Television officially enters the 21st century Feb. 17, when the much-heralded "digital transition" takes place. On that day, broadcast stations - those one can view without subscribing to cable or satellite systems - will stop transmitting old-fashioned analog signals and start sending out their programming digitally.
What does that mean?
A better, clearer picture, experts say, and more stations.
That's the good news.
The bad news is, unless you've prepared yourself and your home's TVs properly, come Feb. 17, you may not be watching any TV at all. If your sets are attached to a cable or satellite system, however, you should be fine, regardless of the age of the TV.
Why are we doing this?
In 1996, Congress ordered that all broadcast television stations be given an extra channel to receive a separate digital signal. It later ordered that commercial analog broadcasts cease as of Feb. 17, 2009. According to the Federal Communications Commission, all stations are now broadcasting in both analog and digital. Once commercial analog broadcasts cease, those frequencies will be reserved for governmental and emergency transmissions. Some of the analog frequencies have been auctioned for use by the business sector.
What are the advantages of digital over analog?
"Better pictures and sound, plus the opportunity to get other channels that you currently cannot get," says Jordan Wertlieb, WBAL-TV president and general manager. "We offer a 24-hour weather channel only on the digital spectrum. At MPT, they offer a Spanish-language channel. Plus, there are constant reinventions and enhancements being made to [digital]. Probably the next step will be some sort of interaction between the television and the computer."
What's the difference between digital and analog?
"Analog is based on the same FM and AM radio transmissions that we've been using since the 1940s," says Rick Seaby, director of broadcast operations and engineering at WJZ-TV. "All that time, we've been using an AM signal for the picture, FM for the audio. And it is susceptible to a lot of the vagaries and interferences and slight differences of any analog transmission format - the snow, the audio interference, the wavy lines and bad picture.
"The digital transmission is very much like high-speed Internet, almost. ... It's extremely clear. It can carry more information, and keep that information intact and clear for a further distance than the analog signals."
