Television.............................and Internet...........

[mudpie]

I am curious about what people do in the Pines for television. Cable is not available to us which leaves us with whatever else one does for TV and Internet.
We are thinking about getting a roof antenna to start so at least the weather and the news can be in our awareness. The rest is a mystery to me. What are digital converters? How are people getting the internet?
Mostly our cell phones don't even work in the house...............

All this would be great peace and quiet....................except employment requires me to have Internet, TV (even if limited) and cell phone service that I don't have to walk a mile down the road to get.

The more the merrier, get me some tales and woes and advice!!!!!!

Thanks, Mud Pie

 

[Boyd]

I had the same problem when I moved to my secluded location in the pines 8 years ago. I got a satellite dish from HughesNet for internet service. I had read a lot of complaints about their standard service with the small dish so I got their larger, commercial package instead that used a 1-meter (about 3 foot) antenna.

This worked fine for me, although it was expensive. The internet speed was reasonable, but not blazing fast - about 2-3 mb/s. However the big problem was latency; this is the time it takes between when you click on something with your mouse and when you see the result of that click. The satellites are orbiting very high above the earth, and that is just the round-trip time it takes send and receive the data. So there is no cure for that problem with satellite internet. If you are doing something like downloading/uploading files, it won't be much of a problem. But anything interactive will drive you crazy since you must wait a couple seconds between doing anything and seeing the results.

A year later, Verizon offered DSL at my location so I dumped the dish and went with that. It is pretty slow by today's standards (2.5mb/s) but quite usable and it doesn't have the latency issues of a satellite connection. I had to pay a big early termination fee to Hughesnet, but the Verizon service was so much cheaper I reached the break-even point within about 6 months.

So if you have phone service, I would say Verizon DSL will be your best bet by far. Assuming you can get a DSL line, talk to your cell provider. They have little boxes that connect to the internet and provide you with a personal cell tower that will cover about a 50 to 100 foot radius. The technical name for these are "femtocells". I have AT&T and am using one of their devices that they call a "microCell". It works fine and your phone will automatically switch over to it when you get in range. It will only be configured to work with your own phone number, but you can go to their website to manage it and add other authorized phone numbers for family and friends. These boxes are carrier specific - mine only works with AT&T phones. I have read that some people are able to get these for free (if you threaten to cancel your cell service for example) but I had to pay for mine.

For TV, I decided to just wait and see if I missed it. I had Comcast cable when I lived in Medford and watched a lot of TV. You know what? I never did miss the TV and still don't have it! I do have a huge collection of DVD's and BluRay disks that I watch however. But if you must have TV, then a satellite dish is certainly the way to go. Was at my daughters for Christmas and they recently switched from cable to DirectTV. It certainly offers a wealth of channels and services, if you like that kind of thing.

But honestly, getting rid of TV has had a really positive effect on my life. I used to waste so much time staring at mindless stuff. Now I only watch what I like on DVD and spend much less time. I put all that wasted time to much better use doing productive/creating things instead of passively staring at the TV.

Another approach to TV - if you can get an internet connection - would be the Apple TV.

I also have an small XM radio that plugs into a dock in both my car and home stereo system. I put a little antenna on my roof and it works great. This gives me all the news, music and other stuff I want. And since it doesn't depend on the internet, it is always available. It was especially nice to have last year when we lost power for 5 days.

Also, I got a generator when I moved out here. I was able to do the wiring myself to a panel that allows me to switch a number of circuits over to the generator when needed. It is not a large generator, just a medium size portable one, but can power my well pump, refrigerator and other essential circuits. I store the generator in my shed and either put it on the (open) porch if it is raining/snowing or in the back yard otherwise. The whole setup cost about $1000 since I installed it myself.

I love living out in the woods, but you need to take a little different approach to some things if you are used to living in the suburbs!

 

[dogg57]

Wow....Nice report Boyd

 

[46er]

I am curious about what people do in the Pines for television. Cable is not available to us which leaves us with whatever else one does for TV and Internet.
We are thinking about getting a roof antenna to start so at least the weather and the news can be in our awareness. The rest is a mystery to me. What are digital converters? How are people getting the internet?
Mostly our cell phones don't even work in the house...............

All this would be great peace and quiet....................except employment requires me to have Internet, TV (even if limited) and cell phone service that I don't have to walk a mile down the road to get.

The more the merrier, get me some tales and woes and advice!!!!!!

Thanks, Mud Pie

This link provides a good TV antenna selection tool, just enter yourlocation. If your no further than 60-70 miles from the source you should be able to find an antenna that will provide a decent signal. They can be a tad costly. A good local electronic/tv repair shop would be another good source. The satellite Dish/Direct systems are also an option and comparable to cable costs.

http://www.palgear.com/location/

As far as an ISP, there are quite a few independents around the state. HughsNet is what the state uses for their remote offices. I've worked with it and it is fairly reliable. Cell phone providers might be able to provide a wireless system, might search your area for wireless internet providers. Satellite TV providers also offer the service in some locations.

 

[Boyd]

I was taking Mud Pie at her word when she said they couldn't get decent cellular service at their house. If you can get a signal though, then it would certainly be worth a look at the 3g and 4g data plans the providers offer. You can get a little "hotspot" device that gives you wifi and connects to the cell network for data.

There are also devices that can re-broadcast the over-the-air cell signal if you are in a fringe area. They are expensive though, and the the "garbage in, garbage out" rule will apply. The main advantage is that you would mount an antenna on your roof, where it might pickup a better signal than your phone gets inside the house. But before buying anything like this, go up on your roof with your phone. If you can get a usable signal up there, then these boxes may be a good choice for you. But if you still don't get a decent signal with your phone on your roof, they will not help. In my case, I did not see a significant improvement in signal strength when I went up on the roof.

Again, anything that depends on satellites for internet will have serious latency issues. It's just physics, that's how long it takes a radio wave to go tens of thousands of miles. Trust me, it will drive you crazy. If you can get DSL from Verizon it will be vastly better, and also much cheaper. Do a google search for "Hughesnet Latency" if you don't believe me.

 

[Teegate]

She has a problem with theft in her area so anything that needs to be outside may be a problem.

 

[46er]

She has a problem with theft in her area so anything that needs to be outside may be a problem.

If she is in Bullock, there is cell coverage there, at least for the plan my wife uses. We go thru there often and have never had an outage. There is a spot further down near the pits where there is a very short dead zone, but no homes are near there, except the hunting camp. A sat antenna can be mounted in such a way that no thief without a cherry-picker could get to it. Only issue might be line of sight of the antenna, but the companies offer a no fee check of that. I'd prefer sat over cable, but we do not have a clear sight line; used it at our cabin where we had no utility coverage except electric and never had a problem.

 

[Boyd]

My 1 meter dish was mounted on the roof. It has been in an overgrown pile of junk behind the shed for the past 7 years now. Would a thief really go up there with a ladder and tools to steal something like that? If so, then I don't think I'd want to live there. Anyone who would do that certainly wouldn't hesitate to break into your house and take whatever they like.

The problem with cellular internet is that it's going to be expensive, with limits on the amount of data you can use. I keep hoping that someday affordable 4g service will come to my area, since that is the only way I'll ever get anything faster than Verizon DSL.

Satellite internet will be fine for e-mail or for downloading files (like iTunes, etc). But anything interactive - like online shopping - will just drive you crazy. And it's also expensive. If you can get DSL, it will be by far the most robust and the least expensive.

 

[mudpie]

I had the same problem when I moved to my secluded location in the pines 8 years ago. I got a satellite dish from HughesNet for internet service. I had read a lot of complaints about their standard service with the small dish so I got their larger, commercial package instead that used a 1-meter (about 3 foot) antenna.

This worked fine for me, although it was expensive. The internet speed was reasonable, but not blazing fast - about 2-3 mb/s. However the big problem was latency; this is the time it takes between when you click on something with your mouse and when you see the result of that click. The satellites are orbiting very high above the earth, and that is just the round-trip time it takes send and receive the data. So there is no cure for that problem with satellite internet. If you are doing something like downloading/uploading files, it won't be much of a problem. But anything interactive will drive you crazy since you must wait a couple seconds between doing anything and seeing the results.

A year later, Verizon offered DSL at my location so I dumped the dish and went with that. It is pretty slow by today's standards (2.5mb/s) but quite usable and it doesn't have the latency issues of a satellite connection. I had to pay a big early termination fee to Hughesnet, but the Verizon service was so much cheaper I reached the break-even point within about 6 months.

So if you have phone service, I would say Verizon DSL will be your best bet by far. Assuming you can get a DSL line, talk to your cell provider. They have little boxes that connect to the internet and provide you with a personal cell tower that will cover about a 50 to 100 foot radius. The technical name for these are "femtocells". I have AT&T and am using one of their devices that they call a "microCell". It works fine and your phone will automatically switch over to it when you get in range. It will only be configured to work with your own phone number, but you can go to their website to manage it and add other authorized phone numbers for family and friends. These boxes are carrier specific - mine only works with AT&T phones. I have read that some people are able to get these for free (if you threaten to cancel your cell service for example) but I had to pay for mine.

For TV, I decided to just wait and see if I missed it. I had Comcast cable when I lived in Medford and watched a lot of TV. You know what? I never did miss the TV and still don't have it! I do have a huge collection of DVD's and BluRay disks that I watch however. But if you must have TV, then a satellite dish is certainly the way to go. Was at my daughters for Christmas and they recently switched from cable to DirectTV. It certainly offers a wealth of channels and services, if you like that kind of thing.

But honestly, getting rid of TV has had a really positive effect on my life. I used to waste so much time staring at mindless stuff. Now I only watch what I like on DVD and spend much less time. I put all that wasted time to much better use doing productive/creating things instead of passively staring at the TV.

Another approach to TV - if you can get an internet connection - would be the Apple TV.

I also have an small XM radio that plugs into a dock in both my car and home stereo system. I put a little antenna on my roof and it works great. This gives me all the news, music and other stuff I want. And since it doesn't depend on the internet, it is always available. It was especially nice to have last year when we lost power for 5 days.

Also, I got a generator when I moved out here. I was able to do the wiring myself to a panel that allows me to switch a number of circuits over to the generator when needed. It is not a large generator, just a medium size portable one, but can power my well pump, refrigerator and other essential circuits. I store the generator in my shed and either put it on the (open) porch if it is raining/snowing or in the back yard otherwise. The whole setup cost about $1000 since I installed it myself.

I love living out in the woods, but you need to take a little different approach to some things if you are used to living in the suburbs!

Thank you so much for that thoughtful and informative reply. Several people have told me not to use the dish for internet because its confusing due to the latency. FYI for everyone one family has alot of success with an air card put into their laptops. I have to look into DSL. We have a phone line but it's incredibly old and odd. I find verizon very unfriendly regarding it. I'm hoping a tree falls in it in a storm and only falls on it..................hum I wonder how I could make that happen.
The XM radio is a great idea too and yes we really need a generator. Last year during the storm the power went out for what seemed like forever!

 

[mudpie]

This link provides a good TV antenna selection tool, just enter yourlocation. If your no further than 60-70 miles from the source you should be able to find an antenna that will provide a decent signal. They can be a tad costly. A good local electronic/tv repair shop would be another good source. The satellite Dish/Direct systems are also an option and comparable to cable costs.

http://www.palgear.com/location/

As far as an ISP, there are quite a few independents around the state. HughsNet is what the state uses for their remote offices. I've worked with it and it is fairly reliable. Cell phone providers might be able to provide a wireless system, might search your area for wireless internet providers. Satellite TV providers also offer the service in some locations.

We are for sure going to get an antenna first so there is time to think other ideas through. Ill check out palgear and also look at tvfool, which may be the same kind of thing. We don't have cell phone service, although I'm told you can get a repeater for that since we do have one patch in the field where the phones work.

 

[mudpie]

I was taking Mud Pie at her word when she said they couldn't get decent cellular service at their house. If you can get a signal though, then it would certainly be worth a look at the 3g and 4g data plans the providers offer. You can get a little "hotspot" device that gives you wifi and connects to the cell network for data.

There are also devices that can re-broadcast the over-the-air cell signal if you are in a fringe area. They are expensive though, and the the "garbage in, garbage out" rule will apply. The main advantage is that you would mount an antenna on your roof, where it might pickup a better signal than your phone gets inside the house. But before buying anything like this, go up on your roof with your phone. If you can get a usable signal up there, then these boxes may be a good choice for you. But if you still don't get a decent signal with your phone on your roof, they will not help. In my case, I did not see a significant improvement in signal strength when I went up on the roof.

Again, anything that depends on satellites for internet will have serious latency issues. It's just physics, that's how long it takes a radio wave to go tens of thousands of miles. Trust me, it will drive you crazy. If you can get DSL from Verizon it will be vastly better, and also much cheaper. Do a google search for "Hughesnet Latency" if you don't believe me.

I believe you and I've heard it from several others. What is "garbagein, garbageout". I can use my imagination but I'd be better off if you tell me for sure. We are so in the fringe that if you look at out house on a map for ATandT or Verizon we are exactly in the middle of where reception isn't....................

 

[mudpie]

She has a problem with theft in her area so anything that needs to be outside may be a problem.

Excellent point!
The roof might be ok because you have to be a monkey or an acrobat to survive it.........................

 

[mudpie]

If she is in Bullock, there is cell coverage there, at least for the plan my wife uses. We go thru there often and have never had an outage. There is a spot further down near the pits where there is a very short dead zone, but no homes are near there, except the hunting camp. A sat antenna can be mounted in such a way that no thief without a cherry-picker could get to it. Only issue might be line of sight of the antenna, but the companies offer a no fee check of that. I'd prefer sat over cable, but we do not have a clear sight line; used it at our cabin where we had no utility coverage except electric and never had a problem.

Hum..............what carrier does she use?
My family has ATandT and my close friend as well as one of our neighbors have Verizon. None of us can use the phone inside the house with either carrier. The two guys who came to fix out house phone both had Verizon cell service and they found a small patch in out front yard where they could make calls. We might be freakishly in a small dead zone.

 

[mudpie]

My 1 meter dish was mounted on the roof. It has been in an overgrown pile of junk behind the shed for the past 7 years now. Would a thief really go up there with a ladder and tools to steal something like that? If so, then I don't think I'd want to live there. Anyone who would do that certainly wouldn't hesitate to break into your house and take whatever they like.

The problem with cellular internet is that it's going to be expensive, with limits on the amount of data you can use. I keep hoping that someday affordable 4g service will come to my area, since that is the only way I'll ever get anything faster than Verizon DSL.

Satellite internet will be fine for e-mail or for downloading files (like iTunes, etc). But anything interactive - like online shopping - will just drive you crazy. And it's also expensive. If you can get DSL, it will be by far the most robust and the least expensive.

Alot to think about.
Shockingly we've been vandalized twice. It's a nice quiet area that is said to be extremely safe according to the few neighbors we have.

Another thing happened the other day that kind of upset me but maybe I'm over reacting.
Our place is clearly owned by someone. It's a visible house close to the road. Someone is always there. Cars in driveway. Dogs in the yard ect....We have very evident posted signs all around the property and we back up against a safety zone. Yet yesterday it was clear that someone came onto our land, stood right next to one of the "NO Hunting" signs and started firing away into our lot towards our house, no less. We knew this because we found their spent shells and brand new Carhart gloves on the ground.
It's just upsetting that people have zero respect for the signs. And it feels unsafe like I cant go out in my yard because some people have no regard for rules of any kind.

 

[46er]

Hum..............what carrier does she use?

She has Verizon prepaid, switched to it after Sandy as they were the only carrier that had reliable service around us. Prior to that she used TracFone, neither has/had a problem traveling thru that area, with the one exception. If you have a GPS, you can get your coordinates and give them to the carrier to find out what they might have, if anything, in your area.

A link to help determine if you can use TV antenna's.

http://www.antennasdirect.com/transmitter-locator.html

As regards the firearms incident; might want to give the Fish & Wildlife hotline a call, they have a CO in and around Greenwood/Pasadena.

 

[Boyd]

What is "garbagein, garbageout".

That is an old expression about computers that means the quality of what comes out will not be any better than the quality of what went in, regardless of how much processing you do. A less nice way of saying this would be "putting whipped cream on a t*rd"

So if you can't get a good cell phone signal when you stand in the location that you would put the repeater (such as your roof), then it won't help.

I don't know if you can get DSL in your location, it depends on the distance of your house from their equipment. But really, that will be much better than any of the other options discussed unless you very rarely use the internet. If you go to the Verizon website you should be able to enter your phone number and find out if DSL is available.

Then once you have DSL, you can get one of the "femtocells" I mentioned and that will give you cell service in and around your house. I think the cell phone repeaters cost $300 and up (beware of anything that is too cheap). The femtocell devices are more like $100, but as I said, you might get a discount if you press AT&T for it. Here's what I have:

http://www.att.com/standalone/3gmicrocell/?fbid=JE-TEssfvZx

I also find it kind of funny, since I am using Verizon internet to place calls on my AT&T phone.

 

[Teegate]

Alot to think about.
Shockingly we've been vandalized twice. It's a nice quiet area that is said to be extremely safe according to the few neighbors we have.

Another thing happened the other day that kind of upset me but maybe I'm over reacting.
Our place is clearly owned by someone. It's a visible house close to the road. Someone is always there. Cars in driveway. Dogs in the yard ect....We have very evident posted signs all around the property and we back up against a safety zone. Yet yesterday it was clear that someone came onto our land, stood right next to one of the "NO Hunting" signs and started firing away into our lot towards our house, no less. We knew this because we found their spent shells and brand new Carhart gloves on the ground.
It's just upsetting that people have zero respect for the signs. And it feels unsafe like I cant go out in my yard because some people have no regard for rules of any kind.

There are acres and acres of woods to hunt in and they do it around homes. I don't understand that. I hate even walking near homes when in the woods.

Guy

 

[Boyd]

I agree completely Guy. I'm very fortunate here, my property borders on a WMA and I've never once seen any signs of trespass. There's only one time that I even saw a hunter in the WMA from my land, he was up in a tree stand in the distance and whistled to let me know he was there.

Maybe people are more respectful in Atlantic County? Mudpie, I don't think you're over-reacting at all. I'd be looking for a new home if those kinds of things happened on a continuing basis.

 

[mudpie]

That is an old expression about computers that means the quality of what comes out will not be any better than the quality of what went in, regardless of how much processing you do. A less nice way of saying this would be "putting whipped cream on a t*rd"

So if you can't get a good cell phone signal when you stand in the location that you would put the repeater (such as your roof), then it won't help.

I don't know if you can get DSL in your location, it depends on the distance of your house from their equipment. But really, that will be much better than any of the other options discussed unless you very rarely use the internet. If you go to the Verizon website you should be able to enter your phone number and find out if DSL is available.

Then once you have DSL, you can get one of the "femtocells" I mentioned and that will give you cell service in and around your house. I think the cell phone repeaters cost $300 and up (beware of anything that is too cheap). The femtocell devices are more like $100, but as I said, you might get a discount if you press AT&T for it. Here's what I have:

http://www.att.com/standalone/3gmicrocell/?fbid=JE-TEssfvZx

I also find it kind of funny, since I am using Verizon internet to place calls on my AT&T phone.

This is all good info from everyone, in fact I'm going to forward it to my Uncle who is the official head of the household.

 

[mudpie]

There are acres and acres of woods to hunt in and they do it around homes. I don't understand that. I hate even walking near homes when in the woods.

Guy

Right?
What is the forest something short of 25000 acres?
And really they have to walk right onto where people live?
I was pretty upset.