Submission + - issue with comcast a2d conversion for municipality
jake-itguy writes: I am the IT guy for a small town municipality. Comcast called me the other day and told me I had to have a digital to analog converter for each TV in the municipality as comcast is turning off analog cable in September. I did a quick count and we have 32 TVs across 6 buildings (22 being in the police and fire departments). Most of the TVs are hung on the walls. I told comcast having a box for each TV was not acceptable and wanted a different solution. Comcast told me there was no other solution. They told me they have been putting these boxes on every TV in each classroom in each school. I laughed when I heard that. I said do you know how much electricity is going to be needed for each box. They didn't know the answer. I was bumped up to the next guy in the comcast hierarchy who said there was no other solution and I had to pay $3 per month for each box. Being a municipality we are entitled to free expanded basic cable as a part of the franchise agreement back in 1982.
I know there is a solution as hospitals and hotels don't have little boxes next their TVs. Unfortunately I haven't found a specific answer to this problem so I am asking Slashdot. Is there a box that can be put in the basement of the town hall that will convert the comcast signal into a regular digital signal? Most of the TVs in the town have digital tuners per last years a2d conversion of the airwaves. I would be willing to replace the few analog sets with new ones if there is a good solution for this. Each building's cable feed is fed from the town hall. We have a nice big 1 inch cable coming into the building with some splitters coming off the line. Each building gets a 1/2 inch cable. Is there a box that will convert the comcast signal to analog for the schools? I am sure the schools don't have TVs with digital tuners. I am in Indiana if that is useful.
Thanks,
Jake
I know there is a solution as hospitals and hotels don't have little boxes next their TVs. Unfortunately I haven't found a specific answer to this problem so I am asking Slashdot. Is there a box that can be put in the basement of the town hall that will convert the comcast signal into a regular digital signal? Most of the TVs in the town have digital tuners per last years a2d conversion of the airwaves. I would be willing to replace the few analog sets with new ones if there is a good solution for this. Each building's cable feed is fed from the town hall. We have a nice big 1 inch cable coming into the building with some splitters coming off the line. Each building gets a 1/2 inch cable. Is there a box that will convert the comcast signal to analog for the schools? I am sure the schools don't have TVs with digital tuners. I am in Indiana if that is useful.
Thanks,
Jake
