Ok, just went and got a new DTV Dish. And I cannot seem to get a signal from the damn satellite. Any experts out there?..Maybe someone that’s done it before that can give me a few things to try before I pay someone to put this damn thing up?..I’m a reasonably bright person, can do all the things it listed (put up basketball hoop, ceeling fan…etc.), but because I’m in an apartment complex, I’m limited in what I can do. No mounting it to the building or railing. Ok, I attached it to a nice wooden bench we have on the deck…pointed it to 227 degrees…that’s not a big deal. While the little scale thing on the side that helps set the elevation is about worthless, having done some satcom work before, I can eyeball 39 degrees. And I should be able to get at least within +/- 2degrees and get a signal. The cable doesn’t even need to be run through a wall…goes right under the door, and into the reciever…so any other tips to try before this thing becomes a snow sled?
I’d write it off to a Y2K problem. 
I have a Sony dish and didn’t find it hard to setup. Make sure the dish is level and the go by the elevation scale, eyeball isn’t good enough unless yours is really calibrated. I found it best to start with the correct elevation then swing in azimuth until I got a signal then tweak from there. The Sony has an on screen signal strength meter that helps as well as a blinking LED on the antenna itself. Make sure you know your local lat/long or go by the onscreen setup guide that gives you proper antenna settings based on your zip code.