Note that over the air OTA TV also provides the Buffalo FM classical station sans picture. You can listen to classical music through your TV.

https://www.wikihow.com/Build-Antennas "
  • Create a simple TV antenna using a coaxial cable and tinfoil or a jumbo-sized paperclip.
  • Make a HDTV antenna using copper wires and a wooden board. Avoid using insulated wire."

  • On Wed, 29 Nov 2023 at 12:44, Karen Lewellen via talk <talk@gtalug.org> wrote:
    Hi Evan,
    granted as said, the watching over  my DOS computer, or my flip phone is a
    firm  no.
    While I do have personal and professional interest in Boston and Detroit,
    that you are getting Buffalo might make this a worth while experiment, even
    if it just gets me through the Holidays..I am quite isolated here, and all
    the  mayhem around  how i reach the world is weighing quite heavily.
    Can you give me a specific loop model, and a from where?
    There is a co-worker with cSI who has been a divine gift, putting together
    my DOS machine and working with my spare talking scanners.
    If I get this swiftly, I can discover if it is workable, there is a window
    with a ledge right out behind my set.  In fact I have a garden shelf it
    can be attached to, so ling as  it does not have to run through the window
    itself.
    Kare



    On Wed, 29 Nov 2023, Evan Leibovitch wrote:

    > One option available to some cord cutters is going back to the antenna.
    >
    > I have one on my rooftop and it does quite a good job of picking up Toronto
    > and Buffalo channels, which I find preferable to the Robellus options for
    > two reasons:
    >
    >   - The off-air signal is not compressed so it can be noticeably sharper
    >   than cable or satellite
    >   - The cable/dish options usually get their US feeds from Detroit or
    >   Boston or some such; Buffalo local news and weather will be more relevant
    >   to me
    >
    > This isn't just limited to people with their own houses. A good small UHF
    > antenna can also work well from an apartment building, especially if you're
    > south-facing. I once lived on an upper floor in a St. Jamestown tower
    > (Wellesley/Parliament) and my reception was outstanding with just a simple
    > loop. A really good website for determining what you can get at your
    > location is tvfool.com.
    >
    > I use these channels mainly for local news, sports and weather. Most actual
    > programming can be found on the web, either through a subscription to a
    > service like Crave or ... there are other paths
    > <https://www.howtogeek.com/71315/the-how-to-geek-guide-to-getting-started-with-usenet/>.
    > I also have a tuner called an HDHomerun that takes antenna input and
    > provides it through your home network (ie, accessible to your PCs and
    > phones) so you don't even need a coax-input TV.
    >
    > Of course you can in theory receive over the air channels using an antenna
    >> and an ATSC tuner, but if you are in a basement that seems unlikely to work.
    >>
    >
    > For the expense of a simple loop
    > <https://www.amazon.ca/Antenna-Indoor-Amplified-Digital-Miles-Support/dp/B0BWDSXVLG/ref=sr_1_20>
    > -- some are available for under $25, and you can return it if it doesn't
    > work -- if you're close enough to the CN Tower you might be surprised.
    >
    > - Evan
    >
    >
    > On Wed, Nov 29, 2023 at 12:23 AM Karen Lewellen via talk <talk@gtalug.org>
    > wrote:
    >
    >> Hi,
    >> If I could get the digital box, without having to use a modem, I would
    >> likely  be fine, because the digital box would tap into the existing
    >> blanket internet  wireless wise would it not?
    >> In fact that was my landlord's idea adding an extra receiver to his
    >> account, for which I would pay the rental, as it is just on another floor.
    >> I am curious how the antenna idea works, I am above ground for the area
    >> where   my television sits, so perhaps?  what do I need?
    >> Oh  boy does my television have optical outs..in spades
    >> The DVD player  has an HDMI port, I imagined connecting the cable box to
    >> this, and since the set is connected to the  player it would be enough.
    >> I still have my old Roger's  digital cable box, the one they provided for
    >> older televisions as well.
    >> wish I had fewer trees, not only is satellite less complex, from bell
    >> there
    >> are   channels automatically provided with audio description for the blind
    >> enabled..they do not provide this for Fibe.
    >> Kare
    >>
    >>
    >>
    >> On Wed, 29 Nov 2023, Lennart Sorensen wrote:
    >>
    >>> On Tue, Nov 28, 2023 at 08:09:47PM -0500, Karen Lewellen via talk wrote:
    >>>> Hi folks,
    >>>> before simply saying you avoid television, Part of what I do
    >> professionally
    >>>> means accessing  a great deal, news channels and other things for
    >> example.
    >>>> And for me, the, I will just watch it on my computer is a nailed shut
    >> door.
    >>>> This entire property is Bell fibe saturated which  while it might
    >> translate
    >>>> to one of their fibe TV boxes working for me, its almost December and I
    >> am
    >>>> no closer to my land line solution..even with photographs of the
    >> existing
    >>>> jacks.
    >>>> So,I am wondering if at all, it is still possible from anyone to simply
    >> find
    >>>> old fashioned cable box cable.
    >>>> I have all the rest of the equipment, and it all works..even my VCR.
    >>>> I am even wondering if, since the place is so saturated for wireless,
    >> if I
    >>>> got an older apple TV, third gen still had optical connectors, or a
    >> rocku, I
    >>>> could come up with something. not as good as regular cable, but I am
    >>>> grasping for ideas.
    >>>> thoughts?
    >>>
    >>> Bell's Fibe service has only ever worked with their boxes.  Rogers cable
    >>> has been moving to all digital over the last quite a few years, and
    >>> analog cable (that a VCR could directly tune) has been gone for a while,
    >>> with everything going digital.  They even gave people free little boxes
    >>> for a while to connect to older TVs that could tune the basic digital
    >>> channels but I don't think they even do that anymore.  I think everything
    >>> now involves a digital cable box.  On top of that they have been moving
    >>> to IP based systems (Rogers Ignite) for a number of years and I doubt
    >>> they would install the legacy digital cable anymore for new accounts.
    >>> Definitely no analog cable left anymore.
    >>>
    >>> Of course you can in theory receive over the air channels using an
    >>> attenna and an ATSC tuner, but if you are in a basement that seems
    >>> unlikely to work.
    >>>
    >>> So unfortunately as far as I can see, the only things you can get these
    >>> days is Bell Fibe or Rogers Ignite, both of which require using a box
    >>> from the respective company and only outputs HDMI.  VCRs won't do
    >> anything
    >>> with that, and older TVs won't either.
    >>>
    >>> The streaming method might work, although if you were looking to get
    >>> access to local TV stations, I have no idea if any of the streaming
    >>> services offer that.
    >>>
    >>> As far as I can find, some of the Bell Fibe boxes have optical audio out.
    >>> The Rogers Ignite boxes do not appear to have it.  Of course some TVs
    >>> also have optical audio out, so it might not have to be optical out on
    >>> the box you are receiving with, if the TV has that.
    >>>
    >>> --
    >>> Len Sorensen
    >>>
    >> ---
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    >>
    >
    >
    > --
    > Evan Leibovitch, Toronto Canada
    > @evanleibovitch / @el56
    >---
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