Oh, that everybody could even have an outdoor antenna!

I see many apartment blocks that couldn''''t put up any external antennas at all--not even Dish or DirecTV. Some still can''''t even after 10 years. I''''ve seen print ads and photos of early VHF and UHF as well as all-band in many styles, the huge loops with smaller loops as elements and 3 to 4 bowties in a reflector for UHF. I have a 3 bowtie reflector on my mast unconnected and when I saw virtually the same thing advertised as a DTV antenna at the local Radio Shack I had to smile as MINE was FREE! I bought a Channel Master amp there long ago and if it hasn''''t deteriorated any they claimed 22 dB of gain which allows me to get 17 analog signals, 11 of them LP and translator stations. The other six are DTV companions to full power stations that will cease to function in February. Effectively however 2/3rds will NOT convert at that time to my knowledge.

I am attempting to find a PROPER DTV converter and find myself in the middle of a Scooby Doo mystery so to speak and wishing those ''''meddling kids'''' would solve it. I must wade through an empty sea of information to discern which adapter is available where and while you think that''''s an easy choice I refuse to do business with one particular company and while that needs no discussion here if you realize I can''''t afford to drive and favor vintage and antique bicycles and audio gear and know what happened to those items you can leave it there. I''''m not buying a poorly made unit or one from a make associated with flimsy products when I assume I will die holding the 28-3? year old Trinitron and projection sets from the 1990''''s I like without need for complete replacement. I don''''t even believe that after ten years of blazing a trail all this DTV stuff will really blossom, seeing that our neighbors aren''''t evenh on the same page and we probably won''''t finish converting for ten years, IF EVER, and that NAB has done such a montrously poor job educating anybody about the boxes! I had the impression that they ALL had to feature analog passthrough to be considered yet maybe only FIVE models are denoted to have this CRITICAL feature, one that Oregon Public Broadcasting has been touting during the breaks for some time now (owing to the truth that TRANSLATORS and not their station network itself covers most of the state) and that is unnerving when you push a 60 dollar junk box at people with little money and nearly no idea what they must search for. Add this to search engines that are the least relevant to good searching EVER and wallow past all the eBay links that no longer exist in the majority.

I have no confidence and little faith, any more than I would for HD Radio/IBOC and certainly FEMA after Katrina, This may be another mess created by an industry that might find it harder to sugarcoat it past a Congress that now has doubts and even opposition to the leadersip of the FCC.

Maybe that''''s less than 7,000 characters?

Not so fast, waskelly wabbits. Rabbit ears deliver an adequate signal in many, but not all, segments of a station's footprint. A better signal -- and more stations -- can be gotten with a roof-top antenna. Calling this campaign "rabbit ears pioneers" simply sets many viewers up for disappointment -- when they discover that they can get some but not all DTV channels with rabbit ears. Promoting roof-top antennas as "back to the future" -- YES. Promoting rabbit ears in the title and not stressing superior rooftop signals -- NO. Please put on your tin foil hats and rethink this, NAB/CEA.