized colors that reflect the strength and useful distance of different antennas. You can get more information about them and a variety of HD Antenna Reviews at http://www.hdtvantennalabs.com/index.php . The more powerful antenna you use, the more channels you'll be able to receive, but the most powerful antennas require professional installation.

Want to know more about the upcoming DTV conversion? WRAL can keep you up to date. Just type DTV in the WRAL.com search box.