[olug] Slightly OT: COX digital channel numbers (mythTV users?)

[Ryan Stille]

Daryl J. Rue wrote:
> You won't be able to get the others as they come across encrypted.  QAM only
> picks up unencrypted signals.  I noticed sears is outputting an unencrypted
> OTA signal to all of their HDTV's.  I wonder what they are using to do that?
> (It would allow you to distribute HD content, ESPN for example to other TV's
> without HD cable boxes.) 
>
> Daryl 
>   
Are you sure?  I thought only the premiums (HBO, SHO, etc.) are 
encrypted.  Aren't TNT and ESPN just part of the regular cable package?  
If so the HD variants of those channels should be in the clear.  They 
were in Sioux City anyway.

I don't know what the TV showrooms use to distribute HD to their TVs, I 
always assumed it was some device designed just for that purpose.  But 
they could just use a single HD tuner outputted via component cables to 
a splitter/amplifier to distribute to all the TVs.  That would be analog 
though and may have issues with cable lengths, etc.

-Ryan