My Dad used to complain when they visited that I didn’t have enough channels for him to watch. I had hundreds of channels, but not enough for him. He wanted “History Channel 14: More Of Hitler’s Tanks” or whatever, and the channel that only plays NCIS re-runs. That’s what some people do. When my best friend was here recently he suggested that one thing we could do was just watch TV. I found this suggestion mystifying - the guy and his family came all the way from California and you want to WATCH TV? When we could go out or play games or get ice cream or see things? But that’s what they do for fun, and what they do with his in laws when they come over.
My Dad, though… It was seriously really important to him that their be TV, and lots of it, if he was going to be anywhere. When my parents rented a house in Florida for a few months the absolute #1 criteria for him was that there be big TVs with huge satellite or cable packages. Believe me, this stuff is important to some people. TV was as important to my father as cigarettes are to a smoking addict.
Anyway, we cut the cable this year. It isn’t missed. I didn’t expect to miss it much and I miss it even less than I expected. If you know the right program to put on a computer or an Android box you can stream basically anything when you want it, including most live sports.
Oh, I know. I just find the idea of having “house guests” unhappy because there ain’t no cable a bit… bemusing.
But then, we have been to too many dinners and small gatherings where it was deemed necessary to have a babblebox on, and at least one visitor ask (just a tad snippily) if we ever turned our TV on.
I haven’t had cable since probably 2004. At first it was just a financial choice - I was eating ramen and using dialup internet, too (these days I would live under the freeway if I could still have broadband).
Nowadays I see no value in a cable subscription. There are channels that I wish I had: Cartoon Network, Comedy Central, some of the educational channels. Sure. But when I visit my parents’ house and flip through the available channels the ability to catch an episode of Teen Titans is more of a nice little treat and not something I feel inclined to pay an extra 50 bucks a month for.
Hulu Plus is making a big content push these days and Netflix is putting out seriously compelling original television. Every year there’s less incentive to go back to the antiquated cable companies.
I’ve been trying to work up the nerve to get rid of cable (pathetic, I know). Partly financial, partly dissatisfaction with my shitty cable provider, the usual reasons I guess. I’m one of those that more often than not has the tv on as background noise / to keep me company. I do love tv, or at least did when I found more compelling stuff on, but now I find I pay less and less attention. On the other hand, there are a few shows that I actually look forward to, such as the Wed. night lineup on ABC (The Middle, The Goldbergs, Modern Family, Blackish). I also very much like to have the local news on in the morning while I get ready for work. I do have Roku which pretty much covers all the stuff I’d like to see, except, of course live broadcasts. Does it seem likely that a complete technology doofus such as I can figure out how to purchase a good product and then place it correctly? I know we’ve covered a lot of this in other threads, but now that I’m ready to give it a try I can’t locate them:smack:
I haven’t had cable TV since 2004. My wife and I don’t miss broadcast TV at all.
The problem is sports. We both are soccer fans, though, and there are a few decent options, namely the MLS online and the Fox Soccer 2 Go streaming packages. This covers the MLS (although there are annoying blackout rules), international soccer for the most part, and the UEFA Champions League. That just leaves the Premier League, for which I usually catch Arsenal matches at a friend’s house. I love road bicycling races as well, but at least you can buy a streaming package for the Tour de France. I miss watching all the Spring and Fall Classics, though.
For the MLS blackout games, which means the match is being broadcast on nationally, we go the our nearby brewpub and cheer with like-minded fans. In the end, it works out!
But we do miss college basketball (which I love), and odd other events I’d watch, like the Olympics. But again, the pub is often the answer. Heck, even with beer and snacks a few times a month it ends up being cheaper than cable TV!
Cable TV has been available in Thailand only within the past 20 years. But we choose not to subscribe. Too busy for TV for the most part and – most importantly – we are not sports fans. Not in the slightest. Sports would tip the balance if we were fans. I know lots of Western sports nuts who can’t do without their cable here, but even then all you hear is bitching and moaning about cable service and inappropriately placed commercials.
Our condominium building pipes in BBC TV 24-hour news and Japan’s NHK, and that’s really all we need. MTV out of Taiwan used to be included too, but for some reason that stopped. Even the local cable companies don’t offer that anymore, I think.
The whole point of hosting houseguests is to provide a comfortable, “happy” place for them to stay. If you’re fine with your houseguests being unhappy when they are staying with you, then you shouldn’t hosting them, IMHO.
I don’t like being cold, so I keep the AC at 83-degrees F. It is a waste of energy–in my opinion–to keep it colder than that. But when I have houseguests, I don’t want them to be hot. Or cold. I could be smug about it and insist they suck it up and deal since it’s my house. But then that would make me a pretty crappy hostess.
Unless you live in a very rural location, with an antenna you can likely get the networks and several other stations. Go pick up an antenna from Target, hook it to your TV, and see what you can get. You don’t need a fancy or “digital” antenna–even an old antenna will work.
Here’s what I get over the air:
The networks (ABC/NBC/CBS/PBS)
PBS actually has 4 channels they broadcast
CW channel
A gameshow channel showing 80’s and earlier gameshows
Old B/W movie channels
Lots of 80’s shows (Miami Vice, Fantasy Island, etc)
Crime shows
Spanish channels
etc.
I can get all the network shows, morning news shows, and plenty of options for “background noise” while doing something else–all for free!
I like morning news, as well–mostly for the weather. This does not work in all locations, but the cheap interior antenna I bought from Amazon gives me CBS, ABC, NBC, PBS, etc., in HD. Plus “secondary” channels for these networks, usually not HD. And a bunch of other stuff–often religious & often in other languages than English.
Add the streaming services & I’ve get everything but All The Sports…
First, I applaud your taste. Yes, I said it…I watch sit-coms, and I’m not ashamed.
If you’re fortunate enough to live in an area with good over-the-air reception, all you need is a $30 antenna and you can watch ABC to your heart’s content. For a larger investment (hardware plus monthly fee) you can get an OTA Tivo, and record those admirable shows and watch them at your leisure.
I’d agree, but there’s a bit of a difference between utilising what you already have, and paying out $$$ for a subscription you don’t want just to keep some people entertained for a few hours.
Personally, I gave up TV altogether about ten years ago - a divorce left me without a TV or the means to buy one for a while, then when I could afford one I realised I didn’t really miss it anyway. When I met my wife and she started living with me, she realised she didn’t miss it either. Frankly, I wonder how I ever used to find the time to watch it.
Whenever we have guests around, we’re generally sitting around talking/eating/drinking/whatever. If there’s ever any need for entertainment then we’ll chuck a DVD on (we do have a HTPC with a largish monitor and a fairly sizeable library). That tends to suit most people. If anything, we get comments about how nice it is to not be tied to the TV all the time.
Alright, thanks guys, you’ve given me the gumption to give it a try. Always assuming it’s returnable if it doesn’t work, what is there to lose. And you say I can just get a basic, cheapo one?The last time I checked one out - I believe it *was *at Target- I was told to put it in the attic if possible. So, I guess something attaches to the tv and then the antenna picks up the signal and directs it down to that(?) The only experience I’ve have antennas are the old round wire thingies that you would attach to the one that came with the tv. You know, back nineteen aught three.
If you still had that old antenna, you could hook it up to your TV. You don’t have to install it in your attic or anything like that. Of course, the bigger and higher your antenna is the stronger the signal it will produce, but a cheapo set of rabbit ears hooked to your TV will likely work pretty well. That’s what you should try first. Get a simple antenna, hook it straight to your TV, and have your TV scan for channels.
This is assuming you have a somewhat modern TV that has a modern tuner. Some years back they switched the broadcast to be digital and the older TV’s (CRT’s) won’t be able to read the signal. If you have a flat screen TV, it will be able to get the channels from the antenna.
Have you run your address on the two TV-signal sites I gave above? If you don’t have at least two or three strong ones, an indoor antenna won’t do you any good. An attic antenna at second story height might work for just under “strong” stations. Anything less, and you’re going to need an external antenna at a height above most rooftops and trees to get a decent signal from local OTA.
Worth a quick look to see what you can get, and if it would be worth it.
According to the site, local blackouts mean you get live video.
And I was assuming that you wouldn’t have seen all these other games before. It wasn’t too easy to watch every game even back in 2009. Plus, it’s probably about appealing to new sports fans who may not have gotten involved in the earlier games. They’re trying to get the Millennials and post-Millennials.
So I’m supposed to keep cable and pay $100 a month to keep my occasional houseguests happy? Unreasonable houseguests who freak out over having to watch a show streamed from the Internet instead of on cable?
Yes, what you do with your house temperature is out of the norm, and actually could make a lot of people really uncomfortable. And you have to already be able to cope with lower temperatures anyways, so it’s not that much of an imposition.
But not being able to watch cable TV is not something that is a big deal. What type of person is only friends with you because they want to watch a certain show live? That’s worse than those “friends” who won’t come over because you don’t have the latest video game system.
For me, it’s more for when relatives come stay with me for a while. I want to make them feel at home, and likely they watch TV at home. I wouldn’t get it for a dinner party or something, but for an extended visit, especially with older relatives, it can make their stay more enjoyable.
I asked my cable company about this and they said I would only get charged for the time I had the service. So if I keep it for a week and cancel, I’d only be charged for that week.
Can people stop putting words in my mouth, please? I didn’t say anything about houseguests freaking out. If I had anyone in my house freaking out over anything–whether it be casein or cable–their asses would be out on the street.
I’m not talking about friends, by the way. I’m talking about my parents, who live far away from me. They don’t just pop in for five minutes. We’re talking about a couple of days of them being in my house.
Uh, this may surprise you but lots of folks don’t have AC and still have houseguests. I used to be in this number. During the summer, I made do with boxfans and near-nudity. And I’d still have the occasional houseguest. I made every attempt to make their visits as comfortable as possible. If it had been possible at the time, I would have even bought a $200 window AC unit just so that my father could have a good night sleep. He was nice enough to come visit me anyway. But it sure would have been nice for me to have provided that luxury for him anyway, right?
My parents only visit me once a year. I don’t particularly want to be Martha Stewart when they come visit me, but I don’t want them to feel obligated to visit. I want them to be thrilled when they visit.
I’m not the best conversationalist.
I am not a good cook.
I don’t have jacuzzi to offer them.
All I have is books, an affectionate cat, and a old-school TV that only gets a few channels.
Maybe–just maybe–if I had cable, my parents would want to see me more than once a year.
I’m not saying that you are a terrible host if you don’t provide cable for your guests. Maybe your friends and family don’t watch TV. But my mother does. My father does. I don’t think it’s that crazy to want ones parents to have an enjoyable tme when they visit you for an extended stay.
I completely understand what **Monstro **is saying. I do the exact same with my a/c and while I have never and probably will never have extended house guests, I have stayed at homes where there was no tv in the guest room. Not exactly the same as no cable, but the point is I didn’t have access to anything to watch during the times we weren’t doing things together, like at night before going to sleep or whatever. It’s not an obligation on their part by any means, but it was really kind of a bummer.
Thanks for cosigning. You just kept me from losing my patience.
My mother is one of those people who has to have a TV on before she goes to sleep. I find this to be an unpleasant habit, but I totally get having a nighttime ritual because I have my own. So now that I have a guest bedroom (one with a bed and everything), I’m considering putting my TV in there, at least when I know my folks are visiting.