Fuck everything goin digital...

[Relic]

http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/35415/117/

Analog cell phone network going off-air Feb 18, 2008 PDF Print E-mail
Trendwatch
By CNN
Thursday, December 27, 2007 10:48
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United States - The FCC voted in 2002 to allow cell phone carriers to begin allowing their analog networks to go offline beginning February 18, 2008. As this date is fast approaching, as many as 500,000 OnStar users will no longer have access to emergency services. It is believed as many as one million cell phone users will be shut out, as will about 400,000 wireless home security systems. Many people are also completely unaware this shutdown is coming.


OnStar notified all of its users on its website in 2006 that the shutdown was coming in 2008. They've also mailed out notices to everyone this year, still many people appear to be completely in the dark--much like the way all analog TV signals will be going away in 2009. Proponents recognize that analog signals require more signal strength to transmit, and that means less battery life and worse sounding calls when signals are weak. In addition, the same EM spectrum used to carry analog signals can carry 16x more traffic using a digital network.

An alarm industry group called the Central Station Alarm Organization (CSAO) tried to get the FCC to delay its sunset on analog devices. The FCC denied that request stating that "digital networks are a much better use of the airwaves".

Read more ... CNN.

What is the point in this?Seems like it would be good to keep analog as a backup to me.
I dont trust this switch.

 

[Steel Side]

I heard about this, and the day is coming fast!!!!

 

[Relic]

Worse than the year 2000 switch.. I dont want EVERYTHING digital, I want choice even if the choice sucks.

Plus it seems to me that its gonna be expensive as hell to switch all the TV's and shit.

 

[Steel Side]

Well maybe the price of DLP HDTV's with 3D glasses will drop dramatically and we won't notice. Remember that first Discman. Mega bucks, now they're $10-20. I think TV's really gonna suck. Writers on strike, signal goin digital. Let's go back to radio. Any HAM operators here???


But for real, isn't a digital signal just an interpolation of an analog signal. Okay, loose reference. Maybe we'll have pirate TV.

Or maybe we should boycott network tv. With the Internet, we really don't need it. I rarely watch tv on my 73" plasma. I play video games on it!!!

 

[Chrono]

buy a CB if you want communication freedom
my handle is 1153 at a gamma wavelength on channel 2012

na but seriously analog is the bagphone technology so it's really not too be missed

 

[Sincock]

Wow, Australia hasn't had an analog cellphone network since about ten years ago; barely even noticed the switch over.

As for TV the less I watch the better; I'm glad Chinese TV is so crap cause I watch even less. Television is mostly a waste of time. At least you have a choice with the net and DVDs.

EDIT: of course it's easier to keep track of and listen to digital calls, probably the real reason for the change.

 

[KurtisRich]

ahahaah i didnt know analog still existed

 

[LDB]

Analog sux azzz.....lol...that goes for analog music gear as well! Yeah digital...booooooo analog! I'm glad that they're forcing the switch so you "Dinosaurs" can play like Mustard and Catch da fuck upppppppppppp! lmao

 

[Relic]

^ If digital is so much better than analog why is digital recording trying to come up with analog emulators?

 

[thedreampolice]

"What is the point in this?Seems like it would be good to keep analog as a backup to me."

You know I have ties to the tech industry. The company I worked for before I worked for Sweetwater worked with Alltel. Analog as far as phones go has got to go, its a huge bandwidth and power suck. I think the ratio was you could have 10 digital phones in the bandwidth it takes for 1 analog phone. Digital phones are actually more reliable and use less power. Its a very good thing!

 

[Kontents]

^ If digital is so much better than analog why is digital recording trying to come up with analog emulators?

I belive only because the processing of the sounds with Analog has a thicker sound or "warmth" to it.

But Digital is our day and age, we are more then ready for it. Sorry Relic you too old man lol Jp.

 

[Relic]

Nah , its so THEY can track you!

Thanks for the explanation Chris, makes sense...
Is it cheaper for TV stations as well tho?

 

[NobleWordz]

In the UK the analogue TV signal will be eventually turned off, region by region. Its pretty cheap to upgrade, you just buy a box (some as little as £20) and plug it into the TV and your ready to receive digital. I have digital in the front room, a lot more channels and a better picture/audio. Its pretty good.

With cells though there is another issue, AFAIK a digital signal is a lot easier to pull out the air. With not much knowledge some one could be listening to your phone sex.

 

[Relic]

With cells though there is another issue, AFAIK a digital signal is a lot easier to pull out the air. With not much knowledge some one could be listening to your phone sex.

^^^Which is my underlying point..

 

[Pug]

One of my clients for work is an engineer for cell phone antenna's, and after a talk with him about the analog vs digital debate, he concluded that it's important for both technologies to be used together, not to single out one of them. This seems like it's probably a bad move, but it doesn't really affect me, I don't even own a cell phone.

 

[dacalion]

This is about a lot of things ranging from citizen band radios to hearing aids. Analog freqs. tend to bleed all over the place (as in go well beyond it's designated freq.) whereas a digital signal is more stable. Analog freqs. effect a ton of things that they shouldn't. Remember when you used to not be able to use a cell phone near a hospital much less in one? If anyone near you has a high powered citizens band radio, you can hear them through your microwave, tv, alarm clock. Studies have even shown that a cb radio can effect a pacemaker due to the broad range of freqs. that it occupies.

On the digital side, you get nothing but improvrments, better reception, clearer signals, less bleed over into unwanted areas. So many things have already changed over that when it's official it won't bother us no where near as bad. Digital is just the way of the future until they find something better.

dac

 

[LDB]

^ If digital is so much better than analog why is digital recording trying to come up with analog emulators?

For you medevil peeps, that's why! Nah....seriously.....dealing with music. you can't get that grime without analog emulation. Shit will sound good with digital but it sounds to refined and clear for certain types of music. Digital takes away the warmth that analog added to recordings.

 

[Ash Holmz]

evrything going digital is just a way for the feds to keep track of yo ass. they can tap every phone easier and plug into everybodys network... my connect at the time (in a past life where i was moving work) had this old skool wierd ass rotary house phone that he used to sell weight on .. he would always speak in heavy codes and slang and shit when he was on a cell phone or something but when he was on that weird house phone he would just speak normal and be sayin all types of shit you shouldnt be sayin over the phone.. i never asked him bout it but i think the nature of the phone made it extremely hard to tap because it was so old skool.. thats the only explanation i could see for that.. but i dunno .. never asked him ... but dont be suprised if bush's speeches show up on every channel lmao!

also there are many rural places where digital service is not avaiable... so they gotta work on that..

 

[Relic]

^ Zactly!!

 

[thedreampolice]

Analog warmth is actually harmonic distortion. Just FYI.