Partially true, but legally not correct. You CAN be blocked from installing anything a neighborhood/community chooses if that is part of that areas code. For example, if you build a house it must look a certain way or be a certain style to match the community, be a minimum cost to build, be only a certain exterior theme/color, etc. It may also dictate what you may or may not put in your yard, on your roof, etc. Some are likely referred to "gated communities". You know full well before you buy a house there or build what the codes are, rules that are expected to be followed, etc. People pay a LOT of money to live in places like this so yes, there are places where those terms do not apply. Just wanted to clear that up because it's not a given.
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- Thread starter Martin Dew
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Partially true, but legally not correct. You CAN be blocked from installing anything a neighborhood/community chooses if that is part of that areas code. For example, if you build a house it must look a certain way or be a certain style to match the community, be a minimum cost to build, be only a certain exterior theme/color, etc. It may also dictate what you may or may not put in your yard, on your roof, etc. Some are likely referred to "gated communities". You know full well before you buy a house there or build what the codes are, rules that are expected to be followed, etc. People pay a LOT of money to live in places like this so yes, there are places where those terms do not apply. Just wanted to clear that up because it's not a given.
I increasingly subscribe to all the things. Cable subscription. TiVo (lifetime contract) Netflix. Amazon. It would be cheaper to go all streaming. But there are a number of shows we watch that are cable-first, streaming second, including:
The Americans
Better Call Saul
The 100
Colony
The Expanse
Legion
There are some slighter entertainment that are cable-only:
The Daily Show
So You Think You Can Dance
Face Off
Given the rate at which I’m really watching shows, I could go streaming for much of my scripted drama: by the time I get to The 100 or The Expanse on my TiVo, it’s also available to watch on a streaming service.
But I’m burying the lede. The real reason I can’t quit cable is my wife watches Survivor and Amazing Race.
The Americans
Better Call Saul
The 100
Colony
The Expanse
Legion
There are some slighter entertainment that are cable-only:
The Daily Show
So You Think You Can Dance
Face Off
Given the rate at which I’m really watching shows, I could go streaming for much of my scripted drama: by the time I get to The 100 or The Expanse on my TiVo, it’s also available to watch on a streaming service.
But I’m burying the lede. The real reason I can’t quit cable is my wife watches Survivor and Amazing Race.
Has there been a change in the 1996 law? If you are a lawyer I certainly defer and apologize, but I still hang out in enough satellite forums that I've yet to find one of those restrictions that have been deemed legally binding when read by Section 207 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Federal Communications Commission adopted the Over-the-Air Reception Devices (“OTARD”). As far as I'm aware OTARD is still undefeated for those that have fought the Sheriff as far as Dishes less than a Meter in diameter and most receive only OTA antennas. I just did a quick Google Search and could not find anything quickly. If you have a link or article I'd love to read it, but so far I've come up empty on any successful challenges
A lot of HOA and Restricted communities have tried to and like to claim that right, but I don;t think those can be enforced if someone wants to challenge it. Those papers if it violates Fed Law then they are pretty worthless (or worse) regardless of whether you sign the paper or not. There are things things they can regulate -- reasonable placement, landscaping, safety, etc but I haven't read of any absolute restrictions that have stood up in court. Condo, townhomes, apartments when have common use areas and are technically not private property are different.
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Aren’t both of those on CBS All Access?But I’m burying the lede. The real reason I can’t quit cable is my wife watches Survivor and Amazing Race.
Are they? And live? I’ve ignored CBS so far since they’re only stereo. This would be an interesting revelation.
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I’ve never live streamed, but according to their site, you can:
“If you're unable to watch Survivor live at 8/7c on Wednesdays on CBS, all you need to watch is CBS All Access! With CBS All Access, you can stream the episode in real time or as soon as the newest episode becomes available to subscribers.
Chip_HT
Screenwriter
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And there's my main stumbling block with cord cutting. Now, if I can get access to live streams of the main ESPN channels without the significant delay, then I would probably be all over it. But I just can't switch knowing that the streams are at least a full minute behind the actual action.
I "cut the cord" over 15 years ago and eventually bought two (dedicated UHF and VHF) long range digital antennas, added a bullet amp to them and redirected the existing cable wiring to distribute the OTA signal throughout the house. I'm in kind of a fringe area and I wanted the most solid signal I could get, so I got the highest gain antennas I could find. I spent about $250 on the whole setup, and using the existing cable, it really didn't take much work. I calculate I've saved at least $15,000 on that decision. I remember actually having palpitations when I saw the Cable company truck disconnecting me, but I quickly learned my life is much better without all that crap distracting me. Reception could be iffy for some channels at first, but now I get about 60, though I'm really only interested in maybe six.
The amount of money people spend on pointless and mostly useless things is amazing. I also don't have a smart phone, and hope I never will. When someone criticizes me for the money I spend on HT, I point out these things and spell out that in the last 15 years, that's most likely as much as $30,000 I haven't spent on that stuff that they have, so even with the maybe $10,000 I've spent on HT in that time, I'm still way ahead. They are usually shocked when I add up the numbers for them. It shuts them up really fast.
The amount of money people spend on pointless and mostly useless things is amazing. I also don't have a smart phone, and hope I never will. When someone criticizes me for the money I spend on HT, I point out these things and spell out that in the last 15 years, that's most likely as much as $30,000 I haven't spent on that stuff that they have, so even with the maybe $10,000 I've spent on HT in that time, I'm still way ahead. They are usually shocked when I add up the numbers for them. It shuts them up really fast.
Once again, we've done similar things. One thing you pointed out is the image quality. It absolutely blows away my parent's expensive cable package.
None of it is vital, really.
I could learn to live with the delay in teh game itself, but if you're watching 2-3-4 games it's nearly impossible to switch quickly from one to another and so far I haven't found anything streaming quality that's even tolerable. Some of the ESPN3 streams I've tried makes my local High School football TV look pretty good. With 3 TVs I can reasonably follow 3 games pretty closely, but running 3 screens with simultaneous streams I end up with a mess and constant locked/frozen screens and can take several minutes to get back to useful.
Is any of it vital? No. But neither are Pasta and Chocolate, BUT for me without College Football and MLB games why bother and you might as well put me on a diet of Gruel and Water or better just use me as a a Novichuk Antidote tester?
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I eliminated the cable TV portion of my service, for a second time, for three reasons:
1) I found that I didn't like much of what is being produced for North American TV. I find most of the shows to be nihilistic with characters that I couldn't care less about. I just don't find any of the shows fun to watch.
2) the cost of the cable package kept going up whether there was any justification or not. When I learned mine was going up another five bucks a month for no discernible reason, I called to cancel it. The service rep's argument for me keeping the service: "well, it goes up 5 dollars every year". I'm like, "dude,if you think that is an argument for me staying then you have lost all reason".
Cable and home phone is still too expensive thanks to the Canadian government supporting a non-competitive oligarchy: however, even with a subscription to Crunchyroll and Netflix, my overall costs are still lower than having a cable package.
The only downside of having a Netflix account is that a person will find something on there that they like; however, generally, most of the series are things they have licensed from others, so the shows over and done with by the time Netflix gets a hold of them. For example, I quite liked "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Service" but by the time the show made it to Netflix, it had been canceled by (I believe) BBC America, the originating network. Of course, nothing guarantees the show would have survived even if I had had a subscription to the BBC Canada service. I find the shows that I like to watch generally will not be popular with mainstream TV audiences, while shows such as "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead" (for example) have zero appeal for me.
1) I found that I didn't like much of what is being produced for North American TV. I find most of the shows to be nihilistic with characters that I couldn't care less about. I just don't find any of the shows fun to watch.
2) the cost of the cable package kept going up whether there was any justification or not. When I learned mine was going up another five bucks a month for no discernible reason, I called to cancel it. The service rep's argument for me keeping the service: "well, it goes up 5 dollars every year". I'm like, "dude,if you think that is an argument for me staying then you have lost all reason".
Cable and home phone is still too expensive thanks to the Canadian government supporting a non-competitive oligarchy: however, even with a subscription to Crunchyroll and Netflix, my overall costs are still lower than having a cable package.
The only downside of having a Netflix account is that a person will find something on there that they like; however, generally, most of the series are things they have licensed from others, so the shows over and done with by the time Netflix gets a hold of them. For example, I quite liked "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Service" but by the time the show made it to Netflix, it had been canceled by (I believe) BBC America, the originating network. Of course, nothing guarantees the show would have survived even if I had had a subscription to the BBC Canada service. I find the shows that I like to watch generally will not be popular with mainstream TV audiences, while shows such as "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead" (for example) have zero appeal for me.
Chip_HT
Screenwriter
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For some reason, cable companies have started to placate the non-sports fans by offering sports-free packages. But why isn't there an option for sports fans to only get the sports channels? Honestly, I could live without the majority of cable channels, because there are very few shows I need to see "right now", so catching them on a streaming app, even if it was after the season would be fine.
Although, one of the biggest advantages for cable for me right now is being able to leave the main cable box on Disney Jr. at night, and then when my kid wakes up in the morning, he only has to turn the TV on (which he can do on the set itself), and he's got cartoons. It's a lot easier (and safer) than him trying to stumble around Amazon and Netflix.
Although, one of the biggest advantages for cable for me right now is being able to leave the main cable box on Disney Jr. at night, and then when my kid wakes up in the morning, he only has to turn the TV on (which he can do on the set itself), and he's got cartoons. It's a lot easier (and safer) than him trying to stumble around Amazon and Netflix.
atfree
Senior HTF Member
I decided long ago that TV/Internet is something I enjoy, and don't really care what I spend on it (within reason). I want immediate access to what I want to watch, when I want to watch it, without jumping through hoops. Plus, I'm a huge college and pro football fan, so NFL Sunday Ticket and access to a full array of ESPN/ABC/CBS/FOX channels is necessary from September through February. My wife likes having her choice of things to watch as well. Yes, there are lots of channels in our package that we don't watch, but it really doesn't bother me as I figure if I put together an "a la carte" menu of changes (if one was available), I'd probably pay just as much.
For me, it's an extra that I really don't mind paying for.
Hell, most of the people I work with spend more eating lunch out during the month than I do on my TV/Internet package.
Everyone's priorities are different.
For me, it's an extra that I really don't mind paying for.
Hell, most of the people I work with spend more eating lunch out during the month than I do on my TV/Internet package.
Everyone's priorities are different.
RobertR
Senior HTF Member
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- 10,675
I killed my sub to Directtv 7 1/2 years ago. The simple fact was that I was watching only a few channels, not remotely enough to justify the cost. Watching any movie channel was basically worthless, since I could get better quality on Blu Ray, and no HBO nonsense about cropping widescreen movies to 16:9 (even worse is the truly execrable practice by the so-called superstations of cropping movies to 4:3, THEN squeezing them to 16:9. UGH). I installed a roof antenna, giving me access to football games, and providing access to syndicated reruns and new shows that I DON'T have to pay to watch (paying for a channel with commercials seems like something of a contradiction). I also discovered that there's a hell of a lot of interesting stuff on Youtube, anything from cooking to science to philosophy, etc. and even old movies. Yes, I have to pay for the Internet, but I was paying for that anyway, so why bother with the extra cost?
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Scott Merryfield
Senior HTF Member
We still have Comcast cable, but I do the "dance" with them every two years when our contract is up to get the price back down. Our bill for Internet (175Mbps download speed), TV and home phone is $160 per month. We have fiber optic cabling from Comcast, AT&T and Wide Open West running through our back yard, so competition gives me leverage to negotiate. Comcast has a free app for Roku that eliminates the need for convertor boxes on a few of our TV's, saving $10 per month per TV. We do not have a DVR.
I watch almost exclusively sports on TV -- in my case, college and NFL football, NHL & junior hockey and pro golf. That means wanting access to the ESPNs, Fox Sports Channels, NBC Sports channels, the NHL Network, the Big Ten Network, and the Golf Channel -- as well as Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS. My wife watches some shows on several cable channels, so our tastes and viewing are pretty much polar opposites. It's difficult to get all that via streaming and save money versus what I am paying.
Other than sports, I usually either watch something from my own film library or stream a show or movie via Amazon Prime, Vudu, iTunes or TCM. We used to also have Hulu, but lost our free subscription we were getting through our Sprint cellular account when I changed our plan, saving over $30 per month. We have never subscribed to Netflix.
I watch almost exclusively sports on TV -- in my case, college and NFL football, NHL & junior hockey and pro golf. That means wanting access to the ESPNs, Fox Sports Channels, NBC Sports channels, the NHL Network, the Big Ten Network, and the Golf Channel -- as well as Fox, NBC, ABC and CBS. My wife watches some shows on several cable channels, so our tastes and viewing are pretty much polar opposites. It's difficult to get all that via streaming and save money versus what I am paying.
Other than sports, I usually either watch something from my own film library or stream a show or movie via Amazon Prime, Vudu, iTunes or TCM. We used to also have Hulu, but lost our free subscription we were getting through our Sprint cellular account when I changed our plan, saving over $30 per month. We have never subscribed to Netflix.
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@Jeffery_H
With all due respect, your editing makes it difficult and overly time-consuming to respond in kind so I'll just sum it up as follows.
If you are happy with your personal situation then "good on you." If you're trying to convince me that it's ideal we'll just have to disagree. I also think you're confusing HOA policies with case law.
With all due respect, your editing makes it difficult and overly time-consuming to respond in kind so I'll just sum it up as follows.
If you are happy with your personal situation then "good on you." If you're trying to convince me that it's ideal we'll just have to disagree. I also think you're confusing HOA policies with case law.
Well said. My outlook and sensitivities are different but I respect and understand yours.
And I’ve just heard that SYTYCD is on Hulu. So I’ll have to revisit this when my fios contract is up.
sidburyjr
Second Unit
Well I haven't cut the cord and probably never will completely. I'm just trying to bring the cost down to outrageous from impossible-to-believe.
Almost a year ago I bought a digital indoor antenna from Amazon for about $20 and tried it out on my two home TVs. It worked in both places but was not aesthetically pleasing and the results were sub-optimal. But it would probably work in a pinch if my satellite went out for a day or so. I brought it to our vacation home on the coast near Boston and found that I could access 50 or more channels. All of the main channels ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS were available with good quality feeds and many of their sub-channels featuring oldies-but-goodies (this morning "I Married Joan" and a Bogie/Ava Gardner movie, probably "The Barefoot Contessa"). And the antenna was just on the floor behind the cabinet holding the TV. In the right place, I would unhesitatingly use this for local stations. Most cable/satellite services charge $10 for local stations and $10 more for "local" sports, -- apparently a fee taken by the local government.
When my Apple TV (ver 1) died more or less at the beginning of the year, DirectvNOW streaming was giving away new AppleTV 4K units with the purchase of 3 months of their service at $35 per month paid up front. I bought it and used it for 3 months, everything bundled (taxes, fees, etc). I found that package (50 ish channels) to be adequate. More money bought you more channels. The price has since risen to $40/ month and this rate requires you to sign up for automatic drafting (something I would never do with Comcast).
The total for this is still about $1500 per year (including Prime and my leaching my daughter's Hulu [which I believe is legal] Now this is still a lot of money but Internet plus Prime would run me almost $1000 and currently I'm probably paying $2500 per year. I'm afraid to actually check.
Finally, I'm not a sports fan but I am a fan of teams (Braves, Skins, Red Wings, Duke, Auburn, Syracuse) and players, but I have no interest in buying "total" access to a sport.
Almost a year ago I bought a digital indoor antenna from Amazon for about $20 and tried it out on my two home TVs. It worked in both places but was not aesthetically pleasing and the results were sub-optimal. But it would probably work in a pinch if my satellite went out for a day or so. I brought it to our vacation home on the coast near Boston and found that I could access 50 or more channels. All of the main channels ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS were available with good quality feeds and many of their sub-channels featuring oldies-but-goodies (this morning "I Married Joan" and a Bogie/Ava Gardner movie, probably "The Barefoot Contessa"). And the antenna was just on the floor behind the cabinet holding the TV. In the right place, I would unhesitatingly use this for local stations. Most cable/satellite services charge $10 for local stations and $10 more for "local" sports, -- apparently a fee taken by the local government.
When my Apple TV (ver 1) died more or less at the beginning of the year, DirectvNOW streaming was giving away new AppleTV 4K units with the purchase of 3 months of their service at $35 per month paid up front. I bought it and used it for 3 months, everything bundled (taxes, fees, etc). I found that package (50 ish channels) to be adequate. More money bought you more channels. The price has since risen to $40/ month and this rate requires you to sign up for automatic drafting (something I would never do with Comcast).
The total for this is still about $1500 per year (including Prime and my leaching my daughter's Hulu [which I believe is legal] Now this is still a lot of money but Internet plus Prime would run me almost $1000 and currently I'm probably paying $2500 per year. I'm afraid to actually check.
Finally, I'm not a sports fan but I am a fan of teams (Braves, Skins, Red Wings, Duke, Auburn, Syracuse) and players, but I have no interest in buying "total" access to a sport.
That's the entire home theater hobby -- myself included -- right there!
Never thought I'd have to disagree with my main HTPC proponent, @DaveFThat's the entire home theater hobby -- myself included -- right there!
but this hobby [and this forum] is anything but pointless to me. It keeps me entertained oftentimes and also keeps my aging brain fresh as I try to stay current with all of the moving parts.Of course I know where you guys are coming from. It is certainly an expensive hobby best suited for those who really love music, film, etc.
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